Life, 1915-05-06 · page 53 of 56
Life — May 6, 1915 — page 53: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page is primarily **advertising** with one small political cartoon by Ellison Mooney (lower center). The main content is editorial text criticizing reader passivity, followed by product advertisements. **The Cartoon**: Two working-class men in conversation. One says "The kingdom of heaven is at hand—it is here now," to which the other replies, "Say, it's hell to be in heaven and not know it!" **The Satire**: This likely mocks **religious revival movements** or utopian promises popular in early 20th-century America. The joke suggests that even if paradise existed, ordinary people wouldn't recognize it—a commentary on either religious fraud or public gullibility. The lower-class dialect emphasizes who such promises typically target. **Context**: The cartoon fits the page's editorial theme about how people obtain beliefs uncritically from external sources (newspapers, editorials, presumably sermons) rather than through independent thought.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
ard gauge, as with railroads. And as for typography, types are in about as many sizes as there are diseases in a modern hospital. Yet the real answer to the question, therefore, as to why people read must be found deeper than all this. People must read to obtain infor- mation. The incredible part of this is, of course, that they never obtain the information, but the habit of be- lieving they are learning something is so thoroughly ingrained into our reading public that even the most care- ful examination of newspapers fails to upset it, It is only when we question any- one who has been in the habit of get- ting his information from the papers, or books, that we come to realize under what a singular and deep-rooted illusion we are all laboring. Nobody nowadays pretends to have an opinion of his own, based upon meditation, for who is there who medi- tates? To obtain our opinions we read the editorials, We could in many cases even write these editorials ourselves, assuming, of course, that we were as unintelligent as the ones who write them. This peculiar kind of editorial unin- telligence, however, can only be ac- quited by practice, like being a first- class yogi. It is going one better than the reader, The reader believes he is learning something, But the editorial writer not only believes that he has learned something, but that he has the capacity to impart it to some- hody else. Favorites in the great Metropolis 'ATURALLY the question arises, what has made them 30? Purity, pre-eminent quality; because, in fact as well as in appearance, they are “temptingly delicious.” PARK & TILFORD Chocolates & Bonbons are the candies that all enjoy and always call for by name there- after. Made for those who love the true goodness of finest con- fections. Sold by dealers and at our stores in New York, and by 6000 agents throughout the United States. Booklet of gift-box series mailed if you send us your dealer's name. PARK & TILFORD NEW YORK NABISCO Sugar Wafers Nabisco Sugar Wafers are tempting morsels. Ne'er were fairy sandwiches more delectable than these cream- centered dessert confections. Serve them with ices, creams or beverages. In ten-cent and twenty-five-cent tins. ADORA Sugar Wafers—Another dessert confection with sweetened-cream filling. NATIONAL BISCUIT COMPANY ELLISON MOOWErOs “YES, MY GOOD MAN, ‘THE KINGDOM OF IT 18 HERE Now, “Say, 11'S HELL TO BE IN HEAVEN AND NOT KNOW IT!” T° be had at every good place where accommodation is made for travellers, Preserves your health in every climate. From the famous White Rock Mineral Springs, Waukesha, Wis, Office, 100 Broadway, N.Y,