Life, 1915-09-09 · page 17 of 44
Life — September 9, 1915 — page 17: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
**Top Cartoon:** A seaside flirtation joke. Two men discuss the possibility of loving two women simultaneously. The punchline—"Not if they know it"—is a cynical commentary on infidelity, suggesting women would object if aware of romantic rivals. **"One Survivor" Article:** This sardonically reports that despite Germans destroying Louvain's library during WWI (a real historical atrocity), one book survived because a Belgian professor had removed it beforehand. The piece mocks German "Kultur" (civilization) while absurdly suggesting the Germans bear no blame since they "didn't know" the book was missing. The satire criticizes both German militarism and the hollow excuse-making that followed wartime destruction. **"Sunday-School Teacher" Joke:** Tommy Tuffnut claims he forgave an enemy once—but only because the enemy was larger and could beat him. The humor undercuts the moral lesson about forgiveness, exposing self-interested pragmatism rather than Christian virtue. The page reflects WWI-era American attitudes toward German aggression and cultural destruction.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
“pO YOU THINK IT POSSIBLE TO LOVE TWO GIRLS AT THE SAME TIME “NoT IF THEY KNOW IT.” One Survivor ANTIQUARIANS and bibliophiles will be glad to note that the news that Louvain’s library, consisting of some two hundred and thirty thousand volumes, was totally destroyed by the Germans is not true. Many who read that this library, with its priceless books, reccived no mercy at the bloody hands of German Kultur may P 3 be surprised to learn that one book was saved. ee] A Belgian professor, on the day before the burn- g, got the book out of the library for consultation. Afterwards he buried it. The Germans, of course, were not to blame. They didn’t know that book was out when they burned the library. UNDAY-SCHOOL TEACHER: Did you ever forgive an enemy? Tommy Turrnut: Oncest. Sunpay-scnoo. Teacher: And what noble sentiment prompted you to do it? Tommy TurFNut: He was bigger dan me. “THROUGH THICK AND THIN” comicbooks.com