Life, 1916-06-15 · page 12 of 48
Life — June 15, 1916 — page 12: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page satirizes **President Lowell of Harvard**, who opposed confirming **Louis Brandeis as a Supreme Court Justice**. The text argues Lowell's objection was hypocritical—he claims to represent Harvard's intellectual tradition (linking himself to John Quincy Adams and others), yet opposes Brandeis despite his qualifications. The main cartoon depicts a military figure holding a sword, confronted by a smaller figure claiming superior business knowledge—illustrating Lowell's arrogance. The satire suggests Lowell, despite heading an educational institution, lacks moral authority to judge others' fitness for high office. The page also includes unrelated lighter pieces: a popular song parody and classical philosophical jokes about women and bigamy, typical of *Life*'s mixed satirical content.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
1116 President Lowell and President Eliot RESIDENT LOWELL of Har- vard was opposed to confirmation of Mr. Brandeis as a Justice of the Supreme Court, but President Emer- itus Eliot considered Brandeis an extra-valuable lawyer, and declared that the failure to confirm him would be a “ grave misfortune.” Which made the World say (May 21st): In this contest Dr, Eliot re- mains what he has long been—the spiritual successor of John Quincy Adams—while President Lowell is the spiritual successor of Amos Law- rence and the Cotton Whigs. The Harvard that Dr. Eliot speaks for is the Harvard that helped estab- lish the republic. The Harvard that Dr Lowell speaks for has the soul of a business college. Here is a finer field for dispute than even the recent objection of a Yale character to have a German opera singer sing in the Yale bowl, The standard basis of scholastic disap- proval of Dr. Eliot for about thirty- five years was that he was a business man. If Lowell's Harvard has the soul of a business college troops of the dead will rise up out of the later necrology lists in the Harvard Quin- quennial Catalogue and declare that Eliot implanted it. Moreover, wasn’t it Amos Lawrence, the Cotton Whig, who sent Sharp's rifles to Kansas, and was so desirous to provide counsel for Anthony Burns? How bad is it to be the spiritual suc- SSS S ‘THE LATEST POPULAR SONG “UNDERNEATH THE STARS” —— Ss ~ Ss — “ BESIDES BEING TOO STUPID TO REALIZE THAT I KNOW MORE ABOUT YOUR BUSINESS THAN YOU DO, YOU'RE A LIAR AS WELL!” cessor of Amos Lawrence? How far apart really in spirit are the President and the ex-President of Harvard? Won't the World or some other com- petent historian enlarge a little on this interesting subject? This is an era in which anything may happen to a col- lege president. It is suitable that we should have a clearer idea of Presi- dent Lowell's mental bias. The Ladder “MY wife bosses me, the cook bosses her, the policeman bosses the cook—who bosses the policeman?” “Why, the boss, of course.” A Summer Song HY am I so glad to-day? Ah, dear heart, I cannot say— Just perchance because a bird All the air with singing stirred ; Or because the clover sweet Spread its fragrance at my feet, Or since Love, awandering, Touched me with his bended wing— Why am I so glad to-day? Ah, dear heart, I cannot say! Charlotte Becker, YNICUS: alike. Smuutcus: Then why should any man commit bigamy? Oh, all women are comicbooks.com