Life, 1916-06-15 · page 33 of 48
Life — June 15, 1916 — page 33: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page is primarily **automotive advertising**, not political satire. It's a 1920s promotional piece for the Mitchell Six automobile manufactured in Racine, Wisconsin. The illustrated cartoon at the bottom depicts a **fashionable touring car filled with well-dressed passengers** — likely representing aspirational consumers of the era. The imagery emphasizes leisure, elegance, and modernity. The text celebrates engineer **John W. Bate's achievements**: 50% cost reduction, 700 improvements, and durability (citing a car with 218,734 miles). The "73 New Attractions" and 26 "extra features" appeal to middle-class buyers seeking both value and luxury. The price ($1,325 f.o.b. Racine) and repeated emphasis on "factory savings" target practical consumers during the competitive automobile boom. There is **no political content** — this is straightforward commercial marketing emphasizing engineering excellence and value proposition, typical of Life magazine's advertising revenue model during the 1920s.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
m book: d from Idressed f unso- MID-YEAR MODEL 257 CARS IN ONE SIX $1325 f. o. b. Racine WITH 26 EXTRA FEATURES Marvels in Car Building The Chief Things Accomplished by John W. Bate We ask you to mark these things— you admirers of fine cars. Let us drop for a moment all the minor attractions—the customary claims. Let us ask your judgment on what these things mean—today, to- morrow and always. The Solid Things We staked the Mitchell future, when we started car building, on the genius of John W. Bate. He had done wonderful things, in lines allied to this, as an efficiency engi- neer. He has finished now. And we wish to cite, for your opinion, the solid results at- tained. Costs Reduced 50% He has reduced factory costs, in the past six years, an average of 50 per cent. To do this he built a complete new plant, designed for efficiency. He has displaced hundreds of machines with new ones. He has taught thousands of men to save min- ute ow this model plant — representing $5,000,000—builds this New Mitchell at a cost which amazes our engineers. 700 Improvements Under Mr. Bate’s direction, every part of the car has been studied. The car has been lightened some 30 per cent, yet made twice as strong as it once was. Castings have been almost eliminated. Now 440 parts are either drop-forged or stamped from toughened steel. Over 700 improvements have been m in the Mitchell to meet his ideas of ef- ficiency. 30-Year Service We have records on one Mitchell—built by Mr. Bate—which has run 218,734 miles We have records on six Mitchells which have averaged 164,372 miles each—over 30 years of ordinary serv Mr. Bate has always stood for a “life- time car,” and those records indicat tainment. You haven't known of these facts because we have waited until Mr. Bate’s work was $1325 facing For 5-Passenger Touring Car or 3-Passenger Roadster 7-Passenger Body $35 Extra High-speed, economical Six: 48 horsepower: 127- inch wheelbase; complete equipment, including 26 extra features. completed. But engineers knew them. Mr. Bai efforts have long heen discussed among experts. ery Mitchell dealer has a long list of engineers—men famous the country over— who have bought the Mitchell for them- selves because of Mr. Bate’s perfections. 73 New Attractions Now comes a Mid-Year model with 73 new attractions. held its completion until other new models were out. This one car embodies all the best new features found in Show models. And it has 26 extras. That is, luxuries and conveniences which cars y No car in our class, we believe, has more than two of them. Jt has Bate cantilever springs to make it the easiest-riding car built. Not one of these springs has ever yet been broken or repai In these things—and our price—you will find our factory savings, You will find in this Mitchell a wonderful value. The demand for the Mitchell has trebled of late. But we expected that and got ready. We are showing this spring another side to efficiency by not keeping customers waiting. MITCHELL-LEWIS MOTOR CO. Racine, Wis., U. S. A. comicbooks.com