Life, 1916-11-16 · page 17 of 46
Life — November 16, 1916 — page 17: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
**Main Cartoon ("If We Believed All We Read in the Papers"):** Depicts commuters on public transit appearing skeptical or distressed, satirizing how newspapers present contradictory or dubious claims as fact. **"Things We Shrink from Knowing":** A satirical list of absurd or contentious statements presented as if they're controversial truths—mocking both credulous readers and sensationalist journalism. Examples include claims about cabinet appointments, religious sectarianism, and the 1814 Capitol burning. **"Railroad Preparedness":** References a threatened railroad strike over the Adamson law (which set an eight-hour workday). The author sarcastically suggests creating a "Plattsburg" training program (referencing a military preparedness camp) to train replacement workers, should the Brotherhoods (railroad unions) strike. The satire mocks both the unions' strike threat and the government's lack of preparedness—suggesting Americans shouldn't be caught helpless if labor unrest disrupts rail service. **"Sonnets from the Portuguese":** A small cartoon with unclear specific reference, appears unrelated to the page's main content.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
1F WE BELIEVED ALL WE READ IN THE PAPERS Things We Shrink from Knowing N WTON D. BAK is Secretary of War. Georgia is a state belonging to the American Union. Josephus Daniels will be our next Secretary of the Navy. Congress re-convenes December 4. Our country has one hundred and_ sixty-eight Protestant sects, each thinking that it alone is just right. Nine men in Washington are absolute judges over ninety million men outside Washington, When the British burned the Capitol at Washing- ton in 1814 the American militia engaged outnum- bered them six to one. Comstock was, Sumner is, the guardian of our morals, What the Prohibition party will tackle after it has secured nation-wide prohibition. Railroad Preparedness BOUT a fortnight before election Assistant Grand Chief Burgess of the Railroad Engineers was quoted in the American as threatening an unprecedented railroad strike if the Adamson law was repealed. Very likely. And that being the case, why not some railroad pre- paredness? Why not a Plattsburg to teach young men engine-driving and train-running, against the day when the Brotherhoods go out? They ought not to catch us helpless a second time!