Life, 1916-12-14 · page 16 of 42
Life — December 14, 1916 — page 16: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains three distinct satirical pieces: **Contest Announcement**: Life magazine is soliciting reader criticism of itself, offering a $500 prize (substantial for the era). The satirical tone lies in Life inviting—even encouraging—harsh criticism of its own publication, suggesting confidence or self-aware irony about its quality. **Medical Satire ("Unanimous")**: Three doctors completely disagree on treatment (trepanning vs. appendectomy vs. amputation) for a patient, yet claim unanimous agreement that "an operation is necessary." This mocks medical overconfidence and the era's tendency toward aggressive surgery as a default treatment, regardless of actual diagnosis. **Poem & Illustrations**: "Secrets" is sentimental Victorian verse about hidden emotions. The cartoon below depicts a church funeral service with mourners; the caption jokes about a boy who played baseball where the church now stands—the parson is positioned where "second base" was. This contrasts the solemnity of death with casual childhood nostalgia, creating dark humor through juxtaposition.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
LIFE: A Contest in Criticism—$500 Reward 'O. the best criticism of Lire, comprised in a letter or article not exceeding two hundred and fifty words in length, and complying with the con- ditions of the contest, we will award a prize of five hundred dollars. The award will be made on the merit and enter- taining quality of the criticisms, whether favorable or otherwise. We shall print a number of the best of them if they seem worthy of that distinction, regardless of their severity. Here are the conditions. Please, please read them carefully and comply with them exactly, so that we won't have to throw your contribution out as being ineligible. CONDITIONS All contributions must be addressed to The Contest Editor of Lire, 17 West Thirty-first Street, New York sm must be clearly written or, better yet, typewritten on one side of the paper. The writer's name and address should appear in one of the upper corners. nvelopes should contain absolutely nothing but the criticism and sender's name and address. If you have any- thing else to say to Lire, send it in a separate enclosure. It is not necessary to be a subscriber to Lire to enter the competition. It is open to the world, but no compet- itor may send in more than one criticism. In case of ties the full amount of the prize will be given to each tying contestant. Contestants are advised to keep duplicate copies of manuscripts submitted, as no contri- butions will be returned. The Editors of Lire will be the sole judges of the com- parative merit of the contributions, and in all matters their decision will be final. Just the same, you needn't be afraid of hurting their feelings. All contesting criticisms must positively be in Lire Office not later than noon, December 26, and the award will be announced in the issue of January 18. In other contests competitors have been barred out because they figured the time limit too closely and did not allow for de- lays in the mail. Send your contribution early so as to avoid this chance. Unanimous TIENT’S WIFE: I hope you gentlemen are not go- ing to disagree! First Doctor: Oh, not about anything important. Doc- tor Fell insists on trepanning ; Doctor Fluke holds out for removing the appendix, and I am in favor of amputation at the knee. But we're all agreed that an operation is necessary. Secrets a little grief, Love E So sweet and free of guile, That, lest joy hold it fief, He hid it in a smile. Love had a little joy, So pure and crystal clear, That, lest grief it destroy, He hid it in a tear. And grief has ne'er discerned Joy in her tear, the while That joy*has never tearned Grief lay within her smile! Appearances “TS he henpecked?” “T think he must be. His wife is a very sweet, delicate, unoffensive, tactful woman who never says ‘Boo’ to an outsider.” “yes, SIR! WHEN I WAS A BOY I PLAYED BALL WHERE THIS CHURCH IS. THE PARSON IS STANDING RIGHT ON SECOND BASE.”