Life, 1917-03-22 · page 12 of 38
Life — March 22, 1917 — page 12: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
The page contains two separate items: 1. **"Philomena" article**: A serious account of a medical case involving a young woman who became blind and was diagnosed with spinal meningitis by conventional doctors. Judge Raymond MacNeille questioned whether she had tried osteopathy instead. The patient recovered fully under osteopathic treatment in 1916, establishing what the author suggests is a case where osteopathy succeeded where medicine failed. 2. **"That's About the Idea" cartoon**: A satirical dialogue mocking Secretary Daniels's naval policy. The joke critiques his claim that building a dreadnought will deter foreign aggression—suggesting this logic is absurdly backwards, like a man thinking he needs a navy to avoid hiring sailors. The page juxtaposes earnest medical advocacy with political satire.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
A PLACE IN THE SUN That’s About the Idea A popular pastime is to denounce Secretary Daniels because a dread- naught can't be built in a day. —Charleston News and Courier. OT in a day, but in two years. Not a dreadnaught, but enough men to man a navy; so that every time some foreigner says “ Boo!” a nervous chill will not go over the whole country. RIGG: Whittler says he has to get away from his family once a week. Griccs: How does he manage it? “Dines at home.” Philomena HE strange case of Philomena Nar- ducci was reported in full recently in two reputable Philadelphia papers, the North American and the Press. At the end of seven months of a more or less eventful life, Philomena was taken violently ill. She became totally blind, and was declared by physicians to be an imbecile. Dr. Rostow said she had spinal meningitis. Other doctors said she had other things. It was in this apparently helpless condition that she was taken before Judge Raymond MacNeille, in order that she might be committed to the institution for feeble- minded. This judge, however, was a peculiar person. He not only had a sense of justice, but in defiance of the whole orthodox medical profession, actually had the audacity to ask Philo- mena’s mother if she had ever tried osteopathy, Philomena’s mother had not. “ Os- teopathy it is,” said the judge. And osteopathy it was. Philomena was taken to Dr. John H. Bailey on No- vember 22, 1916, totally blind’and un- able to eat even semi-solid food. In February she was entirely well, being “apparently as normal as a child of her age ought to be.” What is to be done with osteopathy when, in defiance of the regular doc- tors, it establishes a record of such well authenticated cases as Philo- mena’s? It seems to be a fact that osteopathy cures where medicine fails. WAITER: Everything all right, sir? Curonic Kicker: No! There's nothing to find fault with. “HE NURSED AN OLD GROUCH” comicbooks.com