Life, 1917-07-12 · page 37 of 40
Life — July 12, 1917 — page 37: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains a serialized fable titled "Drawing the Color Line" (continued from page 52), featuring anthropomorphic animals—a Red Cat and Blue Mouse—in philosophical dialogue about mortality and sincerity. The narrative depicts the Red Cat offering to eat the Blue Mouse to relieve his suffering, but imposing a condition: the Mouse must publicly recant that he's been "bluffing all your life" and admit he was never truly sincere. The Mouse initially refuses, then reluctantly accepts. **The satire's meaning**: This appears to be an allegory about social hypocrisy and the human tendency to maintain facades. The "color line" reference (title) likely alludes to racial or class divisions, with the fable suggesting that people maintain false personas throughout life, and only face truth when confronting mortality. The page also includes advertisements for Du Pont's trapshooting promotion and Great Western Champagne, typical of Life's era.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
1 ERRATA, POPES “Dear me!” he said, with an illu- Wilmington Delaware The King of Sports LEARN TO SHOOT AKE a few hours “off.” Go out to the gun club and try the self played game for self made men. A real sport— Trapshooting The lure of the flying clays—their challenge to your gunskill and the game’s genuine spirit of friendly competition, combine to MOVIE OF A MAN ABOUT TO START FOR BUSI- | lift the load off your mind and send yon NESS IN THE MORNING . back to the battle of business with clearer — brain and greater “pep.” Drawing the Color Line | The ‘Sport Alluring” Booklet (Continued from page | on request Here the Red Cat suddenly had a E. L DU PONT DE NEMOURS & CO. bright idea. minating smile. “How singular that | neither of us has discovered the easy remedy. All you need is to be put out of your misery; therefore, any cat will do. I will introduce you to my cousin who is gray. She will be glad to have you for dinner.” “Lam surprised,” replied the Blue Mouse, “that you should entertain stich a suggestion. If you will reflect, you must see that I could do that my- self, hy merely putting myself in the Great Western | way of a cat of any other color really insin ( ‘*ham a e | red. No! They are all my enemi give you a gi , ip on | I should not be sincere if 1 permitted fessional humorist after your dea “Brut Special 1903" ‘Special Reserve"? myself to be eaten by one of them.” but will also be a great revenge on abecretely bees ,, rer dn “But you will understand,” said the your enemies, who will go about say- Estee Dey Red Cat, “that if I accept your—er— ing: ‘And to think he was only & wag kind invitation to dinner, I shall natur aiter all! And we missed his delight- ally be compelled, according to. my ful society’ nature, to take my time about it. That “But 1 couldn't means the usual friendly preliminaries ¢ because it would: —it's apt to be slow and, well, long sincere, you drawn out—very unpleasant, 1 assure “Sparkling Red Burgundy” Produced by the old French slow method of fermentation in the bottle taking from six to seven years of time. rtainly you are,” said the Red | yo Great Western is the Only | Couldn't you give me a quick nip— Cat. t, you must know that this is | i ee rear a warmparne ever | and have it over with—just to oblige a only a matter of form. 1 could give |? 4 Foreign Expositions. | friend . you any numb of instances of worthy | cat Yess | “It’s a great deal you ask—first, to people, perfectly sincere, who have | | gener,’ | Paris Exposition, 150, | sin against my creed, and then to go canted at the last moment just to : <2 Bruxelles | contrary to my naty but to be as serve the pro i | | candid with you as you are with me, paper. Good! | I have taken a fancy to you, and I'll e* * 6 8 | Write for our free Ninstrated Booklet, | do it on one conditio “I would have done it anywa cked his lip 3 well to have . . | “Which is?” the Red Cat, as he Pleasant Valley Wine Company | t it’s j Rheims, N. Y. Oldest and largest producers of Champagne in America “That you recant—make an ac- knowledgment that you have only heen bluffing all your life, nermost convice T. L. M. ie true to his ij comicbooks.com