Life, 1917-09-27 · page 15 of 40
Life — September 27, 1917 — page 15: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This Life magazine page features two distinct sections: **Top image:** "The Willowbys' Ward" — a scene depicting a professor delighted by discovering a rare bird specimen. Multiple figures observe the professor's excitement in what appears to be a domestic or institutional setting. **Bottom section:** An article on "Birds" discussing their presence worldwide, particularly mentioning the ostrich and parrot. The text notes the parrot was born in Ireland but "early in life migrated to South America" and joined "the After-dinner Speakers' Club and the Progressive party." **The satire:** The parrot's biography appears to mockingly equate the bird's migration and club memberships with human political involvement, likely satirizing progressive politics or specific political figures of the era. The accompanying illustration shows a man and woman in period dress, suggesting romantic or domestic comedy. The humor relies on anthropomorphizing the parrot as a political actor.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
THE WILLOWBYS' WARD. 17 THE PROFESSOR IS DELIGHTED WITH HIS DISCOVERY OF A RARE SPECIMEN Birds IRDS are seen in all parts of the world, In New York they come on toast and in back yards. In other parts of the country they come on trees and in the air, When any man de- clares that he feels like a bird, he fre- quently means that he is a high-flyer, Among many varieties of birds, we may mention the ostrich, which first places its head gently in the sand and then puts a full page advertisement in the morning papers announcing that it is at home to all callers. The parrot is a smaller bird than, the ostrich, and was born in Ire land, but early in life migrated to South America, where it speedily joined the After-dinner Speakers’ Club and the Progressive party, which EXTRACT FROM NUMEROUS NOVELS “WIS FACE LIT UP” it helped to soothe up to its last hours, Other birds are the sparrow and the dodo. The dodo has made a name for itself in literature, and the spar- row is famous as a home-builder back of the blinds, where in the early spring and summer it takes the place of the family alarm clock and gets everybody up in time for breakfast, except the cook. There is also the cassowary. This bird is built somewhat like a chorus girl and wears the same number of clothes. This gentle bird can easily kick you in the face from where he stands without moving a muscle or otherwise betraying the slightest emo- tion. He does this as a matter of routine, having acquired the habit from once having been employed in the German army. comicbooks.com