Life, 1918-01-24 · page 6 of 40
Life — January 24, 1918 — page 6: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a **safety advertisement**, not political satire. The American Chain Company uses a dramatic scenario to promote Weed Anti-Skid Tire Chains. The cartoon depicts two men in conversation—one appears to be a police officer or authority figure (right) informing a distressed car owner (left) that his vehicle skidded on wet pavement because he failed to equip it with tire chains. The accident injured the man's wife, who's being taken to the hospital. The ad's message: winter tire chains prevent skids on icy/wet roads, avoiding injury, death, and legal liability. The text emphasizes that chains should be installed *before* accidents occur, not after. The stark, threatening tone—mentioning "supreme penalty" and hospital visits—was typical of early 20th-century safety advertising, using fear to motivate consumer behavior.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
“What! My Car?” “Yes! skidded—and it’s up to you. You failed to provide the chauffeur with Tire Chains. Only good luck saved your wife from paying the supreme penalty for your negligence. She's on the way to the hospital painfully injured, but the doctor thinks she'll pull through. You'd better hurry to the hospital and then report to Headquarters.” How strange it is that disaster must come expose their families to injury and death. to some men before they realize that all The time to Esovirs against accidents is makes and types of tires will skid on wet before they happen. Don't wait until after i pavements and muddy roads when not the first skid. Put’ Weed Chains on all four equipped with Chains. tires at the first indication of slippery going These men do not appreciate and you will have quadruple pro- 7 until too late, that by failing to pr tection against injury, death, car vide Weed Anti-Skid Chains the damage and law suits. Weed Chains are Sold for All Tires by Dealers Everywhere ! i |) eee : | | x | a BRIDGEPORT. CONNECTICUT QZ Fe y IN CANADA ; DOMINION CHAIN COMPANY, LIMITED, NIAGARA FALLS, ONTARIO. Comicbooks eeviy