Life, 1918-03-21 · page 54 of 56
Life — March 21, 1918 — page 54: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is primarily a **Prudential Insurance advertisement** from 1917, not satire. The poster on the left shows marching soldiers with the slogan "Stand! Stand! Stand! The Boys are Marching—Buy War Savings Stamps," encouraging Americans to purchase government bonds to finance World War I. The accompanying announcement celebrates Prudential's patriotic mobilization: all 18,000+ company employees enrolled in the "Thrift Army," and the company formed 300 War-Savings Societies nationwide. The text emphasizes how the company used its 16 million policyholders to spread the government's message about financial sacrifice during wartime. This reflects early WWI propaganda linking corporate participation in war bond campaigns with patriotism and national duty. The "thrift" message promoted saving as both personal virtue and wartime obligation.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Announcement During 1917 all previous records of the Company were surpassed both in business added and busi- ness continued. The paid-for Life Insurance in Force is greater than ever before. The world situation has strong- ly emphasized the importance of thrift. With characteristic promptness 100 per cent of the Prudential Home Office force enrolled in the Nation's Thrift Army, and nearly 300 War-Savings Societies have been formed by our representa- tives from coast to coast. Thus a total of over 18,000 Prudential workers are saving and investing in W. S. S. as well as carrying the Government message of Thrift to the holders of more than 16,000,000 policies. We turn our faces to the future knowing that The Prudential will not only continue to guard the interests of its present policyhold- ers as a sacred trust, but will extend its mission of protection more and more widely throughout the national community. Varreel they, President, Insurance Company of America Incorporated under the laws of the State of New Jersey Home Office Newark, N. J.