Life, 1918-03-28 · page 8 of 40
Life — March 28, 1918 — page 8: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page satirizes President Wilson's discomfort with an anti-Semitic statement from Form 64, a War Department manual instructing Medical Advisory Boards. The form claimed "foreign born, and especially Jews, are more apt to malinger than the native born." The cartoon titled "Historic Hoys" (captioned "Grueless Humor") depicts a caricatured figure in a doorway—likely representing either the manual's author or Wilson himself—shown in an exaggerated, undignified posture. The satire mocks the absurdity and prejudice of the official document. The accompanying text argues that despite Wilson's quick correction, the statement reflects genuine attitudes about Jewish immigrants being allegedly prone to malingering and criminal behavior—stereotypes the author challenges as false and damaging to national institutions.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
504 Cut It Out, Says President Wilson RESIDENT WILSON pressed his distress that, through has ex- inadvertence, Form 64, issued hy the office of the Provost Marshal General, providing a manual of instructions for Medical Advisory Boards, contained the words: especially Jews, are more apt to ma- “The foreign born, and linger than the native born.” The: President “represent a view absolutely contrary to that of the administration,” and he has ordered “an immediate excision of words, the says, those sentences.” That is splendid. It seems that Jews and Jewish news- papers complained to the War Depart- ment. But what is the fact? Can it possibly be true, the adminis- tration’s view notwithstanding, that “the foreign born, and especially Jews. are more apt to malinger than the native born"? Presumably it is true. it would be a wonde: of Jews in our armies, and presumably they make good soldiers. But the mass of Jews at present in this country are of countries where are poor, not high types « e and in- tensely bent on acquisition of all sorts, from flat-houses to political power. If they and the new-come foreign horn generally did not furnish more ma- lingerers, fanatics, criminals, revolu- tionaries and objectionable characters per thousand than native-born people who had grown up here, it would im- ply that our boasted institutions were no hetter than Russia's. It were a bad outlook for Uncle Sam if the native born were not readier to fight for this country than the last shipload of Rus- sian refugees. Barred Out T. PETER: coming here Hun? “Sure!” “Well?” “Hell's full of us, and we've had notice to quit Also amusin If it wasn't, newcomers, out they were mistreated. What in time are you for? Aren't you a HISTORIC BOYS GRUBLESS HERBIE Surprising Information Mr. Asquith's inquiry as to whether we are ready to restore Belgium's full freedom ean only be meant as a rhetorical question ; for Mr, Asquith inust know that, aside from a hand- ful of dreamers, nobody thinks of handing Belgium again to England and France, —The Berlin Lokal Anzeiger. that Ger- l" is interesting to learn many contains even a handful of dreamers who favor decency, honor and truth. There is a widespread belief that everyone in Germany favors mur- der, rapine, theft, cathedral-wrecking, falschoods, Hohenzollernism and utter brutality. The German government should print the names of its handful of amers and spend some of its prop 4 money to get them into every English, French and American home. In this way the German government ight be able to make a few people there is somebody in Gere many who isn’t entirely rotten,