Life, 1918-07-11 · page 10 of 34
Life — July 11, 1918 — page 10: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
The cartoon depicts a tax collector confronting a Russian peasant, with the caption "IF THE CAPTAIN WERE ALIVE." This appears to be commentary on Russia's post-revolutionary government and taxation policies. The text discusses Russia's need for Western help and critiques both Soviet and German interference in Russian affairs. It argues Russians are "good stock" capable of self-governance, and expresses concern about German influence in Russia following the Bolshevik Revolution. The cartoon likely satirizes the irony that Russia's new Soviet government taxes its peasants as heavily as the old imperial system did—hence the wistful reference to "the captain" (seemingly a figure from the past). The joke suggests revolutionary change has brought little material improvement for ordinary Russians.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Russia H :LP Russia, says the Times, while there is a Russia to help. Certainly ; but Russia is a large coun- try, well peopled, and will not melt away, and, from present appearances, seems likely to need help for some time to come. For some time it has been trying to get along without its brains, and has only made fair progress, and is not likely to do much better until it em- ploys a larger proportion of brains in its business. Its practical brains, for the most s of its middle part, are in the hi class, the bourgeoisie, who have no voice at present in its government. Its government seems to derive its powers from the Central Council of the Sovi- cts. There is an impression, widely held in this country, that the Soviets are barber-shops. But hair-cuts have never been popular enough in Russia to give barber-shops the importance in politics that saloons have sometimes had here, and the better opinion seems to be that the Soviets are councils, or something of that nature and are scattered all over Russia. The pres- ent controllers of the Soviets are chiefly Socialists, so some authorities describe the Soviets as socialist bodies, Lent on imposing a socialist tyranny on Russia. But no doubt the Soviets, if they had a hetter steer, would develop better aims and intentions. It is averred, and apparently in a general way it is true, that the Soviets have been the real government of Rus- sia ever since the revolution, and were the power behind Kerensky until they threw him down, and then the power hehind Trotzky and Lenine. It was the Seviet Central Committee that broke up the Russian army hy abolish- ing the death penalty and putting out an edict that Russian soldiers should only obey such orders as they approved after discussion, All the Soviets were strong for peace, and were the backers of the Brest-Litovsk peace that handed over so much of Russia to the German knackers. The Bolsheviki are the radi- cals who have lately controlled, and still control, the Soviets. The Mensheviki are the moderates, The Bolsheviki want Russia to be managed by and for the peasants and workingmen, under Bol- sheviki bosses. The Bolsheviki claim “IF THE CAPTAIN WERE ALIVE Collector: AW! coop MORN E to be for having every man be his own boss and fix his own wages, and have them paid to him, It is understood that they also favor a general permis- sion to go without trousers. They seem to correspond roughly with the Jaco- hins of the French Revolution with a century's advancement in id: When a large country is controlled hy soft-headed Soviets managed by dare-devil Bolsheviki, parties _inter- vening to put it to rights have need to carry hig sticks. It is strongly against the traditions of our present administration to intervene with a stick in the domestic affairs of any country that is ill with revolution. The Ger- mans have no such scruple, and they are intervening in Russi conven- ience, and demonstrating in the most practical manner that the Bolshevik run Soviets have not quite the right idea yet about governing large coun- tri s. If the Russians must he ever- lastingly pounded on the head and starved and killed to bring them to an appreciation of practical democratic government, it is perhaps as well— since it is a dirty job—to let the Ger- mans do it. Then if the Germans can be thoroughly cleaned up on the west front, governmental conveniences can he provided for Russia, or her people can be allowed to leave off trousers and live in trees until they get tired of it. It would be worth something to 6, CAPTAIN KIDD! JUST IN TIME FoR YOUR PROFITS TAX the world to have under view a large object lesson of the consequences of the ham-stringing of human aspiration by the process called socialism. But of course the present break to- wards socialism is not the chief disease in Russia. It is only a rotten remedy. The chief disease was selfish and cor- rupt, autocratic government, largely by Germans. Its consequences were igno- rance and the systematic exile of the Lest minds and noblest spirits. The Russians are good stock. They are likeable, devoted and full of talent. They have the good will of all the Allied peoples, and just now are ob- jects of general concern. We do not want to abandon them to the Bolshe- viki and the Germans. We want to get them on their legs again and help them fight their enemies. Leaving nations to fight out their own revolutions is all right, provided the ‘neighbors all stand off, but in time of war that method doesn’t work. The Germans have invaded the Russian revolution, and there is no more objection to fight- ing Germans in Russia than anywhere else, but distance and disorder make the doing of it a hard and very com- plicated job. We shall see what our government is able to make of it. Evidently it wants to do something for Russia, and so do we all, and all the other Allies. E.S.M.