Life, 1918-11-07 · page 31 of 36
Life — November 7, 1918 — page 31: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page combines satirical fiction with period advertising. The main content is "Attila Recovers Damages," a humorous story imagining a libel trial in the underworld, presided over by Julius Caesar. The "jury" and "witnesses" consist entirely of famous historical figures known for violence or moral transgression—from Attila the Hun to Nero to Lucrezia Borgia—creating absurdist comedy through incongruity. The satire appears to mock legal proceedings by populating them with history's most disreputable figures as if they were upstanding citizens. The cartoon at bottom, captioned about "calling out the forty-fives," likely references military mobilization, possibly during World War I era (when Life was actively satirizing military matters). The page also features luxury advertisements (Tiffany & Co., Fownes gloves), typical of Life's upscale readership. The precise satirical target of the main story remains somewhat unclear without full context.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
ays $08: e during Attila Recovers Damages PROFOUND hush had fallen over the courtroom. The evidence in the absorbing libel suit of Attila the Hun against Napoleon Bonaparte, Oliver Cromwell, Hernando Pizarro dal. had been presented, and Julius Caesar, judge of the Hades Superior Court, was about to address the jury. The case had aroused intense inter- est in the most exclusive Hades circles. Attila’s counsel was none other than Marcus Tullius Cicero; while the at- torneys for the defense were Aristotle, Lord Jeffreys and Michelangelo Buo- narroti. The prominence of the prin- Gpals in the case, coupled with the fact that the jury numbered among its members such men as William Shake- speare, Alcibiades, Mare Antony, Henry VIII, Rameses II and Charles Martel, had thronged the courtroom with the ctam of Hades society. Among those present were Cleopatra, Catherine de Medici, Madame Pompadour, Sappho, Helen of Troy, Lucrezia Borgia, Cath- eine the Great, Nero, Ulysses, Pon- tivs Pilate, Cardinal Richelieu and Francois Villon. The sizzling of the white-hot lava in the fountain in front of the courthouse could be plainly ulius Caesar rose to his feet, was the suspense of the on- the jury,” said icately brushing a few kes from the shoulder of his toga, “you have heard the claims F of the complainant in this case. “You have heard the testimony of arious witnesses as to the mental guarantee of quality, Since 777, Fownes style, fit service; for Military and Civ- ian requirements. At the Principat ‘Shope TIFFANY & CO. WATCHES ELOcKS STATIONERY JEWELRY SILVERWARE HIGHEST STANDARD INTELLIGENT AND CAREFUL SERVICE BY MAIL FIFTH AVENUE & 37" STREET New York “AT LAST THE GOVERNMENT IS CALLING OUT THE FORTY-FIVES! WELL, IT’S ABOUT TIME!” comicbooks.com.