Life, 1918-12-19 · page 11 of 34
Life — December 19, 1918 — page 11: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page satirizes the end of World War I. The headline "The Unconditional Surrender of Politics" announces that the American Army has returned from France with a fundamental demand: politics must be safe and democracy preserved. The accompanying cartoon (top left) shows a thin, distressed figure labeled "Politics" being stabbed or run through—depicting politics as wounded or defeated. The bas-relief strip at bottom, captioned "A.D. 2000" and "Bas-Relief Showing the History of the Great War, Dug Up Near Potsdam, Germany," presents six sequential panels in mock-ancient style showing soldiers fighting, advancing, and surrendering. This imagines future archaeologists discovering visual records of WWI. The satire mocks both politics' vulnerability and suggests the war's historical significance will outlast current political turmoil.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
The Unconditional Surrender of Politics HE American Army, having returned from France with A 3 fundamental de- termination te make democracy safe for the world, ad- vanced its front lines on Politics on the morning of the joth. Politics had dug in, and was in- trenched behind red-tape entanglements on the salient Washington-Wall Street. The following day three grafters and four bu- aucrats were captured, who nportant information as to where iemy’s troops were massed. The at as made in force along a front of four undred mi a) s on the morning of the st, preceded by a heavy barrage. The orale of the enemy had been badly aken by anticipation of the return of “LIFE: the American Army, and the whole front lines were abandoned. The chairman a Congressional committee with his entire staff was captured, and Politics fell back to its third line a Congressional revolution became rife. The Post Office Department and the Department of Public Information asked for a separate evident that the enemy could not hold Rumors of peace. It was out much longer. On the first a courier with a white flag advanced along the Baltimore turnpike, and, being blind- folded, was taken into the American lines, bearing a request for an armis- tice. The answer given was unconditional surrender within twelve The following morning the enemy surren- y of the hours. dered. Following is a summa: terms Before their nomination all congress- men shall be examined for their fit ness and qualifications by a board of business men, appointed by the general staff. 927 The number of lawyers in Congress shall be limited to ten out of the total, and every congressman shall also. be required to produce evidence to show that he can make a living. All profiteers and crafters shall he court-martialed and Canary Islands deported to. the All political machines shall be broken up. The Senate shall be removed from Wall Stre Stump speaking shall he abolished AIL trea pers of whatever description, and all , acts, sessions and pa- accounts, shall immediately become public. National extravagance shall be stopped. This is only the beginning, Other conditions will be announced later HERE are that the war prices have any inten- no indications, so far, tion of signing an armistice. A. D. 2000 BAS-KELIEF SHOWING THE HISTORY OF THE GREAT WARK, DUG UP NEAR POTSDAM, GERMANY comicbooks.com