Life, 1918-12-26 · page 3 of 35
Life — December 26, 1918 — page 3: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is **not a cartoon or satire**, but a historical photograph from *Life* magazine (page 955) documenting the 1918 Paris Peace Conference. The image shows Premier Georges Clemenceau (French leader) and General John J. Pershing (American military commander) at Versailles, France. The caption identifies Pershing's automobile in the background—a Locomobile limousine built in Bridgeport, Connecticut, by the Locomotile Company of America. The text emphasizes that a matching limousine was shipped to France for President Woodrow Wilson's use during peace negotiations. This is straightforward documentation of Allied leadership and American industrial contribution to the post-WWI diplomatic effort, not satire.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
PREMIER CLEMENCEAU AND GENERAL PERSHING AT VERSAILLES, FRANCE From a hitherto unpublished photograph by the Signal Corps, U Copyright 1918 by the Committee on Public Information IN THE BACKGROUND IS GENERAL PERSHING’S AUTOMOBILE IDENTIFIED BY THE FOUR STARS ON THE WINDSHIELD THIS IS ONE OF A NUMBER OF LIMOUSINES USED BY THE GENERAL STAFF OF THE ARMY AND BUILT BY THE LOCOMOBILE COMPANY OF AMERICA AT BRIDGEPORT, CONN. A SPECIAL LIMOUSINE OF THE SAME MAKE WAS PURCHASED AND SHIPPED TO FRANCE FOR THE USE OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES DURING THE PEACE CONFERENCE