Life — February 6, 1919 — page 13: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This illustration by F. Foster Lincoln depicts five military officers in WWI-era uniforms standing beneath Allied flags, clasping hands in farewell. The caption "The Best of Friends Must Part" suggests a bittersweet moment of separation among allied commanders. The scene appears to reference the end of WWI or the dissolution of the Allied military coalition, showing representatives from different nations (identifiable by their distinct uniforms and the flags behind them) parting ways. The handshake conveys both camaraderie and the inevitability of separation as the wartime alliance concludes. Without identifying specific individuals, the cartoon satirizes the temporary nature of wartime cooperation between nations with different interests, suggesting that even close military allies must eventually go their separate ways.