Life, 1919-03-20 · page 7 of 44
Life — March 20, 1919 — page 7: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains several satirical pieces about labor and politics during the early Soviet era. **"Ballade of Bolsheviki"** mocks the difficulty of writing poetry about the Russian Bolsheviks—the poet claims the subject is too crude or chaotic to capture in refined verse. **"Some Crossings"** lists famous historical river crossings (Caesar, Napoleon, Washington) alongside "The Prohibitionists double-crossing the United States"—satirizing American Prohibitionists as betrayers of the nation. **"'Twas Ever Thus"** depicts capitalists resisting worker demands for shorter hours, with a factory owner literally locking himself away rather than negotiate. The joke: Labor's hours become absurdly short as a consequence of this stubbornness. The large illustration shows a worker waiting—possibly depicting the labor struggle itself. Overall, the page satirizes both radical Bolshevism and capitalist intransigence regarding worker conditions.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Ballade of Bolshevi — \ MY muse skips jauntily along, / Like swift Camilla o'er & the plain, i With here a jingle, there a song, i But always in a gladsome strain. To write on varied themes I’m fain, Like jel!y-fish or cockie-leckie, But, though I strive with might and mai: On fixed forms L am rather strong; \ triolet, with refrain, 'r rondeau’s lilting ding-a-dong, Of damosel or rustic swain. And though T even may attain ‘To sapphies, classical and Greel I tear my hair and rack my cannot write of Bolsheviki! the awful creatures throng In market-places, raising Cain tut my impressions may be wrong— Some hold that they are not insane. T picture them, one crimson stain, With gore of friend or foe all streaky: Ugh! No! It goes against the grain! } cannot write of Bolsheviki! 08 VE eds, Tam sure you'll strive in vain \ Bolsheviktory to gain! I'm sure tha ti, vidi, vici?” | cannot write of Bolsheviki! Carolyn Hells. Chronological HEN will this telegram be de- livered?" GOVERN MENT OPeRATOR : two o'clock. “But what day?” Oh, about Some Crossings ESAR crossing the Rubicon, poleon crossing the Alps. Washington crossing the Delaware. The Americans crossing the Marne. The Prohibitionists double-crossing the United States. IVE in to a woman, and she will not love you for i she will not respect you; give her her own way—and she will not go i: retract, and ‘Twas Ever Thus ‘[ WANT shorter hours,” said Labor. “You shall have them,” said Capi- tal. “T want ’em shorter than that,” said Labor. Whereupon Capital closed the fac- and locked himself in a deposit vault. tory afe- And the shortness of Labor's hours became very short, indeed. > % 7 a . rd t « WAITING? comicbooks.com