Life, 1919-03-27 · page 35 of 44
Life — March 27, 1919 — page 35: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is **not a cartoon or satire**—it's a straightforward automobile advertisement for the F.B. Stearns Company of Cleveland, Ohio. The page features an illustration of an early 1920s open-air touring car carrying passengers past classical architecture. The ad emphasizes the Stearns' quality, precision engineering, and economical performance. The text notably references the company's **wartime manufacturing experience**—"the discontinuance of war work" and expertise gained building aircraft motors—positioning this as proof of superior mechanical precision now applied to civilian automobiles. This is a typical post-WWI advertisement strategy: leveraging military-industrial credibility to sell consumer products. The "sleeve valve motor" mentioned was a contemporary technical feature highlighting mechanical sophistication. The page appears from **Life magazine's advertising section**, not its editorial/satirical content.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
An Unrivaled Capacity For Economical Service HE more you know about other motor cars, the more you will appreciate the new series Stearns. When you actually sit at the wheel and test it, you will become conscious of how nearly perfect a motor car can be. When you learn of the unusual performance of the Stearns sleeve valve motor you will realize how good YOUR car must be. Stearns quality is the culmination of 20 years of fearless pioneering, experience in mechanical accuracy and high achievement. Fortified by this quality and the plus-serv rendered to America’s most exacting motor car owners, Stearns again enters a new season with a time-proved reputation for economical service. The discontinuance of war work finds this organization particularly fitted to produce the wanted type of car. The precision of manufacture required in building the famous Rolls-Royce a ion motors and the new conception of motor performance gained in that important war work has made possible a combination of qualities in the Stearns not to be found elsewhere. The outstanding features of Stearns mechanical practice heralds this as the truly exceptional motor car. See it. Ride in it. Test it. “ You'll KNOW when you sit at the wheel.” THE F. B. STEARNS COMPANY CLEVELAND, OHIO Write for catalog and details » Stearns has won the ve appr that is accorded to none save the leader. comicbooks.com