Life, 1919-07-10 · page 3 of 50
Life — July 10, 1919 — page 3: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page is **primarily a Gem Damasceene Razor advertisement** (right half), not political satire. The ad features a smiling man at a desk demonstrating the razor, using the slogan "The Blade is the Razor" to emphasize product quality. The left side contains "Retribution," a personal essay about a college graduate seeking literary success. The author recounts modest writing sales and eventual partnership with a friend named Tom, who becomes prosperous while the author struggles—the "retribution" being that a girl (implied love interest) married the successful Tom instead. At bottom, a small cartoon captioned "Say, what do you expect for ten cents?" shows two figures, likely satirizing cheap expectations, but without clearer context, the specific reference remains unclear. This is primarily **commercial content** rather than political commentary.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Retribution HEN I left college 1 was unde- cided about my future. [ had a sizable patrimony. So had my friend Tom. He said, “ ness together Let us go into busi- But— A Certain Girl said, “Oh, John, 5 do write such a clever letter, and th stuff you have in the college paper is simply great. Why don't you go in for literature?” 1 did. At the end of six months I had sold a story For five dollars. At the end of a year I had sold an- other For ten. 1 was living on my principal My hair turned gray Prematurely. After ten years it dawned upon me that My stuff was mediocre. 1 went to Tom and said,” How about that partnership?” But— Tom had gone into business hy him- self and— Had waxed prosperous. He gently but firmly turned me down. On the partnership But — He offered me a clerkship at twenty a week, Which I accepted. Tom lives on Riverside Drive. I live in Harlem Tom is in the pink of condition. My health is impaired Tam very susceptible to the “plot germ,” But As an antidete | copy figures out of one book Into another. As for the Certain Girl- She has paid the penalty for ruin ing my life. She married me “SAY, WHAT DO YOU EXPECT FOR TEN cents?” OU have pictured—every man has—the happy shave; the just right heft of the razor, the painless purr of the blade, the quick job, the silken skin. That's a Smoother Face! illions of Gem users on six continents know this shaving truth — “The Blade is the Razor’’ Gem Damaskeene Blades—keen as Damascus Steel—have a durable delicacy of edge that actually gives a silken skin, a happy shave. Specially tempered, hardened and ground, they are then patent-proc- essed, tested and double-inspected. Only our 39 years of experience and “know how” could produce such blades! The Gem frame—so simple to the eye and yet so vital to your shave— holds the blade against your face at the Universal Angle. No adjustment is necessary. Fit a Gem Damaskeene Biade into a Gem frame and get the full serv- ice you can ask from any razor. Get a Smoother Face! Every man should read the new folder “Smoother Faces and How to Get One.” Shall we send you a copy? MASKEE _ DA roy The Standard Gem Set includes frame +12 and handle, stropping device and seven Damaskeene Blades in compact velvet lined case. GEM CUTLERY CO., Inc., New York Canadian Branch, $91 St. Catherine Street, W., Montreal ne, comicbooks.com