Life, 1919-07-24 · page 23 of 40
Life — July 24, 1919 — page 23: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This *Life* magazine piece satirizes Chicago as a remote, dangerous frontier requiring "exploration" like Africa or the Arctic. The joke treats the city as uncivilized and hostile to distinguished visitors. The cartoons mock famous figures who attempted Chicago visits: **Charles Dickens** (1842), who supposedly fled in a prairie wagon; **Grover Cleveland** (1877), who "wisely" retreated rather than "civilize" it; and **Matthew Arnold** (1883-4), a literary critic who allegedly lost his sanity there. The sharpest jab targets **W.J. Bryan** (1896), the populist presidential candidate. The illustration labels him a "Free-Silver White God"—mocking his free-silver advocacy and suggesting Chicago residents were so unsophisticated they'd worship him. The text claims he "hypnotized" them, then deteriorated into a Chautauqua lecturer. The "Native Chief and His Family" illustration presents Chicagoans as primitive inhabitants. The final section describes them as a backward race engaged in primitive bartering at "the wheat pit." The satire reflects coastal intellectual condescension toward the Midwest and middle America.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
“LIFE: From Hoboken to Chicago Announcement of Lire’s Proposed Dirigible Trip Arouses Intense &nthusiasm HICAGO 1s about to be dis- covered. Lire’s dirigible, the P. D. Q.-4, is now being prepared for the great flight. It is with the keenest pleasure that we are able to announce that we have secured the services of the world-famous aviator, Seth Bone, who will soon make the attempt to reach Chicago through the air. In case he completes his desperate adventure and succeeds in escaping back to civilization once more, Lire, as a reward, will pay his board for one week at any hotel in New York. This is the largest prize ever offered, but in view of the risk, we feel that no expense should be spared. SETH BONE Previous Attempts In the past there have been many attempts to reach Chi- cago, a long line of intrepid explorers not only risking their lives freely, but a number making the supreme sacrifice. The danger of asphyxiation has hitherto made extremely hazardous any prolonged stay. From those who have escaped, however, many data have already been gathered, and it is hoped by means of the trained band of scientists who will accompany our aviator, Seth Bone, that these data will be considerably augmented. In 1842, one Charles Dickens, an English author whose works had such merit that they are even now quoted in our leading insurance calendars, was enter- tained in Chicago for three hours. The story of his sufferings and subsequent escape in a prairie wagon, disguised as a hold-up man, is one of the most moving tales in the history of ex- ploration. In 1877 Grover Cleveland en- tered Chicago in triumph at the head of an army of regulars, and there was some talk at that time of conquering the region perma- nently and annexing it to civiliza- tion. But Mr. Cleveland with- drew his forces, wisely deciding that it was his business to stay at home and not uplift bar- barian tribes. In 1883-4 Matthew Ar- nold, a literary evangelist, penetrated to the eastern bank of the Chicago river, but having forgotten his Bas ma: he was over- come, losing what religion he had and the use of his Voice. NATIVE CHIEF AND HIS FAMILY A FREE-SILVER WHITE COD In 1896 W. J. Bryan succeeded in reaching the Chicago Auditorium, and brought back a thrilling narrative of the hordes of creatures, whom, to save himself, he was able to hypnotize into the belief that he was a Free-Silver White God. He got away, but he was never the same man, Although, through the kindness of a benign Provi- dence, he retained to a marvelous extent the use of his voice, his faculties never recovered. What reason he had was never quite the same afterwards, He wan- dered about the country, fed and clothed by sympa- thetic people who knew what Chicago had done to him, but he sank lower and lower, finally becoming a Chautauqua lecturer. Data While, as we have hinted, the data about Chicago are not inconsiderable, they are greatly scattered and highly unreliable. If our aviator, Seth Bone, achieves his perilous flight and re- turns in safety, we shall hope to place the lated phenomena of this NY i tabu- region on a scientific basis. As far as is known at present, Chicago is quite thickly populated with a race of beings whose prin- cipal occupation is to gather daily in a large centre called a wheat pit, where they indulge in a primitive form of barter, comicbooks.com