Life, 1919-10-16 · page 15 of 36
Life — October 16, 1919 — page 15: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains three satirical pieces: 1. **"A Canine Query"** (top right): A poem questioning why dogs are called "man's best friend" when they're loyal, honest, and trustworthy—traits the speaker ironically suggests humans lack. 2. **Main illustration** (left): Shows a woman admiring herself in a mirror with the caption about her smile being "naïve and spontaneous." This satirizes artificial beauty standards and the performative nature of femininity. 3. **"An Open Letter to President [unclear]"**: Defends idealism against critics who call it ignorant, citing Henry Ford as evidence that idealism has merit. The letter suggests some citizens resent this idealism but shouldn't dismiss it. 4. **"An Example"** (bottom): A brief joke about women profiteers, likely referencing wartime or business profiteering. The overall theme critiques hypocrisy in American society—artificiality, greed, and cynicism masquerading as realism.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
“THAT SMILE 1S MUCIL BETTER THAN YOUR OLD ONE, DEAR. MORE NAIVE AND SPONTANEOUS” defile; they did defile. So these billboard people can and do defile beauty, and will as long as we let them. The Riverside viaduct outrage is extraordinary, and is in a dass by itself as a public insult. One hates to suggest a new law, but roadside advertis- ing, and, indeed, all outdoor advertising, requires one, and will have it when the public mind gets around to it on rocks were prohibited long ago. As soon as the idea is realized and accepted that beauty is worth something and worthy of protection, all these disfigurements will fade away and landscapes will come clean again. igns are all perishable and transitory. Every one of them tells the public it is a fool, When the public realizes what is being said to it, away they will all go, and without harm to anybody or any interest, except the interest of the dese- Signs Happily, road rators of beauty in their wretched employment BS. M. A Canine Query “HAT say— But will you tell me why? I don't get drunk or swear or steal, I'm sure F never try To wreck a home or spoil a life, man’s a dog,” I hear them Vd never cheat a friend— So why they call a man “a dog,” I cannot comprehend! An Open Letter To President Venustiano Carranse Y DEAR SIR: I note with chagrin that because some of your ci zens have been murdering some of our citizens there has been some slight dis- position on the part of a few of our lowbrow hot-heads to resent such treat- ment. In offering our apologies and the hope that you will not be unduly offended, may I not also express the thought that you need not be unneces- sarily alarmed? You must not get the idea that our idealism is an ignorant one, although Mr. Henry Ford, one of our leading intellectuals, has so stated in what we are cer! of temporary trary, our idealism permits us to be kicked in the slats (as one of our lead- ing literary men would say) at any time by anybody who happens to feel like it. We beg, therefore, that you will not hesitate to go as far like, in was a moment aberration. On the con- 1s you Mildly yours, Live. An Example NY there profiteers.” aren't any women It’s so MUCH . coon Have you ever met my wife “YOU MAVE A FINE VIEW FROM HERE.” “YoU BET WE HAVE! WE CAN SIT HERE ON SUNDAYS AND SEE MORE AUTOMOBILE ACCIDENTS THAN WE CAN COUNT.” comicbooks.com