Life, 1920-03-18 · page 12 of 54
Life — March 18, 1920 — page 12: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page is a **print advertisement** for the Mimeograph machine by A.B. Dick Company, not a political cartoon. The ad promotes "typeless printing"—mimeograph technology that eliminates traditional metal type, allowing faster document reproduction. The image shows the machine's mechanical components. The sales pitch emphasizes practical benefits: speed (five thousand copies per hour), low cost, ease of operation requiring no special training, and widespread adoption by businesses, government, and schools. The brick/straw metaphor in the headline suggests mimeography represents progress—a "better way" compared to older printing methods. For modern readers, this highlights how revolutionary photocopying technology seemed in the early 20th century, before digital printing made even mimeographs obsolete.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Typeless printing! Bricks are no longer made with straw—a better way has been found. By the elimination of type and cuts the Mimeograph produces good print- ing quicker than it is produced by any other means—with less trouble—at smallest cost. And because it holds this tremendous advan- tage it is used in commercial, governmental and educational institutions throughout civili- zation as an efficient means of beating down costs and saving time. No special training needed for its operation. Duplicates letters, bulletins, forms, drawings, etc.—five thousand an hour! Costs little to install. Why not see what typeless printing will do for you—today? Get cata- log ““W” from A.B. Dick Company, Chicago—and New York.