Life, 1920-09-02 · page 30 of 52
Life — September 2, 1920 — page 30: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page satirizes post-WWI attitudes and policies. The top section mocks French authorities for stripping medals from poet Noel Garnier for socialist views, comparing French censorship to American anti-radical efforts (referencing "Speaker Sweets" and Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer, known for anti-communist crackdowns). The "Deleting the Dictionary" feature humorously lists WWI-era terms becoming obsolete—"Heroic Belgians," "Somewhere in France"—reflecting how quickly wartime language faded. The main cartoon ridicules French taxation of American jazz musicians, depicting France as culturally uptight and ungrateful. The poem sarcastically thanks American musicians for "syncopated" entertainment while taxing them out of work—a pointed jab at French ingratitude toward American wartime allies. A small cartoon about "woman suffrage" shows a political candidate discovering his opponent possesses compromising photographs, satirizing electoral tactics.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
*LIFE.- First Aid to Socialism NDRE LEFEVRE, French Minister of War, has issued an edict withdrawing the Cross of Chevalier of the Legion of Honor and the Croix de Guerre from the young French poet, Noel Garnier, because of certain socialistic tendencies which have been evident in his verse of late. Garnier received the medals for gallantry in action in the late war, having been wounded a number of times while in service with the chasseurs, It seems that France has her Speaker Sweets and her A, Mitchell Palmers no less renowned than our own. HOW SMITH’S GRAPE ARBOR LOOKS TO HIM NOW Deleting the Dictionary Went Out With the War: ERRAIN. Whiz-bangs. Co-ordinate, Tin hats. Bled white. Synthetic sausage (clothing, Beastly Huns. fuel, foods, etc.). Heroic Belgians. Ersatz. Generous Americans (no America’s debt to France. longer used “over there”), Freedom of the seas. Somewhere in France. Sitting on the world. Strategic retreat. Slacker, Allocate. Buddies. Camouflage. The All-Highest. Crest la guerre. VER notice that any man with a fool suit of clothes on looks Summer Boarder: 11's WONDERFUL TO BE IN THE COUNTRY. like a big enough fool to wear that kind of suit? I'VE BEEN DANCING AROUND LIKE A WOOD NYMPH ALL DAY! Avis Four thousand jazz musicians—most- ly Americans—were thrown out of work recently in Paris as a result of prohibi- tive taxes imposed upon them by the French government.—News item. OME, arrétez your clarinets, Their noise is interdit— You've made us live, from Brest to Metz, A syncopated vie; We're fatigué with minor tones, They’re worse than poison gaz, And so we've taxed your saxophones— A bas le Jazz! We've judged you guilty of a crime Atroce, for you did play La Marseillaise in fox-trot time; So—here is your congé. We're ennuyé—we're out of breath— Your harmonies confuse. You've dardanella’d us to death— IN THESE DAYS OF WOMAN SUFFRAGE 4 bas les Blues! CANDIDATE FOR ELECTION DISCOVERS A SNAPSHOT OF HIMSELF IN OPPOSITION PAPER R. E. Sherwood. comicbooks.conml