Life, 1920-10-21 · page 6 of 44
Life — October 21, 1920 — page 6: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page is primarily an **advertisement for the Mimeograph machine** by A.B. Dick Company, not political satire. The text promotes the device's efficiency: it can produce 5,000 copies hourly at negligible cost, making it ideal for distributing messages to large audiences. The illustration shows **birds in flight**, likely symbolizing speed and message-delivery—a visual metaphor playing on the phrase "put wings to your ideas" in the copy. The bird imagery suggests swift, effortless communication, which was the Mimeograph's selling point. This reflects early 20th-century American business culture, where new duplicating technology was celebrated as revolutionary for institutions seeking cost-effective mass communication. There is no political cartoon or satire present—this is straightforward product marketing.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Forty thousand birds would be needed to carry a day’s grist of messages from the Mimeograph. Five thousand well-printed copies of a letter, bulletin, form, diagram, or design is its habitual hourly output. It is the quickest and most direct means of speed- ing the idea from its author to the many who should receive it. The work is easily and privately _done at negligible cost—without dirt or fuss. This inexpensive device is making important short cuts and saving remarkable sums of money for unnumbered thou- sands of the world’s most progressive institutions. Costs but little to install and operate. Let us show you how it will put wings to your ideas. A request will bring new booklet “W-10.” A, B. Dick Company, Chicago—and New York. comicbooks.e¢o