Life, 1921-05-19 · page 27 of 36
Life — May 19, 1921 — page 27: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is primarily a **product advertisement**, not a political cartoon. It promotes Lafayette automobiles through the Lafayette Motors Company of Indianapolis. The page features a vintage car photograph with two oval portrait medallions (left side) showing what appear to be historical military or political figures—likely the Marquis de Lafayette himself, given the brand name—establishing prestige through association with a revered historical figure. The advertisement's text emphasizes quality and craftsmanship: the company claims unwavering commitment to building "the finest automobile" without cost-cutting, using "honest metal" and "devoted workmanship." This appeals to early-20th-century consumer values emphasizing durability and American industrial pride. The pricing and specifications (touring car weight, Indianapolis location) target affluent buyers seeking premium automobiles during the automobile's early commercial era.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
_LAFAYET TE i OUR car is as good as we believe i it is or as good as owners tell us, that is because we have not once swerved from the purpose with which we started—to build the finest automobile ‘we could, putting into its structure, without thought of cost, all that honest metal could give and that devoted workmanship could avail Road weight of Touring Car, with spare tire andfulltanks of fuclar 4180 pounds LaFayette Open Cars, 85025 at Indianapolis LAFAYETTE MOTORS COMPANY at ters Hill Inpwnarous 731 comicbooks.com