Life, 1921-09-08 · page 6 of 36
Life — September 8, 1921 — page 6: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a **public safety advertisement** by the American Chain Company (tire chains manufacturer), not political satire. The illustration shows a donkey-headed figure representing a reckless driver—a period visual trope for stupidity or poor judgment. The ad catalogs dangerous driving habits: not using tire chains, speeding through streets, cutting corners, ignoring maintenance and safety signals, and failing to warn other drivers. The donkey metaphor emphasizes that such behavior is foolish. The campaign urges readers to shame "slip-shod drivers" and promote motoring safety broadly. This reflects 1920s-30s automotive safety concerns, when traffic deaths were rising and public education campaigns blamed individual driver carelessness rather than vehicle design or road infrastructure.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
The Slip-Shod Driver Tue slip-shod driver leaves Weed Tire Chains in the locker when careful drivers put them on their tires. The slip-shod driver comes recklessly out of side streets; the slip-shod driver cuts corners; the s/ip-shod driver never inspects his brakes and steering gear; the s/ip- shod driver does not signal before turning or stop- ping; the s/ip-shod driver does not give a warning signal of his approach. Help us concentrate the light of a condemning public opinion on the s/ip-shod driver— the greatest menace of motoring. Help us forge an endless chain campaign for inotor- ing safety for everyone. Show this advertisement to all s/ip-shod drivers you meet and ask them to spread its doctrines to others in their class. Reprints of this advertisement will be mailed on request. AMERICAN CHAIN COMPANY, INCORPORATED BRIDGEPORT Xi CONNECTICUT In Canada: Dominion Chain Company, Limited, Niagara Falls, Ontario General Sales Office: Grand Central Terminal Building, New York City District Sales Offices: Boston Chicago Philadelphia Pittsburgh Portland, Ore. San Francisco THE LARGEST MANUFACTURERS OF CHAIN IN THE WORLD comicbooks.com