Life, 1921-09-22 · page 6 of 34
Life — September 22, 1921 — page 6: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This cartoon depicts a Methuselah (biblical figure known for extreme longevity) on a sightseeing tour, expressing shock at how much has changed in ninety years. The elderly figure, assisted by a cane and accompanied by a young woman guide, represents someone from an earlier era confronting modernity's pace of change. The satire critiques early 1920s rapid social and technological transformation. The contrast between the ancient, weathered Methuselah and the modern landscape (with distant buildings) emphasizes how unrecognizable the world has become. The joke targets contemporary anxieties about how quickly society is evolving—a common concern during the 1920s, an era of significant cultural, technological, and social upheaval.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
That Rapid Age Methuselah (on sightseeing tour): Everything is changing. When I was young nine hun- dred years ago this place was uninhabited—and look at it now. Latest Wall Street Quotations FOOL and his money are soon parted.—Poor Richard. Ye cannot serve God and Mammon.— New Testament. Honor sinks where prevails— Goldsmith. Many go out for wool and come home shorn themselves.—Cervantes. I'll be with you in the squeezing of a lemon.—G oldsmith. God tempers the wind to the shorn . lamb.—-Sterne. 2... He has spent all his life letting down buckets into empty wells—Sydney Smith. Flat burglary as ever was committed.—Shakespeare Water, water, everywhere, nor any drop to drink, Coleridge. T little pig went to market—Mother Goose. He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter —Old Testament The ugliest of trades have their moments of pleasure— Jerrold. The laws are with us and God on our side—Southey. In skating over thin ice our safety is our speed—Emerson. WALL STREET] commerce long Sympathy You may say what you will of Borrowell, but st certainly admit that he is sympathetic. Pokus: Yes, he actually feels sorry for the people he owes money to. Notes of a Traveler TS maidens of Scotland, so ruddy of hue, Are made out of heather and apples and dew. The maidens of Surrey and neighboring parts Are made out of roses and gooseberry tarts. The maidens of Devon, if all that they seem, Are made out of strawberries, sugar and cream. Arthur Guiterman True to Form CONTRARY to expectations, the silly season of 1921 did not slip by unobserved. Incomplete returns are as follows 91 husbands remained happily married to their own wives. 6,383 visitors from Des Moines, Salt Lake City and pomts west did not find Greenwich Village “so interesting.” 248 unionized steam laundries washed, starched and ironed 720,571 turnover collars without demolishing same. 126 summer girls said “yes” to the first man that. popped to them, and meant it. 6,288 ordained ministers neglected to preach sermons on the peril of the one-piece bathing suit. 82 life guards got through the season without becoming engaged to an heiress. Tue Boston Minister who says jazz music is the greatest incentive to immorality has it wrong. It is an incentive to murder. comicbooks.com