Life, 1922-03-16 · page 5 of 34
Life — March 16, 1922 — page 5: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This satirical poem by Dorothy Parker humorously invokes Saint Patrick to address modern New York City problems. The illustration depicts Saint Patrick (upper left, driving out snakes) contrasted with contemporary urban chaos below—a crowded street scene with well-dressed pedestrians and visible serpents among them. The satire suggests that just as the historical Saint Patrick expelled snakes from Ireland, modern New York needs similar divine intervention to eliminate its own "snakes"—likely referring to urban vice, corruption, or social problems of the Jazz Age. The poem's tone is wry: while Saint Patrick was wise and great, he couldn't manage the messy realities of modern city life with its constant social obligations ("tea and jazz"). Parker laments that such miraculous interventions are now impossible to arrange.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Paging Saint Patrick Dorothy Parker Te good Saint Patrick, in his day, Performed a worthy act: He up and drove the snakes away, With more technique than tact. Could he descend from realms above And roam about New York, He'd find it reminiscent of The good old days in Cork. The snakes he knew could never tie The brand our village has— The kind that daily multiply And thrive on tea and jazz. Should he his tales of snakes relate Wed strive to hide a laugh; For, though the saint was wise and great, He didn’t know the half. Where'er he'd go, to dine or dance, Or lunch, or tea, or sup, The saint would have a splendid chance To do some cleaning up. Could he but leave his present star, He'd see that things were changed,— How sad such little visits are Not easily arranged! comicbooks.com