Life, 1923-01-18 · page 7 of 36
Life — January 18, 1923 — page 7: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains two distinct sections: **Left: "Fables for Farmers"** — A satirical story about a husbandman exploited by high-tariff agents, railway managers, and bankers who strip him of his garments and possessions. A "good Samaritan" (likely representing sympathetic politicians) argues for reform, proposing farm credit legislation. The moral critiques exploitative financial practices targeting agricultural workers. **Right: "All I Know Is What I Read in the Papers"** — Brief social commentary items about post-Christmas normalcy, Prohibition enforcement, gift-giving trends, and marriage dynamics, including a dark joke about wives preferring shooting husbands to divorce. **Illustration:** Two women in conversation—one asking if the other enjoyed lectures; the response being they were too difficult to understand. This appears to be a separate joke about intellectual accessibility rather than connected to the main content.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
LIFE - 5 Fables for Farmers ¥ HILE on his way from Rubeville to Jazztown a certain husbandman fell among financiers. Being thoroughly trained in the higher efficiency school they promptly and systematically deprived him of his belongings. “Tis garments were taken by the high-tariff agents, as protection to home industry. His shoes were seized by the railway managers, on the plea that they threatened unfair competition with the transportation monopoly. His purse and watch went to the bankers for interest on his mortgage. The good Samaritan came by as the spoils were being divided. “Have pity,” he entreated. “Don’t you see that if you leave the poor man naked and helpless he cannot produce anything that you can take from him the next time he comes this way? I urge that the council of wise men, which is the Congress, make a law for Farm Credits, so that he can borrow from you some of that which you have taken away.” Recognizing the necessity for furnishing an incentive to industry and opportunities for the investment of capi- tal, the kindhearted financiers consented to allow the hus- bandman to go back to his farm, provided he agreed to pay for the privilege of utilizing the credits that his labor had created, W.G.. All Know Is What I Read in the Papers ELL, Xmas has passed, you can tell by the Neck- ties. They are getting back to normalcy. x ok Prohibition Agents threatened to make the old Town dry on Xmas and they did, it was a beautiful day and didn’t rain a drop. * * * Department stores and Bootleggers never had a bigger Xmas, they both had to put on extra clerks and keep open at nights. x ok ok The Silver Pocket Flask has supplanted the Xmas Card as our National gift, nothing is more welcome when full, or more bunglesome when empty. x ok ok The New Year opened with many happy returns of the Peace Conferences. * * * The Husbands being murdered by kinder dropped off during the Holic Husbands come home. Wives’ Industry ys, suppose few * ok Wives have figured that it’s easier and cheaper to shoot ’em than to Divorce ‘em, besides there is no comparison in the publicity. Will Rogers. “Did you enjoy the lecture?” “No—it was so easy to understand that it kept me awake.” comicbooks.com