Life, 1923-08-16 · page 12 of 36
Life — August 16, 1923 — page 12: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a nine-panel satirical comic strip depicting "The American Farmer" experiencing a series of escalating misfortunes. The narrative follows a single character through catastrophes: his daughter elopes, he sells his shotgun out of necessity, discovers a hired hand has burned his barn, receives foreclosure notice, loses his son to debt, and faces his crop destroyed and inheritance depleted. The final panel shows him defeated, seeking comfort. The title—"The American Farmer May Think He Has It Hard"—suggests ironic commentary on rural economic hardship, likely referencing Depression-era agricultural crisis. The strip presents farming as a progressively catastrophic lifestyle, using dark humor to critique the economic vulnerability of American agricultural workers during this period.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
RISES EARLY, FINDING POLISHES SHOT GUN FOR DISCOVERS HIRED MAN HAS SET FIRF N 0 T E ANNOUNCING HALF AN HOUR. TO BARN. DAUGHTER'S FLIGHT WITH CITY CUR. OPENS LETTER ANNOUNCING PLEADS WITH HIM DISCOVERS SON HAS FLED, TAK- FORECLOSURE AT 2 P. M. NOT TO LOSE FAITH. ING LAST LIBERTY BOND FROM CLOCK. DISINHERITS SON AND FINDS DROUGHT HAS DESTROYED FEELS F ODDS ARF PUTS LAMP IN WINDOW TURNIP CROP, LEAVING HIM PENNI- f NS HIM = AND TO GUIDE HIM HOME. LESS. SFEKS COMFORT. The American Farmer May Think He Has It Hard— comicbooks.com