Life — January 29, 1925 — page 7: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Political Cartoon Analysis: "Noah Webster (to Mr. X Word Puzzle): 'Ain't Done Right by Our Nell'" This cartoon satirizes the treatment of the English language in modern word puzzles. The figure on the left (identified as Noah Webster, the legendary American lexicographer) confronts a woman representing a word puzzle creator. Webster appears distressed, gesturing toward the woman whose dress is covered entirely in scrambled letters and word-puzzle squares. The caption's pun—"Nell" (likely referring to Noah Webster's legacy or the English language itself, personified as female)—suggests that word puzzles are mangling, disrespecting, or "not doing right by" proper English and its authoritative standards. The satire targets the popularization of word puzzles as frivolous entertainment that corrupts linguistic integrity.