Life, 1925-10-01 · page 5 of 36
Life — October 1, 1925 — page 5: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page features "A Horrible Nautical Yarn" by Newman Levy, a humorous poem about sailors telling increasingly dramatic stories. The accompanying illustrations show sailors in exaggerated poses—one appears seasick or distressed, others in contorted positions—satirizing the tendency of sailors to embellish tales. The caption quote ("Bill, our troubles is over! France is going to pay its debts") provides political satire, likely referencing post-WWI French war debt negotiations with the United States. The joke suggests this is as unlikely as sailors telling truthful stories—implying both French debt repayment and honest sailor tales are absurdly improbable. The poem itself mocks the chain of storytelling among ship crew members, where truth becomes increasingly distorted through retelling.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Sy IS = ser loecty “BILL, OUR TROUBLES IS OVER! FRANCE IS GOING TO PAY ITs DEBts.” A Hornble Nautical Yarn H, the captain told the purser, and the purser told the cook, And the cook he told the story to the mate, Who repeated it to me, so it’s very plain to sce That the facts I have are absolutely straight. There are tales that make you shiver, there are tales of blood and crime, There are gory tales the bravest to appall, But of all the gruesome horrors that I've heard of in my time This story was the gruesomest of all. Tt was nine o'clock one evening—so, at least, the captain said When he told the purser how it came about, And though sailors may distort the truth, as you, perhaps, have read, Concerning this there isn't any doubt. For I've known the captain all my life, a man of sterling worth Who was never known to tamper with the truth, And his passion for veracity acquired at his birth Has followed and sustained him through his youth, And the purser since his boyhood never has been known to lic, While the cook and mate are noted for their tact. They've assured me of their honesty and truthfulness, so I Can readily accept it as a fact. It was nine o'clock one evening—that’s the way the mate began; I remember how I shuddered at his tale. How my limbs began to tremble as I listened to the man, And I felt my classic features turning pale. You may doubt what I am telling, but I'm sure that it is true, You may sneer and wink But the story as I heard it I'm repeating now to you; It was told by men who'd scorn to tell a lie. a supercilious eye. Tt was nine o'clock one evening—so the purser told the cook, And the cook he told the story to the mate, Who repeated it exactly, and I'll swear upon the Book That the facts I have are absolutely straight. There are tales that make you shiver, there are tales of blood and crime, There are gory tales the bravest to appall, But of all the gruesome horrors that I've heard of in my time This story was the gruesomest of all. Newman Lev News Item 'HE controversy over the Charleston continues, with both sides kicking up an awful lot of fuss about it. comicbooks.com