Life — February 18, 1926 — page 13: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This cartoon satirizes excessive police protection for wealthy individuals. The title indicates "The Cashier of the Swansdown Tea Shoppe Makes His Weekly Visit to the Bank." The image shows a single well-dressed figure (the tea shop cashier) walking through a city street accompanied by an enormous contingent of uniformed police officers—dozens filling the entire street in formation. The satire targets the absurdity of disproportionate security: a minor business employee receives police protection befitting a head of state or major dignitary. This likely critiques either actual corruption (police protecting specific individuals inappropriately) or class privilege—suggesting the wealthy receive excessive public resources while ordinary citizens do not. The "Plus" in the title emphasizes that this protection exceeds any reasonable necessity.