Life — March 25, 1926 — page 6: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Analysis This is **not a satirical cartoon page** but rather a **straightforward advertisement** for the Mimeograph machine, placed in *Life* magazine. The ad's "Big Building" headline uses a business argument rather than humor: it claims that companies fail to grow because leaders think too small and lack proper tools. The Mimeograph—a duplicating machine for copying letters, forms, and diagrams—is presented as a practical "tool of success" that enables high-volume output at low cost without requiring skilled operators. The image shows the machine itself. The ad directs readers to request booklet "W-3" from A.B. Dick Company in Chicago for case studies of business growth. This reflects early 20th-century industrial advertising emphasizing mechanization and efficiency as keys to American business expansion.