Life, 1928-03-01 · page 16 of 42
Life — March 1, 1928 — page 16: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page satirizes workplace hypocrisy regarding child labor. The top cartoon shows a woman confronting a man about endorsing child labor at his workplace while claiming moral authority—he ate lunch at a café and now pretends not to know what happens there. The main comic strip depicts rubber factory workers brainstorming advertising slogans. One suggests "the word 'JOY'" as their marketing angle, while another proposes "hot cakes" messaging. The satire is sharp: these factory workers are cynically manufacturing feel-good propaganda for an industry that presumably exploits children (referenced in the S.P.C.A. announcement above). The joke exposes the gap between corporate marketing rhetoric and actual labor practices—selling "joy" while profiting from exploitation.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
14 S. P. C. A. WE are founding a new society. It is to be called the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Adults and is not to be confused with the other S. P. C. A. (En- close your name and address and ten cents in stamps and we shall send you in a plain wrapper a booklet en- titled, “How to Tell the Animals from the Adults.”) We are not secking office. All we want is the job of press-agent. We care not who writes the nation’s laws if we can be its publicity counsel. Read these sample regulations and see how easy it is to develop a Dom- inating Personality! One room in each home shall be set aside for adults. It must be kept fresh and neat and quite free of Mama-dolls, open bores of moist water colors, decalcomanias, and sick kittens. It shall be considered unsports- manlike to drive any given grand- HOW WOULD ONE wiTH “PAID” Go? ae AN ApostLe or TRUTH Ste: Wot’'s the idea? Yer sign’s on backwards. He: To tell the truth, madam, I just took lunch at the café I'm workin’ for, and I find that I can not endorse the sentiments expressed on this sign. father more than siz hours per diem. He shall be rested on Sunday and receive an extra ration in his stall. IN & RUBBER STAMP FACTORY — THINKING UP THR WORDING FOR THE STAMPS Between the hours of 9 vp. M. and 10 p. M. children shall neither be seen nor heard. This is to be known as the Adults’ Hour. No adult shall be called on for as- sistance in Home Work after First Form be passed, lest an illusion of wisdom be destroyed. In all cases where children have chosen to wear yellow hats and red sweaters with green dresses the rul- ing of an adult in the matter of taste shall be accepted as final. Adults, too, are entitled to self- expression. Their little magazines must not be snatched suddenly from them, nor are books to be cut into strips with round-pointed scissors before adults have had time to finish stories which interested them. They should be allowed to play their own little adult games in their own little adult ways. Children should not shout, and jump, and bounce, when an adult is working at home. Adults need calm and quiet for the best development of their little minds. An adult should be bathed one hour before dining. Interruptions should be limited to (a) one request for a glass of water; (b) the insti- tution of one search for a fuzzy bear. The room shall, if possible, be free of celluloid fish. Act, Adults of America, before it is too late! Remember—you owe it to your children; for they, after all, are the adults of to-morrow! Bexinp THE Scenes or A Great INDusTRY. Sterling Patterson. comicbooks.com