Life — August 15, 1930 — page 7: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Analysis of Life Magazine Page This page contains satirical news items and a poem about success and gossip. The top section presents humorous brief anecdotes: - **"Small, Still Voice"**: Mocks a New Jersey still (illegal alcohol production during Prohibition) operating in a swamp, where residents grew suspicious hearing mosquitoes humming "Sweet Adeline." - **"Ill Wind"**: A Kansas cyclone blew out a man's false teeth—the joke being the damage would be worse if he owned corn-on-the-cob. - **"Stiff Shirts"** and **"Pansy"**: Legal/social commentary on dress codes and a Pekinese dog acquitted of killing a canary. The main poem **"Reasonably Priced"** (by Berton Braley) satirizes how success brings magnified scrutiny: your faults are exaggerated, rumors spread, and gossip follows. The cartoon shows two well-dressed figures, one saying he'd join the aviation corps if he could live over.