Some historical context:
COVER: Secretary of War Russell Alger was widely criticized for American "unpreparedness" in the Spanish-American War. His reputation was further damaged by the Army Beef Scandal. Unscrupulous contractors had sent troops stationed in Cuba canned meat that was laden with chemicals and often rotten. Many soldiers died. McKinley stood by Alger though pressure was building in both the Republican party and the public to fire him. The scandal is also referenced in a joke on page 3, "Woeful Lack of Patriotism," and cartoons on page 11 and 13. A critic had called the tainted meat "embalmed beef" and the term caught the public fancy.
PAGE 4: LIFE stood against the US war against the fighters for Philippine independence. However the magazine was careful to assure the reader that it was the war they opposed, not the soldiers fighting it. The war is referenced in several cartoons in this issue.
PAGE 6: Joseph Hodges Choate was appointed Ambassador to England in January. He was well-received and remained in the post until 1907.
PAGE 13: The "Trunk Mystery." In January 1899 a young Australian woman died while undergoing an illegal abortion. The abortionist and his associates put the body into a trunk and attempted to sink in in a river. In this cartoon, inside the trunk is an autobiography of Russell Alger.
Link to the book:
Life 856
