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Book Review: Social Problems by Ezra Thayer Towne (1929)
Title: Social Problems: A Study of Present-Day Social Conditions Author: Ezra Thayer Towne Published: New York: The MacMillan Company, 1929. 406-pages. About the Author[1] [2] Ezra Thayer Towne, an American economist, was born on April 1, 1873 in Waupun, Wisconsin and died February 27, 1952 in Grand Forks County, North Dakota. He was the son of William Hammond and Marion (Kingsbury) Towne. His education and career is as follows: an advanced course at the State Normal School in Oshkosh, Wisconsin (1894); Assistant Principal at De Pere High School in Wisconsin (1894-95); B.L. University of Wisconsin (1897); Graduate work at the University of Wisconsin (1897-99); Studied at the New York School of Philanthropy (1898); Superintendent of Schools in Sharon, Wisconsin (1899-1901); Studied and traveled in Europe (1901-03); earned his Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Halle, Germany (1903); acting professor and professor of economics and political science at Carleton College, Northfield, Minnesota (1903-17); Head of the department of economics and political science, and director of course in commerce at the University of North Dakota (1917-24) and later Dean of School of Commerce (1924-48); Doctor of Humanities, University of North Dakota (1948). He was the author of several works, including: The…
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Anatomy of a Boys’ Life Magazine from December 1966
I came across one of my uncle’s old Boys’ Life magazine in a box of old mementos. I took a gander through it and found some interesting points that I thought I should share with you all. The advertising is what struck me as most significant. In it there was an abundance of gun ads. Mind you, this magazine is targeted for boys from age 11-18. The physical size of the magazine is almost as big as our modern newspaper, being 10.375 inches wide and 13.25 inches tall compared to our Cincinnati Enquirer, which is 10.5 inches wide by 14.5 inches long. It was a monthly publication and sold for $0.25 a copy individually or $3.00 a year by subscription. The magazine consists of one hundred pages, including front and back cover. Inside the front cover is a Coca-Cola full-page ad with Santa Claus sitting at a small bureau with a glass bottle of Coke in his hands. In the small print above the ad is a notice, “America pauses to see “A Charlie Brown Christmas” on CBS-TV, December 11, 7:00-7:30 EST.” The magazine consists of: several articles by guest writers; regular features, such as Hitchin’ Rack, Hobby News, Gifts…
