The moths and the flame
Subject(s): Automobile driving, Candlesticks, Traffic accidents
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A candlestick with flame labeled “Speed Madness” is surrounded by speeding automobiles caught in the illumination. People are falling out of the cars and the wreckage is collecting in the basin of the candlestick holder.
Comments and Context
The concern over “speed madness” in the day was indeed real, despite the fact that forty miles per hour was considered “scorching.” Automobiles were proliferating, ever more affordable, and produced by dozens of manufacturers from New York to Cleveland to Detroit to Chicago. They were gasoline-driven, mostly, but also electric and steam.
Forty miles an hour, or less is not the relevant factor in what widely was regarded as a contemporary mania. Pedestrians and bicyclists were not used to navigating their way among the mechanical road-hogs. In the country, horses were often frightened by the sights and sounds of autos. Few streets were paved, so ruts and holes and dust and mud jeopardized life and limb. Because of dust and mechanical soot, drivers and passengers wore elaborate outfits of goggles, riding coats, and gloves, and assumed other-worldly appearances.
These factors, plus the difficulty of new drivers fully mastering the giant automobiles, led to a high percentage of injuries and death, and to cartoonist Frank A. Nankivell’s comment.
Collection
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
Creation Date
1907-09-11
Creator(s)
Nankivell, Frank A. (Frank Arthur), 1869-1959
Period
U.S. President – 2nd Term (March 1905-February 1909)
Repository
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division
Page Count
1
Record Type
Image
Resource Type
Rights
These images are presented through a cooperative effort between the Library of Congress and Dickinson State University. No known restrictions on publication.
Citation
Cite this Record
Chicago:
The moths and the flame. [September 11, 1907]. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs.
https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o285889. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
MLA:
Nankivell, Frank A. (Frank Arthur), 1869-1959. The moths and the flame. [11 Sep. 1907]. Image.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. May 14, 2026. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o285889.
APA:
Nankivell, Frank A. (Frank Arthur), 1869-1959., [1907, September 11]. The moths and the flame.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
Retrieved from https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o285889.
Cite this Collection
Chicago:
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/collection/library-of-congress-prints-and-photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
MLA:
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. May 14, 2026. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/collection/library-of-congress-prints-and-photographs.
APA:
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. Retrieved from https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/collection/library-of-congress-prints-and-photographs.
