Puck — March 1877 — page 1: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# "Puck's Finger-Post" (March 1877) This cartoon satirizes financial institutions' vulnerability to theft. The illustration shows a burglar or thief using a large crowbar labeled "THIEVE'S FARE" to pry open a massive lever/beam. The beam appears to operate as a "finger-post" (directional sign) pointing toward buildings labeled "Assurance Institution" and "Savings Bank." The satire suggests that financial institutions—meant to protect savings and provide security—are themselves targets for criminals, or possibly that the institutions themselves employ questionable practices. The burglar's prominent placement and the mechanical nature of the imagery emphasize how financial institutions' security systems can be exploited or compromised. This reflects 1870s concerns about banking fraud and theft during America's Gilded Age.