Puck — May 1877 — page 9: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This appears to be a satirical cartoon depicting a skeletal figure (representing Death or Corruption) as a carnival barker or promoter, surrounded by various vice-related establishments and temptations. Visible signs reference: "Big Thing in Carnivals," "Crooked Whiskey," prayer meetings at Fulton Chapel, and advertising spaces for RFX. The skeleton holds a megaphone, actively promoting moral decay. The satire criticizes urban corruption and vice industries—particularly illegal alcohol (likely Prohibition-era commentary), gambling, and prostitution—coexisting alongside religious institutions. The juxtaposition suggests hypocrisy: respectable establishments like chapels operating within communities rife with vice and corruption. The figure of Death/Corruption as the active "promoter" indicts society for enabling or profiting from moral vices.