The Wasp, 1913 · page 134 of 364
The Wasp — 1913 — page 134: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This appears to be a narrative passage rather than a cartoon—a scene from a serialized story in the satirical magazine *The Wasp*. The text depicts a conversation between Governor Captain Nash and a young man named James Burnham. The governor mentions receiving letters via Barbados and discusses the arrival of the naval sloop *Tartar* at Carlisle Bay. He then casually asks Burnham if he has any relatives in the navy. Burnham's response—answering "instantly, without turning his head" while gazing out the window—suggests he's concealing something or reacting with unexpected emotion to this seemingly innocent question. The passage builds narrative tension, hinting at some secret connection to the navy or the arriving ship that Burnham wishes to hide from the governor. Without seeing subsequent pages, the specific satirical point remains unclear.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
THE WASP 131 Nevis, and so leave bigger ships free to be set at bigger undertakings. : Enclosed in the letter was a list of the sloop’s officers. The governor was sitting at his table and reading this list at the moment of Burnham’s en- trance. “Letters from home, my lad,’’ said Captain Nash, “by way of Barbados. Nothing important in the English packet. Nothing for you; but, of course, it is too soon for you to expect answers to your letters.” “Yes, sir,” replied Burnham, with a flicker of relief in his eyes. “The Tartar, sloop-of-war, is now in Carlisle , Bay,” continued the governor. “She'll be here in the course of twelve or fourteen days, so her com- mander writes. And he sends me a list of his offi- cers. Do you happen to have any relative-in the navy, lad?” James Burnham was looking out of the open win- dow when the question was put, and he answered it instantly, without turning his head. Comichooks.com