The Wasp, 1913 · page 184 of 364
The Wasp — 1913 — page 184: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains **narrative fiction rather than political satire or cartooning**. It's an excerpt from what appears to be a sea adventure story, describing a character named Burnham observing distant naval combat in darkness—two ships engaged in battle, detected only by sound and a glimpse of red (likely gunfire). The text is purely literary: evocative prose about naval warfare, with sensory details (breathing, pipe smoke, sail sounds) building tension as Burnham realizes fighting is occurring nearby. **There is no visible cartoon, caricature, or satirical commentary** on this page. *The Wasp* was primarily a satirical magazine, but this particular issue apparently included serialized fiction alongside its typical political humor. Without additional context about which story this is or when it was published, the specific narrative cannot be identified.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
THE WASP 179 indolent, hollow flap of an empty head-sail, the whispering effort of the brig mainsail trying to hold the elusive breeze, the patter of reef points, and the spatter and sob of the little seas along the side. He heard the fellow at his shoulder breath- ing heavily and smelled the reek of his pipe. He strained ears and eyes against the dark and distance. And then he caught it—the ghost of echoes; and for a fraction of a second his eyes seemed to grasp a spot of red in the gloom. “There!” said the other. “Small arms! I'll re- port it to the cap’n.” Burnham remained with his hands on the great teakwood rail and watched and listened for an- other sight or sound of the thing. He caught the muffled, rapping ghost of sound again. His blood quickened. Fighting was going on out there in the sea gloom beyond a doubt. Perhaps two ships lay side to side, held by the grappling irons, with blood already spilling on deck and rail, with dead men in the scuppers and wounded men crawling to the shelter of mast and companionway. Comichooks.com