The Wasp, 1913 · page 235 of 364
The Wasp — 1913 — page 235: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains serialized fiction rather than a political cartoon. It appears to be from a narrative story involving two male characters—Alexander Burnham and Mr. Stanton—who have apparently engaged in a duel. The text describes Stanton's recovery from a wound, noting his improved health due to abstaining from alcohol ("wines and punches"). The scene shifts to a waterfront location where Alexander encounters Stanton celebrating his newfound freedom from the supervision of "Mr. Willis and Dr. Hamm"—likely physicians or authority figures. The satirical humor appears directed at Stanton's conflicting situations: newly recovered and supposedly reformed (sober), yet immediately found at a gathering with a "huge punch-bowl." The irony of his "first day of freedom" being marked by potential return to drinking suggests social commentary on weakness, hypocrisy, or the difficulty of maintaining reform among San Francisco's leisure class. Without seeing preceding pages or identifying specific historical figures these characters may represent, the precise satirical target remains unclear.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
ee ————— 230 THE WASP NE eT A aes eo ee SE in a bitter misery of spirit. That pearly dome of dream had crashed back upon his heart at the first realization of his shameful position. Alexander’s watchfulness went unrewarded for several days; and then, as luck would have it, he met Mr. Stanton. Although Stanton’s wound was now thoroughly healed, the unfortunate duelist was not fully recovered from the effects of it. His face was thin and white, and his legs were a trifle wab- bly; but his eyes were clearer than they had been in years, thanks to his enforced abstinence from wines and punches of late. The two met in that pleasant resort on the water- front where the sea-wind and the music of the surf flooded in all day long at the open windows and doors. As luck would have it, Stanton was cele- brating his first day of freedom from the irksome authority of Mr. Willis and Dr. Hamm. When Alexander Burnham entered the room with one of the reefers from the sloop he beheld a com- pany of six seated at a round table, with a huge punch-bowl in their midst, and at another table Mr. Comichooks.com