The Wasp, 1913 · page 320 of 364
The Wasp — 1913 — page 320: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page appears to be from a serialized fictional narrative rather than a political cartoon or satirical commentary. The text describes a character named James Burnham who, spiritually broken by God's judgment, retains only an unrequited infatuation for "Kitty." He disguises himself in rough clothing to search for his enemy, Percy Stanton, in taverns and gaming houses. The passage reveals that Stanton has physically and morally deteriorated since a duel occurred on the sands of Nevis. The narrative employs melodramatic language typical of Victorian-era fiction, presenting themes of moral degradation, vengeance, and lost love. Without seeing the accompanying illustration and lacking historical context about *The Wasp* magazine's typical content, I cannot definitively explain any satirical or political point this narrative may be making. This reads as serialized literary fiction rather than topical satire.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
a Se Ye ees SE DS THE WASP 313 God had struck James Burnham in the very core of the dark soul without-so much as scarring : the perfect body, shaking the pitiless brain, or dis- _maying the hard heart. He was sick of life, sick of anger and ambition, sick of blood-lust and money-lust; but, curiously enough, one emotion of youth was left to him—his old, ignoble infatuation for Kitty. Now he sat for a long time and stared at the flame of the candle. The new clothes came from the tailor next day, but when James went out on the night’s business he did not wear them. He issued into the dark street in rough, seafaring kit, with a bearded face and dirty hands. In this disguise he visited many cheap and disreputable taverns and gaming-houses in search of Percy Stanton. He had no success that night, but on the next he found his enemy. He did not accost Stanton, but watched him fur- tively from a shadowed corner. The fellow had sunk to a terrible depth since the morning of the duel on the sands of Nevis. His face was gross and purple and loose-lipped; and his soul, which Comichooks.com