The Wasp, 1913 · page 38 of 364
The Wasp — 1913 — page 38: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This appears to be a literary excerpt rather than a political cartoon. The passage describes a man named Burnham who has been poisoned, drugged, robbed, and cast adrift by someone named Peter Queery. The text is a dramatic narrative focusing on Burnham's predicament in an open boat and his encounter with a seagull. The gull's detailed description—with its "round, crimson eyes" and pristine appearance—suggests symbolic meaning: the bird's indifference and untroubledness contrast sharply with Burnham's sickness and vulnerability. Without additional context about *The Wasp* magazine's publication date or the broader story, the specific satirical target is unclear. However, the passage may be part of a serialized tale or commentary on betrayal, crime, or social injustice typical of the magazine's satirical content.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
THE WASP 37 “Poisoned!” he muttered at last. “Drugged! Robbed! Cast off—adrift in an open boat!” There were oars, a square of sail-cloth, and a breaker of water in the boat. Burnham spread the piece of sail across the oars and lay down in the patch of shade, too sick to so much as curse Peter Queery. The little boat rode the moderate seas gallantly, smoothly. A snow-white gull appeared, with red eyes and a red beak and wings as sharp and clean as curved knife-blades, and hung motionless high about the boat, preening the spotless feathers on its breast, riding the invisible tides of air with no flicker of effort. At last it slid downward, circled on arched pinions, hung low above the boat’s stern for a few seconds and stared at the man beneath the awning with round, crimson eyes. The man saw it and cursed feebly. The bird veered with a tremble of its wing-tips, circled and slanted upward, and returned to its old position and the preening of its spotless and untroubled breast. In a running blue slope astern that was alive with Comichooks.com