The Wasp, 1918 · page 148 of 330
The Wasp — 1918 — page 148: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains narrative text from a serialized adventure story rather than a political cartoon. It depicts a tense maritime encounter between two boats—a fishing-boat crewed by fugitives (including James Burnham) and an armed ship's long-boat with eleven men pursuing them. The dramatic moment occurs when Burnham recognizes the pursuing vessel's leader as **John Trimmer of Wantage**, identified as "the highwayman, the breeches-maker's son, Kitty's brother." This appears to be a plot revelation in an ongoing story, where an unexpected connection to someone in Burnham's past creates tension. Without seeing previous installments, the specific satirical or social commentary point is unclear. The passage emphasizes class details (the breeches-maker's son, the highwayman identity) typical of period adventure fiction, but whether this represents broader social satire requires additional context about *The Wasp*'s editorial stance and earlier chapters.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
THE WASP 149 Henry Todd shouted. Burnham swore and swung the boat’s head up to the wind; but the other craft shot across her bows and a man in the stern stood up with a musket in his hands. “¢ This is no time to burn powder,” said Burn- ham. “ They are ten to two, and they have the wind of us. We'll just fall away on our old course and let they come alongside and explain what they want. If they want trouble, we can start it then as well as now.” The boat with the four oars swung and approached. The man with the musket in the crook of his left arm shouted to Todd to lower the sail. * Lower away,” ordered Burnham. The other craft was a ship’s long-boat. She contained eleven men, including the four at the oars, and the sunshine struck upon polished metal aboard her in many points of fire. She drew swiftly down upon the fishing-boat. The features of the man with the musket grew clear to the gaze of the fugitives. James Burnham uttered an astonished oath. | **Tis John Trimmer!” he exclaimed. ‘ John Trimmer of Wantage, as I live! The high- wayman, the breeches-maker’s son, Kitty’s brother ! ” comichooks.com