The Wasp, 1918 · page 166 of 330
The Wasp — 1918 — page 166: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This appears to be a passage from a serialized adventure story rather than a political cartoon or satirical commentary. The text describes a naval confrontation between ships—specifically between James Burnham (the protagonist, now an outcast) and Trimmer, who commands a vessel called the "Black Polly." The scene depicts an impending sea battle: two damaged vessels (a brig and a schooner) are within gun range of Trimmer's guns, yet he deliberately holds fire. Trimmer reveals he's encountered an enemy named Hicks previously and wonders if Hicks still lives. The content is literary fiction focused on maritime action and character development—Burnham's emotional detachment and readiness for combat—rather than social or political satire. Without seeing additional context or illustrations on this page, this reads as adventure narrative content rather than satirical commentary typical of *The Wasp* magazine.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
THE WASP 157 or the gods—had struck at his life; so he was against them all. He was for James Burnham the disowned and outcast, with only his head and his hands to befriend him. But he felt no more pity for himself than for the poor fools aboard the brig or the desperate rogues on the crippled schooner. He did not think of his mother’s grey hairs, of his father’s pride, of Elizabeth Nash, or even of Kitty Trimmer. He gave no thought to the past or to the distant future, but waited with tingling blood and glinting eyes for the devil’s dance of combat to commence. _ The day flooded clean and clear from east to west. The wind held steady, but light. The white schooner raced down upon the black schooner, leaving the brig to stagger off on a long slant to the westward. Both the crippled vessels were in easy and deadly range of Trimmer’s guns, but no shot was fired. _ “*That’s the Black Polly,” said Trimmer to Burnham. “ Hicks told a girl in La Guayra . that he’d chase me off these seas inside the year. - I wonder if he’s rememberin’ it now—if he’s — alive. We'll waste no powder on ’em, Jim. They've smashed each other to a finish, d’ye see, at long range, at short range, an’ then rail comlicbooks.com