The Wasp, 1918 · page 181 of 330
The Wasp — 1918 — page 181: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This appears to be a narrative passage rather than a cartoon page. The text describes a ship's meeting called by Captain Trimmer following what seems to be a recent maritime conflict or disaster. The passage depicts crew members gathered, including a mysterious young woman from "the Polly" and a clergyman, with 32 people total now aboard. Captain Trimmer addresses his crew, naming the dead and making a darkly humorous observation: fewer survivors means larger shares of plunder for those remaining. The crew responds with crude laughter and oaths—appreciating his cynical gallows humor about profiting from casualties. James Burnham watches the young woman "covertly, with an ironic glimmer," suggesting romantic or suspicious tension. Without seeing the full context or illustration, the specific political/social satire remains unclear, though the tone suggests *The Wasp* is mocking either maritime greed, military leadership, or period-specific events through this fictional scene.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
172. - THE WASP with the young woman from the Polly and the ecclesiastic from the brig, swelled the list to” thirty-two. t Captain Trimmer called a meeting just before sunset of that busy day. All were present save the bishop—he was that, at least—and two of the wounded. The helmsman attended to the wheel, and the meeting at one and the same - time, while the cook stood in the door of the galley with one ear devoted to Captain Trimmer and the other to the boiling of his coppers. The young woman stood composedly at Trim- mer’s side, her smooth cheeks delicately aglow, her fine eyes languorously inquisitive., Half a dozen men, including Slim Sam, Wells, and James Burnham, stood close to these two. Burnham watched the woman covertly, with an ironic glimmer in his eyes. John Trimmer was in fine feather. Hecocked x his hat and complimented his comrades on their luck in afew words. He then named the recent and lamented dead, and remarked that a slight degree of consolation might be derived from the fact that the fewer the survivors, the larger the shares of the spoils. His audience expressed appreciation of his humour with blistering oaths and harsh hoots of laughter. He named the chief ceomteinoke.comt | |