The Wasp, 1918 · page 196 of 330
The Wasp — 1918 — page 196: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This appears to be a narrative passage from a serialized story rather than a political cartoon. The scene depicts Lieutenant Burnham confronting an apparent impostor claiming to be his brother James. The dramatic tension centers on **identity verification**: Captain Nash insists he recognized the stranger as a genuine Burnham family member by observing a distinctive mark on his back—a family "whim" of Sir Walter Burnham's practice of marking his children "even as he marks his silver" (like property or livestock). This detail suggests satirical commentary on aristocratic pretension and class markers. Lieutenant Burnham's emotional turmoil—wondering if the man is actually an impostor—drives the plot. The mention of James having sailed to Kingston, Jamaica, and Captain Nash's composed authority create an unresolved mystery about whether deception is occurring. Without additional context or images, the specific satirical point remains unclear, though the story appears to mock aristocratic obsession with hereditary marks and identity claims.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Y THE WASP 187 Lieutenant Burnham was dazed, and he looked it. Wonder, doubt, suspicion, shame, and appre- hension shook brain and heart and obscured thought. He gaped at the governor. He felt the eyes of the entire company upon him. In spite of the turmoil of his emotions and the dazed state of his mind, he suddenly felt a little throb of relief at the thought that James had departed before the Zartar’s arrival—if, that is, James had ever been here. ** An impostor!” he exclaimed. “Surely an | impostor! James sailed for Kingston, in Jamaica, and arrived at that port. I heard it from my father, sir. There can be no mistake about that. Did this—this gentleman—tell you he was James Burnham, a son of Sir Walter Burnham?” , “He did,” replied Captain Nash, with more composure than he had yet. displayed. ‘“‘ He _ did, sir; but I was aware of his father’s name before he told me anything about himself. He was ill—he came to us ill, yet as a hero—and Willis and I saw his back when we were getting him into bed. I had heard of your worthy - father’s whim for marking his children even as he marks his silver, and so I knew the stranger for a Burnham of Burnham at a glance. True, 1? comichooks.com