The Wasp, 1918 · page 81 of 330
The Wasp — 1918 — page 81: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This appears to be a literary excerpt rather than a political cartoon. The text describes a character named Burnham who has collapsed near a governor's door and experiences a hallucinatory, near-death sequence at sea. He hears what he interprets as "the Last Trump" (a biblical reference to the final judgment) before regaining consciousness and swimming upward toward the surface. The passage employs surreal, dreamlike prose to depict unconsciousness and revival. Without seeing accompanying illustrations or knowing the publication date and broader context of this issue, I cannot identify the specific political or social satire this may reference. The mention of "the governor" suggests political relevance, but the exact target—whether Burnham represents a real political figure or embodies a satirical type—**remains unclear from this text alone**. Additional context about *The Wasp's* era and covers would be needed to interpret the intended satire.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
a0 EE se his amazing physical endurance, he fell uncon- scious within a few yards of the governor’s door. Burnham heard a voice, vast, vague, imper- | sonal, yet insistent. It seemed to come to him through rolling fogs, from limitless voids of space. For ages he listened to it, mildly interested, unable and unanxious to detect any spoken word q in it. He reflected, without apprehension or . | pleasure, that it was probably the voice of the Last Trump. Doubtless it was because he lay at the bottom of the sea that the voice came to him in so vague and dulled a tone. He felt the deep tides wash softly, yet mightily, across his breast; he felt the silt of the deep-sea bed creep and settle a upon his motionless limbs. The voice became less vague, less vast, more 4] distinct, as if it reached him through shallower waters. And now it sounded almost human. Did it address itself particularly to him? Did it call him? He felt the fathoms of sea lighten on his breast and the silt of the Selon: slip away from his limbs. a | He aroused himself and swam upward, || upward, through black waters and brown, || through green tide-bands and blue. At last he swam frantically, with bursting lungs. | Comicbooks com