The Wasp — 1896 — page 1013: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This page is primarily **advertisements** for insurance companies, breweries, and other businesses. However, the left side features a small satirical cartoon titled "Usually the Case." The cartoon depicts a social interaction between a well-dressed man and woman, illustrating a common domestic scenario about hidden secrets. The dialogue reveals the joke: when a woman mentions that the DeCourcys have "a skeleton in their closet," the man initially misunderstands literally. The satire mocks how **polite society euphemistically refers to family scandals or shameful secrets** as "skeletons in the closet"—a phrase suggesting hidden, shameful truths kept concealed from public view. The cartoon's humor lies in the man's obtuse literal interpretation versus the woman's sophisticated social understanding of this common Victorian-era expression.