The Wasp — 1896 — page 288: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This page is primarily **theater and entertainment advertising** for San Francisco venues (California Theatre, Baldwin Theatre, Tivoli Opera House, etc.) listing shows for the week of April 6-13. At the bottom of the page appears a **small cartoon with two figures** and dialogue: "She—I could never marry a man with a past. He—Why not? She—Because there isn't enough for two. I am looking for some one with the same quantity of a future." This is a **satirical marriage joke** mocking women who seek financially secure husbands. The humor targets the era's marriage-market dynamics, suggesting a woman rejecting a poor suitor because she herself has no prospects and needs a husband with money/status to provide for both their futures. It's social commentary on economic desperation and matrimonial calculations among the working or middle classes.