The Wasp — 1896 — page 60: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This satirical cartoon from *The Wasp* depicts a bearded man (identified in the caption as Governor Jimbudd) discovering mysterious disappearance of saccharine from the State Printing Office's budget for textbooks. The visual metaphor is clear: a barrel labeled "PUBLIC FUND FOR STATE TEXT BOOKS" attracts numerous flies—representing corrupt officials or hangers-on swarming around public money. The governor holds a document marked "OPINION OF THE STATE" while flies (symbolizing graft or waste) surround the barrel. The satire criticizes how public education funds mysteriously vanish, suggesting embezzlement or misappropriation within the State Printing Office. The flies metaphor suggests corruption attracts parasitic behavior, with public resources meant for textbooks being diverted elsewhere.