The Wasp — 1896 — page 795: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This appears to be a satirical cartoon from *The Wasp* magazine depicting "Candidate Bryan" abandoning the Eastern States to focus on the Missouri River region. The cartoon shows a dramatic landscape divided into sections: dark, stormy skies above (suggesting danger or rejection in the East), with a hand reaching down from above, contrasting with a lighter, more populated lower section where numerous small figures gather along what appears to be the Missouri River valley. The satire likely critiques William Jennings Bryan's 1896 presidential campaign strategy, suggesting he had given up on winning Eastern establishment support and instead concentrated his efforts on the agrarian and populist base in the Midwest and South. The visual metaphor illustrates the geographic and political divide in Bryan's campaign appeal.