The Wasp — 1896 — page 864: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This cartoon satirizes two men on a tandem bicycle, labeled as "Mr. Phelan and his rivals" (though specific identities are unclear from the image alone). The caption's dialogue suggests they're headed to "a saloon to replace" something—likely ammunition or weapons, playing on the double meaning of "ammunition" as both literal bullets and verbal/social "ammunition" for conflict. The California location stamp and "Old Maid" reference in the sidebar text suggest this relates to a specific local San Francisco controversy. The tandem bicycle imagery—two figures pedaling together toward a saloon—implies these rivals are ironically united in their pursuit of confrontation or dispute resolution through drinking rather than direct action. The satire likely mocks their hypocrisy or ineffectual nature.