The Wasp — 1895 — page 1022: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This satirical cartoon depicts a newly married couple ("Mr. and Mrs. Honeymoon") arriving at the Oakland Mole train station near San Francisco. The joke centers on the husband's boastful claims about rapid cross-country travel: he ridicules English people who think Boston is merely an hour from New York, claiming Americans can travel from St. Louis to San Francisco in comparable time. The wife then deflates his bravado by suggesting they'll spend an extra hour in San Diego rather than rushing. The satire mocks American braggadocio about technological progress and speed—specifically railroad capabilities—while gently poking fun at honeymoon tourism and marital dynamics in the 1890s.