The Wasp — 1895 — page 303: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This cartoon depicts two men in late 19th-century dress examining each other with apparent mutual suspicion or curiosity. The heading "Past and Present" suggests a comparison between different eras or types of people. The accompanying dialogue jokes about a "Sickly and Much-Married Man" dining with a woman described as having a "past"—likely referring to a woman with previous romantic relationships. The humor hinges on the man's concern about her history, despite his own questionable background ("unattached"). The cartoon satirizes Victorian-era social hypocrisy: men judged women's morality harshly while their own "pasts" went unexamined. The visual pairing emphasizes how both parties have histories they'd rather not discuss, making their mutual wariness comedic.