The Wasp — 1895 — page 815: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This page is primarily **advertising** for San Francisco businesses (banks, breweries, insurance companies, doctors) with a small satirical cartoon titled "By the Sad Sea Waves." The cartoon depicts two figures at a beach—apparently a mother and child. The accompanying verse "TRILBY" (by Daisy Bell) uses nautical wordplay to mock someone named "Trilby," playing on themes of courtship and marriage ("You're not the girl for marriage, / Either with or without a carriage"). The "sad sea waves" reference likely satirizes overly sentimental Victorian beach scenes. Without clearer context about who "Trilby" represents, the specific target remains unclear, though the mockery appears directed at romantic pretension or a particular recognizable figure of the period. The satirical intent seems relatively mild—social rather than political commentary.