The Wasp — 1895 — page 857: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This page is primarily **advertising and business directory** for San Francisco establishments, with one small cartoon in the center labeled "AMBIGUOUS." The cartoon depicts two women on a bicycle. The caption reads: "WALKIM (the Oakland poet)—Did you get my 'Book of Sonnets'? I sent you. DOCTOR—Oh, yes—slightly. I could sleep till I'd read one." **The joke**: This is a dig at a poet from Oakland (identity unclear from context alone) whose sonnets are so dull they induce sleep—a common literary insult about tedious verse. The "ambiguous" title likely refers to the double meaning: the doctor's polite claim to have read the book, when he actually found it sleep-inducing. The rest of the page comprises local business advertisements for breweries, banks, insurance companies, and patent medicines typical of 1890s San Francisco publications.