The Wasp — 1888 — page 112: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

The main illustration shows a fashionably dressed woman in Victorian-era clothing, gazing pensively out a window. The accompanying poem and prose commentary appear to reference romantic entanglement and social scandal. The page's central cartoon satirizes upper-class romance and courtship rituals. "Our Pictures" section discusses characters including Sarah Allhea, Terry, Evans, and others in what appears to be a romantic or marital dispute involving "Senator Sharon." The detailed poetic text and narrative commentary suggest this addresses a contemporary society scandal—likely involving prominent San Francisco figures—focusing on wealth, marriage prospects, and illicit affairs. The window scene evokes melancholy and longing, typical of Victorian sentimental imagery used satirically in period humor magazines. Without clearer identification of specific individuals referenced, the exact scandal remains unclear, though the tone mocks pretension and romantic hypocrisy among the wealthy.