The Wasp — 1889 — page 143: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This political cartoon satirizes California's position regarding the Scott Bill, a legislative measure. The central figure appears to be a personified California (wearing a Phrygian cap, symbol of liberty) confronting what seems to be a Supreme Court justice or legal authority seated among law books labeled "OPINION," "ROMAN LAW," and "SCOTT BILL." The caption quotes California claiming "That bill is my life. If you put a hole in it, the Mongolian Flood will overwhelm me." This references anti-Chinese immigration sentiment prevalent in 1880s California, suggesting the bill protected California's interests against Chinese immigration. The satire critiques how California desperately clung to restrictive immigration legislation while worried about legal challenges to its constitutionality.