The Wasp — 1891 — page 311: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This page is primarily **advertisements** for San Francisco businesses (liquor dealers, pianos, insurance companies), with one satirical cartoon and accompanying poem titled "Appearances Are Deceitful." The cartoon depicts several well-dressed gentlemen in what appears to be a social setting. The caption suggests deception: one figure asks if another is "a lord or some titled foreigner," implying wealthy appearance masks ordinary status. The accompanying poem "Vain Things" warns that appearances deceive—fine clothing, manners, and comportment don't reflect true character or virtue. The satire targets the **superficiality of San Francisco's social climbing class**, mocking how people judge worth by external trappings rather than genuine merit. It's a moralistic jab at vanity and social pretension common in the Gilded Age.