The Wasp — 1888 — page 118: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This is a satirical cartoon depicting American industry as a chained prisoner. The figure, labeled "AMERICAN INDUSTRY," is shackled and confined in what appears to be a cell or dungeon. The caption "WILL THIS BE THE END?" suggests concern about the future of American manufacturing and commerce. The cartoon likely critiques government restrictions, regulations, or policies perceived as hampering industrial growth—a common theme in American satirical magazines of the late 19th/early 20th century. The imagery of imprisonment and chains visualizes the metaphorical "binding" of business by legislative or executive action. Without additional context about publication date, this appears to reflect anxieties about protective tariffs, labor laws, or monopoly regulations that industrial interests opposed during the Progressive Era or similar periods of regulatory expansion.