The Wasp — 1889 — page 204: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This cartoon depicts an "Administration" being operated like a mechanical device. A military or political figure in a spiked helmet (appearing to be German, based on the Prussian-style headgear) stands on a platform labeled "ADMINISTRATION," manipulating controls while two subordinate figures operate levers below him. A head on the left side appears distressed or suffering. The satire suggests that government administration is being artificially controlled or "puppeteered" by an outside force—likely critiquing foreign influence (possibly German) over American governance. The mechanical imagery implies the administration lacks genuine independence or organic function, instead operating as a manipulated system serving external interests. The text reference to "all parties" doing "it" suggests bipartisan complicity in this arrangement, a common critique in early 20th-century American political satire.