The Wasp — 1891 — page 160: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This Thomas Nast cartoon satirizes the burial of "Hic Jacet Blaine" — likely James G. Blaine, a prominent 19th-century Republican politician. The inscription reads "Erected by his Democratic Friends," a sarcastic jab suggesting Democrats are metaphorically "burying" or destroying Blaine's political prospects or reputation. Multiple caricatured figures gather around the tombstone in a cemetery marked "Cemetery for Premature Cases." The satire implies Democrats are prematurely declaring Blaine politically dead, possibly referencing election defeat or scandal. The elaborate funeral scene mocks both Blaine's political fate and Democratic celebration thereof. The cartoon's humor relies on contemporary political animosity between parties and likely responds to a specific electoral or legislative moment affecting Blaine's career.