The Wasp — 1891 — page 293: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This is primarily a **commercial advertising page** with a small satirical poem titled "The Song of the 'Fool' Sellers" by Alfred I. Townsend. The poem mocks **con artists or fraudulent businessmen** ("fool sellers") who prey on the public. It describes scammers running shops where they extract money from victims, with "The Wasp" (the magazine itself, personified) disrupting their schemes and exposing them. The chorus suggests these fraudsters give false promises of gentlemanly behavior and respectability while actually robbing customers. The accompanying **illustration shows a figure being attacked or stung**, presumably by The Wasp—a visual metaphor for the magazine's satirical mission to expose and punish public deception and fraud. The rest of the page consists of **legitimate San Francisco business advertisements** for liquor dealers, shipping companies, and other services.