The Wasp — 1892 — page 151: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This satirical page from *The Wasp* uses six vignettes to mock various explanations for economic hardship. Panel 1 shows an editorial donkey "howling disaster" (editors blamed for pessimism). Panel 2 criticizes high rents. Panel 3 mocks a first-class funeral as "improvement." Panel 4 appears to reference lynching or capital punishment. Panel 5 shows figures at a "Dollar Limit" bank discussing Clay Street financial matters. Panel 6 depicts a man scattering money marked "Washington Alkali," suggesting government waste. The overall theme: *The Wasp* argues that citizens blame various scapegoats—lazy editors, high housing costs, wasteful funerals, and government spending—rather than examining actual systemic economic causes. The cartoons suggest that blaming external factors won't solve genuine hardship.