The Wasp — 1892 — page 262: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This cartoon satirizes the ineffectiveness of law enforcement against train robbery. The central figure is a grotesque, skull-faced bandit armed with multiple guns and rifles, standing triumphantly over fallen bodies in a desert landscape. The caption and subtitle indicate the satire's target: modern train robbers allegedly "make light of the modern posse of detectives and Deputy Sheriffs" (per the Daily Newspaper quote). The joke is bitter: despite law enforcement efforts, train robbers operate with impunity, treating police and detectives as laughable obstacles. The exaggerated, almost demonic appearance of the bandit emphasizes how fearsome and uncatchable these criminals were perceived to be in 1892 California, where The Wasp was published.