The Wasp — 1892 — page 315: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This Wasp cartoon satirizes corruption in California governance. Two tall figures standing on pedestals wear signs advertising various crimes: "S.P. Robbery," "Extortion," "Unjust Charges," "Official Rascality," "Poulice Pavement," and similar municipal abuses. They hold money bags and warn "Beware of the Railroad Boodle Man" and similar figures. Two smaller figures below—appearing to be laborers or working men—sit in distress near a pot marked "Port," suggesting ordinary citizens suffering the consequences of this systemic corruption. The cartoon likely targets the Southern Pacific Railroad's notorious political influence in California and broader municipal corruption of the era. The satire depicts how powerful interests and corrupt officials prey upon common people through various schemes and extortion.