The Wasp — 1892 — page 338: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This cartoon satirizes Irish-American political corruption. A well-dressed man wearing an enormous top hat (likely representing a political boss or Kelly, as labeled on the "Kelly's Republican" flag) confronts the "Democrat Gang"—depicted as rough working-class men holding a banner. The central figure accuses them of robbing the treasury, demanding they return stolen funds. The satire targets both major parties' financial misconduct during the Gilded Age, suggesting that whether Republicans or Democrats hold power, corruption persists—hence "a change" means merely swapping which party steals from public coffers. The exaggerated caricatures and class distinctions emphasize the cartoon's cynicism about machine politics and ethnic political machines in 1890s America.