The Wasp — 1893 — page 20: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This page features "The Old Maid's Diary," a column with satirical commentary on San Francisco society. The illustrated cartoon shows a woman in Victorian dress, likely caricaturing a particular social type or individual. The text discusses upper-class society behavior, mentioning the "Dorcas Society" and critiquing women who parade through streets in expensive clothing. There's commentary on church entertainment and social pretensions. The main satirical point appears to target wealthy San Francisco women's ostentatious displays of fashion and their participation in charitable societies, suggesting hypocrisy between claimed virtue and actual behavior. The "Old Maid's Diary" format allows the author to mock contemporary social customs and class attitudes through a gossip-column lens. Without clearer identification of specific individuals referenced, the precise targets remain somewhat unclear beyond general class satire.