The Wasp — 1893 — page 94: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This cartoon satirizes a wealthy foreign nobleman (drawn with exaggerated features suggesting European aristocracy) who has come to San Francisco to marry for money. The caption notes he's a "genuine foreign count" setting "traps for Cupid, with a view to a profitable matrimonial alliance." The imagery shows him as a con artist: he wields fishing equipment to "catch" an American heiress (depicted as a cherub with a money bag), while he's already collected various valuables and luggage labeled with European locations. The satire mocks both the fortune-hunting nobleman and the perceived gullibility of wealthy American women who might be seduced by foreign titles. This reflects late-19th-century anxiety about European aristocrats marrying American wealth.