The Wasp — August 9, 1879 — page 9: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# "Box & Cox" or San Francisco This political cartoon satirizes San Francisco civic conflicts, likely from the late 19th century. The left panel shows twin Orthodox church domes labeled with references to Chinese immigration and Jewish residents, depicting them as competing groups the city must manage. The caricatured figure on the right, with exaggerated features typical of period antisemitic imagery, appears to be a political or civic figure juggling these community tensions—represented by the spheres he's tossing. The title "Box & Cox" (a Victorian farce about two men unknowingly sharing lodgings) suggests chaos from competing interests. References to "Sunday Laws," penalties, and "Goose Island" indicate actual civic disputes over business regulations and community zoning that The Wasp was mocking through ethnic caricature.