The Wasp — October 11, 1879 — page 10: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# "The Daily Per Centage of Crime" - San Francisco This satirical comic depicts crime in San Francisco as endemic to multiple social classes and occupations. The top panel shows rougher criminals (pickpockets, street criminals), while subsequent panels portray crime among respectable society: wealthy businessmen, fashionable women, and merchants. The titled phrase "daily per centage of crime" suggests crime occurs predictably across all economic levels. The satire argues that while working-class crime receives public attention and policing, white-collar crime by the wealthy and respectable citizens goes largely unnoticed or unpunished. By showing crime as distributed across society rather than concentrated among the poor, the cartoon critiques selective law enforcement and hypocrisy in how San Francisco society judges criminality based on class status.