The Wasp — March 13, 1880 — page 14: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This is primarily an **advertising page** from The Wasp magazine (page 541), featuring San Francisco businesses and patent medicines typical of the late 19th century. The central cartoon depicts a **cow wearing a suit and hat**, labeled "Incense—at his wits" and "Ideal—changing glances." This appears to be satirical commentary on fraudulent or absurd patent medicines and consumer gullibility, a common Wasp target. The accompanying text snippets ("Is taking in an idea, fraud?" "Interlude—bury the lecherous") suggest mockery of dubious commercial claims. Most of the page contains legitimate advertisements for local services (bakeries, opticians, dress makers) interspersed with quack remedy ads like "Damiana Bitters" for kidney/bladder ailments—reflecting actual 19th-century snake-oil marketing practices that The Wasp regularly ridiculed.