The Wasp — March 27, 1880 — page 4: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# "Mutual Delights" — The Illustrated Wasp This satirical illustration critiques San Francisco's Board of Supervisors regarding a police force increase. The image shows an elegantly dressed woman holding a child, gazing upward in apparent contentment or admiration. The accompanying text sarcastically praises the Supervisors as "ingrateful" for rejecting the Mayor's veto on expanding the police. The satire suggests that while citizens danced joyfully upon hearing this news, the Supervisors' actions actually served self-interested purposes rather than public good. The "mutual delights" title ironically juxtaposes the Supervisors' self-satisfaction with citizens' genuine but misplaced happiness. The cartoon satirizes municipal corruption and suggests the Supervisors prioritize their own interests over honest governance.