The Wasp — April 3, 1880 — page 8: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# The Illustrated Wasp, Page 583 This page contains a conversation-based cartoon featuring two gentlemen in top hats and overcoats. The dialogue concerns a financial dispute: one figure (Moses) owes the other (Levy) money—specifically "$250 and an additional fifteen dollars"—for what appears to be a business transaction. Levy is demanding settlement, while Moses attempts various evasions and excuses. The satire targets contemporary attitudes toward Jewish businessmen and money-lending. The stereotypical names and the focus on haggling over financial obligations reflect late-19th-century antisemitic tropes common in American satirical publications. The cartoon presents the negotiation as inherently comedic, relying on ethnic caricature rather than substantive social or political critique.