The Wasp — June 12, 1880 — page 19: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This satirical piece critiques Mr. Pixley, apparently a political figure who declined a prominent position at a Republican National Convention. The Blaine managers (supporters of presidential candidate James G. Blaine) had requested his name as one of five candidates for delegate selection, but Pixley refused, claiming insufficient justification for such prominence. The cartoon's caption references Mark Antony's famous scene from Shakespeare's *Julius Caesar*, where Antony offers Caesar the crown but Caesar refuses it. Here, the satire suggests Pixley's refusal is performative—affecting humility while actually seeking recognition, much like Antony's theatrical gesture of denial that actually increased Caesar's prestige.