The Wasp — 1877 — page 276: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This page mixes editorial commentary with advertisements. The cartoons on the right satirize cigar companies—"Regalia Company," "Pumariega Company"—showing storefronts with signs reading "NONE BUT WHITE MEN EMPLOYED HERE." These are direct critiques of discriminatory hiring practices targeting Chinese laborers, a major political issue in 1880s California. The left column contains editorial complaints about various civic problems: theatrical dens attracting youth, street railways, and political corruption. A notable section attacks "Rev. Dr. Witt Talmage" for preaching against "working men" while defending wealthy interests—typical class-warfare satire. The overall message criticizes both overt racial discrimination and economic inequality, using visual and textual ridicule to expose what *The Wasp* viewed as hypocrisy and injustice.