The Wasp — 1879 — page 23: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This page is primarily **advertising**, not satire or political commentary. It's from *The Illustrated Wasp* (page 14), dated around 1879 based on the steamship company advertisements. The upper portion features commercial ads: eyeglasses from Berteling & Watry, Neptune and Mermaid Swimming Baths (a San Francisco leisure facility), and Pacific Coast Steamship Company routes. Below are advertisements for Nicoll the Tailor (with branches in New York), featuring clothing prices and an illustration of a man in formal wear. The page emphasizes "electric light" as a novel selling point for viewing merchandise at night—a modern technological advantage. Other ads include dry goods, woolens, and tailoring services typical of late 19th-century commercial directories. This represents standard period advertising rather than satirical content.