The Wasp — 1879 — page 623: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This page contains a parody poem mocking convict labor, specifically referencing the construction of the San Bruno Road in California. The poem satirizes the brutal conditions prisoners endured—chains, hard labor, inadequate food, and exploitation by authorities. The two cartoons below titled "Vigilant Committings" appear to depict corrupt officials or jailers abusing their power. "Dissolving Views" (left) shows figures in confrontation, while "Where There Is a Will There Is 'Away'" (right) depicts men apparently fleeing or being pursued—likely satirizing both the desperation of prisoners and the ineffectiveness or corruption of those supposedly supervising them. The satire criticizes inhumane prison conditions and suggests official negligence or complicity in prisoner suffering.