The Wasp — 1880 — page 114: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This page contains two sections: political commentary on railroad monopolies and four domestic cartoon vignettes. The **text denounces railroad corporations** controlling California's infrastructure. It criticizes three men and an "estate of one deceased person" who—through consolidation—monopolize trunk lines to Ogden and Arizona, controlling freight rates and taxable values while benefiting themselves rather than the public. The writer calls for revolutionizing these institutions. The **four cartoon panels** titled "Before the Camera and in the Chamber" satirize **domestic hypocrisy**: showing contrasting public versus private behavior in married couples and mothers with children. The captions suggest people present false faces to society while behaving differently in private—a commentary on Victorian respectability and hidden realities. The overall page critiques both **corporate and personal dishonesty**.