The Wasp — 1881 — page 131: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This page is primarily editorial and advertising content rather than cartoons. The main illustration shows a caricatured figure in elaborate dress carrying a sword and medicine bottles—likely satirizing quack doctors or patent medicine dealers. The text criticizes corrupt relationships between doctors and druggists who, the author claims, deliberately prescribe expensive or inferior medications to defraud poor patients. The satire suggests this fraudulent practice is widespread and systemic in the medical profession. The remaining content includes publisher information, subscription rates, and various brief satirical "stings"—short commentary pieces mocking contemporary figures and social problems like whiskey sales to Native Americans and dubious business practices. The overall tone targets corruption and exploitation across multiple professions.