The Wasp — 1881 — page 432: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This page contains three sections of satirical commentary rather than cartoons: 1. **"Reserved" Seats** criticizes theater owners for artificially reducing available seating by designating certain seats as "reserved," thus artificially raising prices and enabling scalpers to profit. 2. **"How it Works"** sarcastically describes a corrupt railroad scheme where company officials ("kicked") fraudulently manipulate fares and profits while claiming business difficulties. 3. **"Our Malicious Critic"** features a fictional exchange between a critical editor and various contributors, mocking the pretensions of literary submissions and editorial judgment. The page primarily uses written satire rather than visual cartoons, targeting local San Francisco business practices, particularly railroads and theaters, and the vanities of amateur writers.