YOU prefer a buffoon to a scholar,
A harlequin to a teacher,
A jester to a statesman,
An anonyma flaring on horseback
To a modest and spotless woman--
Brute of a public!
You think that to sneer shows wisdom;
That a gibe outvalues a reason;
That slang, such as thieves delight in,
Is fit for the lips of the gentle,
And rather a grace than a blemish--
Thick-headed public!
You think that if merit’s exalted,
’Tis excellent sport to decry it,
And trail its good name in the gutter;
And that cynics, white-gloved and cravatted,
Are the cream and quintessence of all things--
Ass of a public!
You think that success must be merit;
That honour and virtue and courage
Are all very well in their places,
But that money’s a thousand times better--
Detestable, stupid, degraded
Pig of a public!
_Charles Mackay._