CYNICAL ODE TO AN ULTRA-CYNICAL PUBLIC
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—
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.