No serious student of his life and ways

Will venture to impugn his common sense;

His tact and moderation win high praise

Even from those whose faculties are dense

And blind to the false issues which they raise

When they accuse him of malevolence.

"But, ah!" these shallow hide-bound pedants cry,

"If to the Crab all virtues you concede,

If his intentions are not evil, why

This sidelong walk,