Worthier of regard and stronger
Than the colour of our kind.
Slaves of gold, whose sordid dealings
Furnish all your boasted powers;
Prove that you have human feelings
Ere you proudly question ours!
William Cowper.
Two parodies of this poem appeared in Figaro in London more than fifty years ago, they are consequently rather out of date, and it is unnecessary to give them in full.
The first referred to Henry Phillpotts, the stern, mercenary, and bigoted Bishop of Exeter, the bitter opponent of Roman Catholic emancipation, and the apologist for the Peterloo massacre. The second is supposed to be a complaint made by Lord Grey on his rejection from the office of premier by his late colleagues.