1872: On the Politician

Jeanne d’Anatis

Once the Church was our conscience and the Crown our command. Now we have elected men who pretend to both. The politician is the gentleman of the mob: born to please, bred to deceive. He bows to all and belongs to none.

His speeches are designed for quotation, not conviction; his honour, for the press, not for posterity. Yet he is always called “the Honourable.” The irony, I think, is deliberate.