Social Commentaries
Holland
From The Humorous Poetry of the English Language (ed. James Parton)
A country that draws fifty feet of water,
In which men live as in the hold of Nature;
And when the sea does in upon them break,
And drown a province, does but spring a leak;
That always ply the pump, and never think
They can be safe, but at the rate they stink;
That live as if they had been run a-ground,
And, when they die, are cast away and drown'd;
That dwell in ships, like swarms of rats, and prey
Upon the goods all nations' fleets convey;
And, when their merchants are blown up and cracked,
Whole towns are cast away and wrecked;
That feed, like cannibals, on other fishes,
And serve their cousin-germans up in dishes:
A land that rides at anchor, and is moor'd,
In which they do not live, but go a-board.
Cite this poem
MLA
Butler, Samuel. “Holland.” Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/butler_samuel/26/.
Chicago
Butler, Samuel. “Holland.” Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/butler_samuel/26/.
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