The Wednesday Read: The Private Banker’s Paen (Punch, August 20th, 1887)

The Private Banker’s Paen

(Some way after Shakespeare)

I know a Bank whereto the poor man goes.

If there too quickly  his deposit grows,

I fancy our Monopoly may decline,

No, no, at Thirty Pounds we’ll draw the line,

Nor let the Artisan, however thrifty,

In the Post-Office pile an annual Fifty.

We’ve floored them this time after a good fight,

Government yields, to our extreme delight.

We Private Banks are saved, by our teeth’s skin.

If they the thin end of the wedge slip in,

By Jove,  they’ll open wide the public eyes,

And smash up all our snug monopolies.