Temperance Gems

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By Listen TheBook Posted on May 30, 2023
In Category - Poetry
William Topaz McGonagall 1902
English
  • The Rattling Boy from Dublin
  • A Tribute to Mr Murphy and the Blue Ribbon Army
  • The Destroying Angel or The Poet's Dream
  • The Troubles of Matthew Mahoney
  • The Demon Drink
  • A New Temperance Poem, in Memory of my Departed Parents
Good people all, of every degree,
I pray, ye all be warned by me:
I advise ye all to pause and think,
And never more to taste strong drink.

Some people do say it is good when taken in moderation,
But, when taken to excess, it leads to tribulation,
Also to starvation and loss of reputation,
Likewise your eternal soul's damnation.


McGonagall has been widely acclaimed as the worst poet in British history. He campaigned vigorously against excessive drinking, appearing in pubs and bars to give edifying poems and speeches. These were very popular, the people of Dundee possibly recognising that McGonagall was “so giftedly bad he backed unwittingly into genius”. Six of those poems are recited here.
(Summary collated from McGonagall’s verse and Wikipedia by Cori Samuel.)

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