A Book of Burlesques 73 – Mencken · Library Across
Literature · Humor
A Book of Burlesques 73The First Man
18
Literature · Humor
A Book of Burlesques 73
The First Man
MenckenEnglish
Yes, it's all a matter of boosting. Day in and day out you hear about Westminster Abbey. Every English book mentions it; it's in the newspapers almost as much as Jane Addams or Caruso. Well, one day you pack your grip, put on your hat and come over to have a look--and what do you find? A one-horse church full of statues! And every statue crying for sapolio! You expect to see something magnificent and enormous, something to knock your eye out and send you down for the count. What you do see is a second-rate graveyard under roof. And when you examine into it, you find that two-thirds of the graves haven't even got dead men in them! Whenever a prominent Englishman dies, they put up a statue to him in Westminster Abbey--no matter where he happens to be buried! I call that clever advertising. That's the way to get the crowd.
