W.S. Gilbert on “The Reward of Merit”

It is said that William S. Gilbert was often annoyed that the Victorian public seemed to worship men with money or aristocratic birth, and totally ignored men of talent and genius. So the notion that one had to be rich or titled to get respect was probably on his mind when he composed the following poem, “The Reward of Merit.”

Originally, these were the words to a song that was to have been sung in the second act of “Iolanthe,” but it was cut on the grounds that it slowed down the story. So instead, Gilbert included it in the 1897 edition of Bab Ballads.

Some of the references in the poem would have been familiar to Victorian audiences might be a bit confusing to current day readers, so check the notes following the poem.

Also, don’t miss the excellent audio rendition of the poem by Andrew Crowther, which you can listen to on Soundcloud.

Enjoy!

The Reward Of Merit

De BELVILLE was regarded as the CRICHTON of his age:
His tragedies were reckoned much too thoughtful for the stage;
His poems held a noble rank, although it’s very true
That, being very proper, they were read by very few.
He was a famous Painter, too, and shone upon the “line,”
And even MR. RUSKIN came and worshipped at his shrine;
But, alas, the school he followed was heroically high –
The kind of Art men rave about, but very seldom buy;
And everybody said
“How can he be repaid –
This very great – this very good – this very gifted man?”
But nobody could hit upon a practicable plan!

He was a great Inventor, and discovered, all alone,
A plan for making everybody’s fortune but his own;
For, in business, an Inventor’s little better than a fool,
And my highly-gifted friend was no exception to the rule.
His poems – people read them in the Quarterly Reviews –
His pictures – they engraved them in the ILLUSTRATED NEWS –
His inventions – they, perhaps, might have enriched him by degrees,
But all his little income went in Patent Office fees;
And everybody said
“How can he be repaid –
This very great – this very good – this very gifted man?”
But nobody could hit upon a practicable plan!

At last the point was given up in absolute despair,
When a distant cousin died, and he became a millionaire,
With a county seat in Parliament, a moor or two of grouse,
And a taste for making inconvenient speeches in the House!
THEN it flashed upon Britannia that the fittest of rewards
Was, to take him from the Commons and to put him in the Lords!
And who so fit to sit in it, deny it if you can,
As this very great – this very good – this very gifted man?
(Though I’m more than half afraid
That it sometimes may be said
That we never should have reveled in that source of proper pride,
However great his merits – if his cousin hadn’t died!)

Notes:

DeBellville is a fictional character made up just for the purposes of this poem.

Crichton refers to Sir John Crichton of Scotland,  considered one of the most gifted individuals of the 16th century, noted for his extraordinary accomplishments in languages, the arts, and sciences before he was killed at the age of 21. Crichton’s fame is based on a wildly exaggerated biography of him written in 1652 by Sir Thomas Urquhart (1611–1660).

Mr. Ruskin refers to John Ruskin,  the leading English art critic of the Victorian era, also an art patron, teacher, essayist and philanthropist.

The “Line” refers to the Royal Academy of Art’s annual Exhibition of the Work of Living Artists. Each year, the best paintings were arranged at eye-level, which was called being “on the line.”