Alexander McLachlan (
1818-
1896)
McLachlan is among the most important 19th century Canadian poets. A native of
Scotland, he moved to
Canada in
1940. He was often called "the
Burns of Canada" and wrote of working people and the backwoods, sometimes, like Burns, using
dialect in his verse. His unfinished
epic "
The Emigrant" told of Scottish immigrants who settled Upper Canada. In this poem, probably his most important short verse, he criticizes the pious who preach to the poor without addressing their poverty, crime, or their lack of education.
We live in a rickety house,
In a dirty dismal street,
Where the naked hide from day,
And thieves and drunkards meet.
And pious folks with their tracts,
When our dens they enter in,
They point to our shirtless backs,
As the fruits of
beer and
gin.
And they quote us texts to prove,
That our
hearts are hard as stone,
And they feed us with the fact,
That the
fault is all our own.
It will be long
ere the poor,
Will learn their
grog to shun,
While it's
raiment, food and
fire,
And
religion all in one.
I wonder some
pious folks,
Can look us straight in the face,
For our
ignorance and
crime,
Are the
Church's
shame and
disgrace.
We live in a rickety house,
In a dirty dismal street,
Where the naked hide from day,
And thieves and drunkards meet.
- 1874