“Tis vain for present fame to wish--
Our persons first must be forgotten;
For poets are like stinking fish--
They never shine until they're rotten.”

— McDonald Clarke

The Elixir of Moonshine (1820).

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McDonald Clarke 3

American writer 1798–1842

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“Tis vain for present fame to wish--Our persons first must be forgotten;For poets are like stinking fish--They never shine until they're rotten.”

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McDonald Clarke 3

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“Tis vain for present fame to wish--
Our persons first must be forgotten;
For poets are like stinking fish--
They never shine until they're rotten.”