ABSTRACT
In 1911 Major Joseph Orton Kerbey (1841–1913) published An American Consul in Amazonia. In the book he added a poem ‘What People Think about a Consul’, by an unknown author. 1 The poem reviews the many functions and duties of consuls, but despite this he is not much respected by society, not even after his death.
In fact, a consul must know and do everything, or
The general cry is, ‘What’s a consul good for?’
He must not be old, or young, single or married;
And I really believe that when he is buried
They will still continue to vent all their spleen
Denying him heaven, Sambo or Fiddler’s Green. 2
