I once came across this quote in an old mystery novel, one of R. Austin Freeman’s Dr Thorndyke series. It encapsulates a Fabian outlook which never disappeared and if anything is as entrenched now as it was in Freeman's day.
“The commercial standard isn’t quite the same as the professional, you know,” Jack Rodney answered evasively, “and financial circles are not exactly of the higher morality. But I know of nothing to Purcell’s discredit.”
R. Austin Freeman - The Shadow of the Wolf (1928)
3 comments:
"The Shadow of the Wolf". Is that a reference to the Fabian Society's original coat of arms, which was quite shamelessly a wolf in sheep's clothing? I note they have changed it now to something quite bland and corporate - which is what you would expect from a cunning wolf.
And it's just occurred to me why Starmer appointed such an oafish pillock to be his Foreign Secretary. "Lammy" is obviously to make us think of innocent fleecy coats, rather than the wolf underneath.
When I left academic work to work in industry I found the moral standards rather higher.
Sam - it could be a reference to the Fabian Society's original coat of arms, he didn't approve of their politics although he was in favour of eugenics, but many were in those days. We'll have to refer to Lammy as Lamby now though.
dearieme - I started in industry and wasn't there for long before going into the public sector, but yes the moral standards in industry were higher. Looking back it was quite marked, but it was a step up at the right time of life.
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