The Firm of Happiness, Limited

Norman Cameron

The Firm of Happiness, Limited was one to astonish the stars,

More like a thriving town than a multiple store--- a hotchpotch

Of markets and playrooms and chapels and brothels and baths and bars,

As smoothly running and closely packed as the works of a watch.

Nobody finally understood the cause of the crash.

Some spoke of Nemesis; others rumoured, vaguely, of course,

That a gang of directors jad simply robbed the firm of its cash,

Or that some ironical Jew was selling it short on the Bourse.

Whatever the reason, the firm of a sudden began to fail.

The floor were undusted at corners, the commissionaries were unshaved,

The girls were anxious and raucous, the comedians’ jokes were stale.

The customers noticed the difference---to judge from the way they behaved.

When Happiness closed its doors, the Corporation of the city

Were distressed to see so vast a property left alone

To moulder and waste; in a mingled impulse of thrift and pity

They decided to buy the empty building, and floated a loan.

Now nobody knows what to do with this monstrous hulk we have bought.

At the last Corporation meeting one alderman, half in jest,

Spoke of turning it into a barracks.Meanwhile there’s the dreary thought

That we ratepayers have to keep paying the burdensome interest.

幸福有限責任公司

諾爾曼?卡麥隆

幸福有限責任公司震驚星辰，

像百貨公司，更像興旺的城鎮--

集市、游樂、酒吧、妓院、教堂、澡堂無所不包，

排列精密正如鐘表運轉有條不紊。

對它的倒閉人們始終不懂個中奧妙，

是上天懲罰還是人為災禍各有傳聞;

或者敗在卷走資金的領導集團?

或者毀于股市將它拋售的猶太商人?

公司突然開始崩潰，不管是何原因，

管理委員面容不整，地上角落布滿灰塵;

不安的小姐聲音嘶啞，笑星遭到厭棄，

顧客察覺到這一切變化，不再登門。

公司巨大的資產閑置、發霉，

看到這副景象市政機關實在痛心;

他們決定籌集貸款買下空樓，

既是為了節儉也是出于憐憫。

買下巨大的空樓無人知道如何處理，

用作工棚吧，市政會上議員的玩笑半假半真。

我們這些納稅人還得為它繼續支付利息，

想到這一點人人感到非常郁悶。