Funny Bubbles

By Ramesh Akkineni

This is from Charles Mackay's book:

Besides these bubbles, many others sprang up daily, in spite of the condemnation of the government and the ridicule of the still sane portion of the public. The print-shops teemed with caricatures, and the newspapers with epigrams and satires, upon the prevalent folly. An ingenious card-maker published a pack of South-Sea playing-cards, which are now extremely rare, each card containing, besides the usual figures, of a very small size, in one corner, a caricature of a bubble company, with appropriate verses underneath. One of the most famous bubbles was "Puckle's Machine Company," for discharging round and square cannon-balls and bullets, and making a total revolution in the art of war. Its pretensions to public favour were thus summed up, on the eight of spades:
"A rare invention to destroy the crowd
Of fools at home, instead of fools abroad.
Fear not, my friends, this terrible machine,
They're only wounded who have shares therein."
2.22

The nine of hearts was a caricature of the English Copper and Brass Company, with the following epigram:
"The headlong fool that wants to be a swopper
Of gold and silver coin for English copper,
May, in Change Alley, prove himself an ass,
And give rich metal for adulterate brass."
2.23

The eight of diamonds celebrated the company for the colonization of Acadia, with this doggrel:
"He that is rich and wants to fool away
A good round sum in North America,
Let him subscribe himself a headlong sharer,
And asses' ears shall honour him or bearer."
2.24

And in a similar style every card of the pack exposed some knavish scheme, and ridiculed the persons who were its dupes.

Here Mackay refers to companies as bubbles, now bubble may also mean the whole market... Like the dot com bubble... I was also a part of it... It is no less funny... Until you start to the count the lost time and money or the ‘tuition fees’ ...

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