My first is made by city men.

My first is made by city men--how very reprehensible,
Self-interest is the only plea that renders it defensible;
'Tis sometimes in the meadows seen--phenomenon botanical,
Not caused by feet of little folk, but growth that's cryptogamical.

My second is remarkable--his character's so various,
He may be good, or bad, or weak, or timid, temerarious;
The crowning glory of a tree--mechanical or musical,
Or literary, legal, but undoubtedly political.

My Whole, supposed to be the first--pre-eminence detestable,
More often in the background lurks, that fact is incontestable;
In insurrections, mutinies, and mischief--he's conspicuous,
Yet oftentimes, we know, contrives to make himself ridiculous.