[34]
It is the duty not merely
[p. 457]
of an orator, but of any reasonable human being,
when attacking one whom it is dangerous to offend
to take care that his remarks do not end in exciting
serious enmity, or the necessity for a grovelling
apology. Sarcasm that applies to a number of
persons is injudicious: I refer to cases where it is
directed against whole nations or classes of society,
or against rank and pursuits which are common to
many.
Quintilian. With An English Translation. Harold Edgeworth Butler. Cambridge. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann, Ltd. 1921.
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