... one of the paradoxes about Kipling is that for a man who disliked public appearances and speaking, he put some of his most deeply personal and revealing statements into his speeches. As a result, A Book of Words, that incorporates them, makes splendid reading. His speech to McGill University is no exception. It is his most direct and fierce attack upon materialism.

To Demeter the Winnower and the Seasons that tread in the furrows
Heronax from his scanty tilth offers a portion of the corn from his threshing-floor
and these various vegetables on a wooden tripod – very little from a small store;
for he owns but this little glebe on the barren hill-side.