There’s a blue plaque stuck on the wall
Proclaiming what the great man’s done.
His name was Hiram Maxim
And he invented the machine gun.
He lived here in Hatton Garden
Where the rich chose their pearls
But at night you hear the soldiers scream
In the bullet loving world
Be silent little street of London
Be quiet and see what he’s done
He invented modern warfare
He invented the machine gun
It cut down soldiers on all sides
And put civilisation on the run
The inventor lived here in Hatton Garden
Where the rich people buy their fun
Where playboys come to buy jewellery
From merchants of the gem so dear
You’ll see the plaque to this fearful name
Saying: Hiram Maxim lived here.
(Lyrics for an anti war song)
In England Blue plaques are fixed to the walls of buildings to show where famous people lived.
He did not invent a machine gun! 🙂
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I’m so sorry please forgive me, you are right of course. I read “My Childhood” when I was at art school 45 years ago and thought him a great writer but alas, I could not find anything else in English translation since then.
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Forgive me for being annoying :). As for Gorky’s books, I’d say, the earlier stuff is better than what he wrote late.”The Mother” is highly political, but still decent if you ask me: https://smile.amazon.com/Mother-Maxim-Gorky/dp/1722609273/ref=sr_1_9?keywords=maxim+gorky&qid=1566391413&s=gateway&sr=8-9
There are also some of his plays translated into English:
https://smile.amazon.com/Gorky-Plays-Summerfolk-Children-Classics/dp/0413181103/ref=sr_1_5?keywords=maxim+gorky&qid=1566391628&s=gateway&sr=8-5
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Thank you for posting
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Sure 🙂
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