I just read Arcadian Adventures with the Idle Rich, a collection of interlinked short stories by Stephen Leacock. On the whole, it is a good-natured satire on (North) American high-society of the early 20th Century, with a main theme being the self-interest behind much of the seemingly high-minded activity of the "Idle Rich". It ends, in an understated way, on a grim note, with the story "The Big Fight", which - spoiler alert! - concerns an ever-expanding cabal of businessmen who create the 'Clean Government' movement, in a hypocritical assault on "corruption"; they pull in the press, the churches, and various social institutions, and in the end are able to replace the elected city council with a "board" of their cronies. That final story is well worth the read; it comes across now as a distant warning from an author best known for his gentle humour.