The Subway Piranhas -- Edwin Morgan

Guest poem sent in by Vikram Doctor

(Poem #304) The Subway Piranhas Did anyone tell you that in each subway train there is one special seat with a small hole in it and underneath the seat is a tank of piranha-fish which have not been fed for quite some time. The fish become quite agitated by the shoogling of the train and jump up through the seat. The resulting skeletons of unlucky passengers turn an honest penny for the transport executive, hanging far and wide in medical schools. -- Edwin Morgan

Some years ago, Edwin Morgan was commissioned by the Scottish Arts Council
to write a series of poems for the inauguration of Glasgow's refurbished
Underground system. He sent this sample, which sent such alarm through the
Strathclyde transport executive that they decided against using the poems.

from Poems On The Underground

Even London Underground didn't dare to use the poem - its only given in the
anthology's notes. I was reminded of it both by the Morgan poem you gave,
and by a trip last week to Calcutta. Passing the entrances to the Calcutta
Metro, I couldn't help remembering that Calcutta is also the centre of
India's thriving human skeleton export trade...

Vikram