Caspar Milquetoast

Caspar Milquetoast is a character created by H. T. Webster in 1925. He appeared in a cartoon strip called The Timid Soul.

Webster described Milquetoast as "the man who speaks softly and gets hit with a big stick”. Though it would be more accurate to describe him as a man who speaks softly because he is afraid of being hit with a big stick. Websters characterisation most likely comes from Theodore Roosevelt’s letter to Henry L. Sprague, on January 26th 1900 in which he wrote "Speak softly and carry a big stick; you will go far."

Elsewhere Milquetoast has been described as a weak man for all seasons. He endures repeated humiliations to avoid confrontation. There are a lot of Milquetoasts around at the present time. Especially in politics and the media. Men who are afraid of being hit with the twitter stick by the wokefinder mob. Did you say the wrong thing ten years ago? If you did you can count on the corporate Milquetoasts to sacrifice you to save themselves.