The Lawyers Know Too Much - A poem by Carl Sandburg

Carl Sandburg - The Lawyers Know Too Much

THE LAWYERS, Bob, know too much.
They are chums of the books of old John Marshall.
They know it all, what a dead hand wrote,
A stiff dead hand and its knuckles crumbling,
The bones of the fingers a thin white ash.
  The lawyers know
  a dead man’s thoughts too well.
  
In the heels of the higgling lawyers, Bob,
Too many slippery ifs and buts and howevers,
Too much hereinbefore provided whereas,
Too many doors to go in and out of.
  
When the lawyers are through
What is there left, Bob?
Can a mouse nibble at it
And find enough to fasten a tooth in?
  
Why is there always a secret singing
When a lawyer cashes in?
Why does a hearse horse snicker
Hauling a lawyer away?
The work of a bricklayer goes to the blue.
The knack of a mason outlasts a moon.
The hands of a plasterer hold a room together.
The land of a farmer wishes him back again.
  Singers of songs and dreamers of plays
  Build a house no wind blows over.
The lawyers—tell me why a hearse horse snickers hauling a lawyer’s bones.

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Added: Feb 4 2004 | Viewed: 6698 times |

Comments (3)

The Lawyers Know Too Much - Comments and Information
Poet: Carl Sandburg Poem: 7. The Lawyers Know Too Much Volume: Smoke and Steel - IV. Playthings of the Wind Year: Published/Written in 1922 Comment 3 of 3, added on February 11th, 2012 at 6:27 PM. fslmkMBgXwx tIEBnS Sorry for the off-topic, could you tell where I can get such a nice pattern for my blog ?!.... oem software from Luxembourg Comment 2 of 3, added on June 1st, 2005 at 1:45 PM. Yes, the horse was nickering as you stated. The poet needed to apply humanistic characteristics to the horse however; due to the fact that not a single human mourner could be found at the funeral. And in the end....Carl is much more famous than some whiny, back-water divorce or litigation lawyer....(snicker.....tee hee...) Mike P from United States Comment 1 of 3, added on September 25th, 2004 at 4:12 PM. Obviously Mr. Sandburg came out second best in a publishing-contract negotiation to one of us. By the way "Carl," that horse was nickering not snickering. In a similar fashion litigation losers (such as the late poet apparently) don't whinny, they're whiny. A Lawyer from United States More Comments >> Are you looking for more information on this poem? Perhaps you are trying to analyze it? The poem, The Lawyers Know Too Much, has received 3 comments. Click here to read them, and perhaps post a comment of your own.

Poem Info
Poet: Carl Sandburg Poem: 7. The Lawyers Know Too Much Volume: Smoke and Steel - IV. Playthings of the Wind Year: Published/Written in 1922 Last read: 2013-05-25 14:26:34 Viewed 6698 times. Added Feb 4 2004.

Sandburg Info
Biography More Poems (442 poems) Carl Sandburg books