[1392] The Law the Lawyers Know About

Guest poem sent in by Mike Lynd <mal@>

The law the lawyers know about
Is property and land;
But why the leaves are on the trees,
And why the wind disturbs the seas,
Why honey is the food of bees,
Why horses have such tender knees,
Why winters come and rivers freeze,
Why Faith is more than what one sees,
And Hope survives the worst disease,
And Charity is more than these,
    They do not understand.

 	-- H.D.C. Pepler

To pick up on the 'hope' theme of the Emily Dickinson poem [Poem #1382],
here is a little poem that I have always liked. Not only does it bash
lawyers in a most satisfying way, but it also delineates faith, hope and
charity both elegantly and succinctly. I am not sure about the "tender
knees" line but the rest of the poem neatly contrasts the prosaic doings of
lawyers with the mysteries of life and nature.

HDC Pepler, the author, seems to have been a printer in Ditchling, Sussex
during the 1930s, and a Google search reveals about 25 references to him,
mainly as a printer of "private press" works but also with a few references
to this poem.

best wishes,

Mike Lynd

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From: "Julian Tepper" <jutepper@>

Guest poem in reply:

While it's true that
Lawyers know the law of property and land,
For the rest, they
No more than others, need a guiding hand.

They, too, have hearts that understand.

Julian Tepper
Lawyer

From: "Ashok" <aj@>

do you
do you understand?

what do you understand?

are your knees weak
from fighting your ex-wife
is your soul troubled from stealing
her life?

do you still call her,
honey
or do you only
hate the lawyer
for you
hoarding your money

__________________________________________________________________________

From: "Diane Janah" <avalonprint@>


Response to comments made by Ashok:

The Law that Lawyers really know
Is how to put on an excellent show
To their peers, the judge and the jury
Despite the public's outcry and fury

With amazing coniving, legalese, and jargon
Stretching and twisting facts till they're far gone
Squeezing cash from clients - the very last drop
Leaving all involved in a huge financial spot

Ah Alas! for their hearts, with no feeling or emotion      
Bright minds trained in law, but to truth no devotion
They follow the gold, their souls lost in their quest
Traded in for a profession considered greedy at best! 

What HDC Pepler, printer n' poet seemed to know
Is a wisdom that's lacking in lawyers - to grow
Beyond their vision of winning every court case
To observe nature's wonders instead of the rat race

Yes, the LAW the lawyers know all about
Of that there really is no doubt;
But of character and honesty,
Of self worth and of purity,
Of true vision and integrity,
Of real justice and equality,
Of hurting and their casualty,
Of harm they cause inevitably,
(Of Ashok's poetic inability,)
Of all those things they know nothing of, I shout.

Diane
The printer (with a lawyer for a brother) 

From: SJanah@

Before the Lawyers Get You
====================Tut, tut, li'l bro and li'l sis,
Its not nice to fight like this!
Cool down, pipe down, make nice,
Else the cops will put you on ice!

And then you'll really come to know
What grief those lawyers can bestow!
And when your purses have run dry,
You'll repent, and cry and cry!

Arjun
(the teacher, with a printer 
and a lawyer as cousins)

From: Arjun Janah <ajanah@>

Cool it before the lawyers get you
================================Tut, tut, li'l bro and l'il sis,
It's not nice to fight like this!
Cool down, pipe down, make nice,
Else the cops will put you on ice.

And then you'll really come to know
What grief those lawyers can bestow!
And when your purses have run dry,
You'll repent, and cry and cry! 

Arjun
(the teacher, with a lawyer 
 and a printer for cousins)