It began so well
A Georgian tale of status social
Privilege, service, closure too
Lords and ladies, patrons all
Entailed estates, a legal game
Protect succession evermore
In courts of justice robed and fair
Gentle profession enters in
With quill and ink and steady hand
A price to set, no market here
For law, finance and commerce too
Debits and credits on ledger page
Powdered wig and buckled shoes
Doing expert things in expert ways
For lords and ladies, patrons all
In courts of justice robed and fair
Britannia rules the global stage
Lesser mortals expand their trade
In markets where no rules prevail
Cry laissez faire from rooftop high
No need to care when dreams come true
For bankers, traders, lords and ladies too
In courts of justice robed and fair
But failure soon begins to thrive
Mills and chambers, panes as well
Tears of sequestration freely shed
By bankers, traders, lords and ladies too
In courts of justice robed and fair
Trust our cure the judge prescribes
But numbers fail the legal mind
Gentle profession once again
In morning coat and polished shoes
To sort the mess, remove the dust
Assess the damage, count the cost
Find a buyer to dispose
Take a fee to shock them all
A dividend so miniscule
In courts of justice robed and fair
Gentle profession starts to slow
Arrives too late, complaints are heard
In distant town a cry rings out
Merchants, politicos in raucous choir
Write a bill to right a wrong
Gentle profession, your time is up
Welcome to a General legal
In courts of justice robed and fair
Woe is us the gentles wail
Hear our prompt and righteous cry
Answer comes from ten that meet
No lawyer General needed here
Leave us alone
To sort the mess, remove the dust
Assess the damage, count the cost
Fee to shock
Dividend so miniscule
In courts of justice robed and fair
And so it was this status tale
Law and money at its heart
At least until another time
When gentles join a corporate game
With bankers, lawyers, shareholders too
Truth and fairness is the cry
No definition needed here
So trust our gentle attestation
In courts of justice robed and fair
Note
Professions between 1700 and 1850 have been described as gentlemanly. The British Government in 1834 proposed an Accountant-General for the Court of Session in Scotland. A pane is an 18th century term for a Scottish shopkeeper.
