Death & Dying

Penniwit, the Artist

by Edgar Lee Masters 1868–1950

From Spoon River Anthology (1916)

Death & Dying

I lost my patronage in Spoon River
From trying to put my mind in the camera
To catch the soul of the person.
The very best picture I ever took
Was of Judge Somers, attorney at law.
He sat upright and had me pause
Till he got his cross-eye straight.
Then when he was ready he said “all right.”
And I yelled “overruled” and his eye turned up.
And I caught him just as he used to look
When saying “I except.”

MLA

Masters, Edgar Lee. “Penniwit, the Artist.” Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/masters/105/.

Chicago

Masters, Edgar Lee. “Penniwit, the Artist.” Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/masters/105/.

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