--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Lay down the axe; fling by the spade…" description: "\"Lay down the axe; fling by the spade; Leave in its track the toiling plough; The rifle and the bayonet-blade For arms like yours were fitter now; And l..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/393/william-c-bryant-3570_arms_lay-down-the-axe-fling-by-the-spade-leav_508709.jpg" --- # Lay down the axe; fling by the spade; Leave in its track… ![“Lay down the axe; fling by the spade; Leave in its track the toiling plough; The rifle and the bayonet-blade For arms like yours were fitter now; And let the hands that ply the pen Quit the light task, and learn to wield The horseman's crooked brand, and rein The charger on the battle-field.” quote by William C. Bryant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/393/william-c-bryant-3570_arms_lay-down-the-axe-fling-by-the-spade-leav_508709.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/393/william-c-bryant-3570_arms_lay-down-the-axe-fling-by-the-spade-leav_508709.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/393/william-c-bryant-3570_arms_lay-down-the-axe-fling-by-the-spade-leav_508709.jpg) > “Lay down the axe; fling by the spade; Leave in its track the toiling plough; The rifle and the bayonet-blade For arms like yours were fitter now; And let the hands that ply the pen Quit the light task, and learn to wield The horseman's crooked brand, and rein The charger on the battle-field.” [William C. Bryant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-c-bryant/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The poet urges scholars to abandon passive writing and take up active, combative roles in society, using military metaphor to stress urgency. **In simple terms:** Encourages active engagement over idle scholarship. Key Takeaway Choose action over mere words. Themes activism military metaphor intellectual duty call to arms Mood determined urgent defiant Type motivational political When to use this quote - political protest - academic reform - public discourse - social change Key Concepts civic responsibility military imagery pen versus sword Questions to Reflect On - How can intellectual work influence change without violence? - What non‑violent actions match the urgency expressed? A Different Perspective May glorify violence as a solution, ignoring peaceful alternatives. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Battle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/battle/) [Light](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/light/) [Plies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/plies/) [Rifles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rifles/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) ## Related quotes > [Love is a battle field](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frenchqueen/love-is-a-battle-field/) Frenchqueen > [The truth is, no study is possible on the battle-field; one does there simply what one can in order to apply what one knows…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-foch/the-truth-is-no-study-is-possible-on-the-battle-field-one-does-there/) [Ferdinand Foch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferdinand-foch/) > [Life is like a battle field fight for every moment to survive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sahil-rathod/life-is-like-a-battle-field-fight-for-every-moment-to-survive/) [Sahil Rathod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sahil-rathod/) > [I'm always thinking about the private battle, even in the field. I'm always trying to be better than the other person I'm against.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-stokes/i-m-always-thinking-about-the-private-battle-even-in-the-field-i-m/) [Ben Stokes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-stokes/) > [Love is a battle field but you just have to keep fighting your way through it to realize who stays and who goes...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winterrose-warner/love-is-a-battle-field-but-you-just-have-to-keep-fighting-your-way/) Winterrose Warner > [Every good soldier is trained for the battle field. God is prepping you my darlings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tonto-dikeh/every-good-soldier-is-trained-for-the-battle-field-god-is-prepping/) [Tonto Dikeh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tonto-dikeh/) > [There is no French town in which the wounds inflicted on the battle-field are not bleeding.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-duhamel/there-is-no-french-town-in-which-the-wounds-inflicted-on-the-battle/) [Georges Duhamel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-duhamel/) > [When soldiers have been baptized in the fire of a battle-field, they have all one rank in my eyes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-bonaparte/when-soldiers-have-been-baptized-in-the-fire-of-a-battle-field-they/) [Napoleon Bonaparte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-bonaparte/) > [Every time we walk on to the field of battle and the field of battle is the internet, it doesn't matter if we shoot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/every-time-we-walk-on-to-the-field-of-battle-and-the-field-of-battle/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [The only free mind is one that, pure of all intimacy with beings or objects, plies its own vacuity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emile-m-cioran/the-only-free-mind-is-one-that-pure-of-all-intimacy-with-beings-or/) [Emile M. Cioran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emile-m-cioran/) > [I prefer musicals, because I am the best dancer who ever lived. The best plies, the best sashays, and by far the best-smelling Capezios.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-sandler/i-prefer-musicals-because-i-am-the-best-dancer-who-ever-lived-the/) [Adam Sandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-sandler/) > [England is, after all, the land where children were beaten, wives and babies bashed, football hooligans crunch, and Miss Whip and Miss Lash ply…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-macinnes/england-is-after-all-the-land-where-children-were-beaten-wives-and/) [Colin MacInnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-macinnes/) > [On Wenlock Edge the wood's in trouble;His forest fleece the Wrekin heaves;The wind it plies the saplings double, And thick on Severn snow the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-e-housman/on-wenlock-edge-the-wood-s-in-trouble-his-forest-fleece-the-wrekin/) [A. E. Housman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-e-housman/) > [All men of conscience or prudence ply to windward, to maintain their wars to be defensive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-williams/all-men-of-conscience-or-prudence-ply-to-windward-to-maintain-their/) [Roger Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-williams/) > [Our freedom is also incomplete, dear compatriots, as long as we are denied our security by criminals who prey on our communities, who rob…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/our-freedom-is-also-incomplete-dear-compatriots-as-long-as-we-are/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) ## More by William C. Bryant > [The gentle race of flowers Are lying in their lowly beds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-c-bryant/the-gentle-race-of-flowers-are-lying-in-their-lowly-beds/) [William C. Bryant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-c-bryant/) > [The victory of endurance born.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-c-bryant/the-victory-of-endurance-born/) [William C. Bryant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-c-bryant/) > [Features, the great soul's apparent seat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-c-bryant/features-the-great-soul-s-apparent-seat/) [William C. Bryant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-c-bryant/) > [The February sunshine steeps your boughs and tints the buds and swells the leaves within.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-c-bryant/the-february-sunshine-steeps-your-boughs-and-tints-the-buds-and/) [William C. Bryant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-c-bryant/) > [Lo! while we are gazing, in swifter haste Stream down the snows, till the air is white, As, myriads by myriads madly chased, They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-c-bryant/lo-while-we-are-gazing-in-swifter-haste-stream-down-the-snows-till/) [William C. Bryant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-c-bryant/) > [Sustained and soothed By an unfaltering trust, approach thy grave, Like one who wraps the drapery of his couch About him, and lies down…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-c-bryant/sustained-and-soothed-by-an-unfaltering-trust-approach-thy-grave-like/) [William C. Bryant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-c-bryant/) > [But Winter has yet brighter scenes-he boasts Splendors beyond what gorgeous Summer knows; Or Autumn with his many fruits, and woods All flushed with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-c-bryant/but-winter-has-yet-brighter-scenes-he-boasts-splendors-beyond-what/) [William C. Bryant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-c-bryant/) > [There is a Power whose care Teaches thy way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-c-bryant/there-is-a-power-whose-care-teaches-thy-way/) [William C. Bryant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-c-bryant/) > [Truth crushed to earth shall rise again,- The eternal years of God are hers; But Error, wounded, writhes with pain, And dies among his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-c-bryant/truth-crushed-to-earth-shall-rise-again-the-eternal-years-of-god-are/) [William C. Bryant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-c-bryant/) > [And the blue gentian-flower, that, in the breeze, Nods lonely, of her beauteous race the last.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-c-bryant/and-the-blue-gentian-flower-that-in-the-breeze-nods-lonely-of-her/) [William C. Bryant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-c-bryant/) > [A silence, the brief Sabbath of an hour, Reigns o'er the fields; the laborer sits within His dwelling; he has left his steers awhile,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-c-bryant/a-silence-the-brief-sabbath-of-an-hour-reigns-o-er-the-fields-the/) [William C. Bryant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-c-bryant/) > [The rugged trees are mingling Their flowery sprays in love; The ivy climbs the laurel To clasp the boughs above.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-c-bryant/the-rugged-trees-are-mingling-their-flowery-sprays-in-love-the-ivy/) [William C. Bryant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-c-bryant/) > [There is a day of sunny rest For every dark and troubled night; And grief may hide an evening guest, But joy shall come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-c-bryant/there-is-a-day-of-sunny-rest-for-every-dark-and-troubled-night-and/) [William C. Bryant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-c-bryant/) > [Poetry is that art which selects and arranges the symbols of thought in such a manner as to excite the imagination the most powerfully…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-c-bryant/poetry-is-that-art-which-selects-and-arranges-the-symbols-of-thought/) [William C. Bryant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-c-bryant/) > [God hath yoked to guilt her pale tormentor,--misery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-c-bryant/god-hath-yoked-to-guilt-her-pale-tormentor-misery/) [William C. Bryant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-c-bryant/) [Explore all 127 William C. Bryant quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-c-bryant/) ## More Arms quotes > [I genuinely did not expect more than half our nation to choose to walk away from our long-term allies into the arms of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-reade/i-genuinely-did-not-expect-more-than-half-our-nation-to-choose-to/) Brian Reade > [I don't wear a watch because I want my arms to weigh the same. So if somebody asks me what time it is, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-hedberg/i-don-t-wear-a-watch-because-i-want-my-arms-to-weigh-the-same-so-if/) [Mitch Hedberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-hedberg/) > [Preaching to the choir actually arms the choir with arguments and elevates the choir's discourse. There's a reason the right does it and does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-savage/preaching-to-the-choir-actually-arms-the-choir-with-arguments-and/) [Dan Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-savage/) > [He caught her, she fell, he caught her in his arms, he held her tightly unconscious of what he was doing. He held her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/he-caught-her-she-fell-he-caught-her-in-his-arms-he-held-her-tightly/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [Are we fighting?" I asked Morelli. "No. Were discussing." "Are you sure?" "Am I yelling?" Morelli asked. "Is my face purple? Are the cords…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-evanovich/are-we-fighting-i-asked-morelli-no-were-discussing-are-you-sure-am-i/) [Janet Evanovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-evanovich/) > [A home isn't just a roof over our heads. A home is a place where we feel loved and where we love others. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/a-home-isn-t-just-a-roof-over-our-heads-a-home-is-a-place-where-we/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [Comerado, this is no book,Who touches this, touches a man,(Is it night? Are we here alone?)It is I you hold, and who holds you,I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/comerado-this-is-no-book-who-touches-this-touches-a-man-is-it-night/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [Even the stove and the refrigerator looked human, I mean good human - they seemed to have arms and voices and they said, hang…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-bukowski/even-the-stove-and-the-refrigerator-looked-human-i-mean-good-human/) [Charles Bukowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-bukowski/) > [I separated the joints, the arm joints, the leg joints, and had to do two boilings. I think I used four boxes of Soilex…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-dahmer/i-separated-the-joints-the-arm-joints-the-leg-joints-and-had-to-do/) [Jeffrey Dahmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-dahmer/) > [More courage is required to forgive than is required to take up arms.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ramos-horta/more-courage-is-required-to-forgive-than-is-required-to-take-up-arms/) [Jose Ramos-Horta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-ramos-horta/) > [It's been a long time since I asked anything of heaven, and my arms still haven't come down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-porchia/it-s-been-a-long-time-since-i-asked-anything-of-heaven-and-my-arms/) [Antonio Porchia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-porchia/) > [With those who are willing to join, let us cooperate to reduce the burden of arms, to strengthen the structure of peace, to lift…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-nixon/with-those-who-are-willing-to-join-let-us-cooperate-to-reduce-the/) [Richard M. Nixon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-nixon/) > [How shall freedom be defended? By arms when it is attacked by arms, by truth when it is attacked by lies, by faith when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/archibald-macleish/how-shall-freedom-be-defended-by-arms-when-it-is-attacked-by-arms-by/) [Archibald MacLeish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/archibald-macleish/) > [You don't have to say it out loud. I already know why you like me.' 'You do, huh?' 'Yep.' He wrapped his arms around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/you-don-t-have-to-say-it-out-loud-i-already-know-why-you-like-me-you/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [Another step had her backed up against the wall, and he braced his arms on both sides of her. "I'm beginning to look forward…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johanna-lindsey/another-step-had-her-backed-up-against-the-wall-and-he-braced-his/) [Johanna Lindsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johanna-lindsey/) Browse all 4,470 Arms quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Lay down the axe; fling by the spade; Leave in its track the toiling plough; The rifle and the bayonet-blade For arms like yours were fitter now; And let the hands that ply the pen Quit the light task, and learn to wield The horseman's crooked brand, and rein The charger on the battle-field.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "William C. 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