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[scottiesmum]

Having searched everywhere I can think of, I thought I'd put this query on here  to see if anyone knows the phrase .....    hubby watches Band of Brothers in conjunction with reading one of his collection of war books  ....  in one particular scene a German officer is surrendering ,hands over his pistol to an American soldier and comments     " It's better than to lay it on the desk of a cark".

Having looked up the word cark   (we think that is the correct spelling ) it means     ' a trouble/a burden '   .  We can't work out the meaning of the phrase used, and it's really just a niggle !  but I wondered if anyone here had heard this phrase in another context perhaps and could throw any light on its meaning. 

Thanks for any response 

[tuftedduck]

 

"Es ist besser, als es auf den Schreibtisch eines cark "zu legen."....................odd, to translate cark from German to English gives you ......cark, and yet the definition worry/bother/load/onus etc. is a translation from old French.......not old German.

Cark can also be an Australian slang term....death, cadaver, body.......corrupted from carcass. I can see a German officer giving up his weapon and stating that to surrender is better than to die.....but would he use Aussie slang. I think not, unless it be American slang too.

Will research further.

[scottiesmum]

Ooooo  thanks for that TD     .... I had already said to hubby  that I would ask on the forum and I was sure 'my oracle 'would come up with something       and you have. 

I knew the French connection with  'carquier '   to burden   ...  but I have no extensive  knowledge of German....    I suppose it could be an old Prussian phrase !   

I too will research further now I have more to go on ....   see what we come up with   

Many thanks.

[toulouse]

Just my 2 cents worth, but .........

it could not have been misheard as "It's better than to lay it on the desk of a CLERK" , could it ?


Apologies if I have over simplified.

TTFN

toulouse

[UncleUB]

Just my 2 cents worth, but .........

it could not have been misheard as "It's better than to lay it on the desk of a CLERK" , could it ?


TTFN

toulouse

Or could it have been from a different programme..........

It is I Leclerc........ 

[scottiesmum]

@ Unc ...   




Toulouse,   no not misheard,  we have listened to it several times, through headphones as well, just to make sure we had it correct ..... but thanks anyway