John Doe #24

John Doe 24 took his secret to the grave
His funeral was the best the state could give
A woman asked if anyone had anything to say
Before they covered up the coffin
No one did
No one did

It was 1945 when he wandered into town
He was living on the street, he was alone
He was only in his teens and his family wasn't found
So they picked him up and put him in a home
Picked him up and put him in a home
He never spoke a word, he was deaf, he was blind
No one knew his name and what's more
There were 23 just like him in the system at the time
So they had to call him John Doe 24
Call him John Doe number 24

He must have had a life, you could see it on his face
But what lived behind the silence no one knew
For all the time and money they spent working on his case
They were never really able to get through
Never really able to get through

Most of all he loved that harmonica he played
And occasionally he'd grin from ear to ear
He danced at Christmas parties and he came to my parades
He suffered from a stroke and died last year
Suffered from a stroke and died last year

John Doe 24 took his secret to the grave
His funeral was the best the state could give
A woman asked if anyone had anything to say
Before they covered up the coffin
No one did
No one did

They say they went and shivered someone's walking on your grave
Well I don't know but one thing's for sure
The earth inherits all of us as living memory fades
Into the silence of John Doe 24