— Stonecutter, stonecutter, aproned in white,
What are you building? for whom?
— Hey, do not trouble us. We must build right.
From this a prison will come.
— Stonecutter, stonecutter, levelling true,
What man inside it will grieve?
— Neither your brother, O rich man, nor you;
You’ll never learn how to thieve.
— Stonecutter, stonecutter, who will it be
Weeps thro’ the night wide-awake?
— Maybe my son will, a workman like me.
Such is the load that we take.
— Stonecutter, stonecutter, will his thought rest
On them who built this before?
— Hey, look, a ladder’s no place for a jest!
We know it all. Say no more.
— Каменщик, каменщик в фартуке белом,
Что ты там строишь? кому?
— Эй, не мешай нам, мы заняты делом,
Строим мы, строим тюрьму.
— Каменщик, каменщик с верной лопатой,
Кто же в ней будет рыдать?
— Верно, не ты и не твой брат, богатый.
Незачем вам воровать.
— Каменщик, каменщик, долгие ночи
Кто ж проведет в ней без сна?
— Может быть, сын мой, такой же рабочий.
Тем наша доля полна.
— Каменщик, каменщик, вспомнит, пожалуй,
Тех он, кто нес кирпичи!
— Эй, берегись! под лесами не балуй...
Знаем всё сами, молчи!
«You will not grasp her with your mind / or cover with a common label, / for Russia is one of a kind — / believe in her, if you are able...»
«The heat was fierce. Great forests were on fire. / Time dragged its feet in dust. A cock was crowing / in an adjacent lot. As I pushed open / my garden-gate I saw beside the road / a wandering Serb asleep upon a bench / his back against the palings. He was lean / and very black, and dow...»
«Fierce heat. The forests were afire. Time / Dragged on dully. At the neighbor’s dacha / A rooster crowed. I went out of the gate. / There, on a bench, leaning against the fence, / A Serb, a drifter, dozed, black and skinny. / A heavy silver cross hung / On his half-bare breast. Drops o...»
«The day was hot. The woods were burning. Time / Dragged by tediously. At a neighboring dacha / A cock was crowing. I went out the gate. / There, leaning on the fence, on a bench / Dozed a wandering Serb, gaunt and dark. / A heavy silver cross hung / On his half-naked chest. Drops of swea...»