Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, GERMANY; A WINTER TALE: CAPUT 9, by HEINRICH HEINE


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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

GERMANY; A WINTER TALE: CAPUT 9, by                     Poet's Biography
First Line: I left cologne on my onward road
Last Line: With laurel leaves round their muzzle.
Subject(s): Food & Eating; Germany; Germans


I LEFT Cologne on my onward road
At a quarter to eight precisely;
We got to Hagen at three o'clock,
And there had our dinners nicely.

The table was cover'd. Here found I all
The old-fashion'd German dishes;
All hail, thou savoury sour-krout, hail,
The reward of my utmost wishes!

Stuff'd chestnuts all in green cabbages dress'd!
My food when I was a baby!
All hail, ye native stockfish, ye swim
In the butter as nicely as may be!

One's native country to each fond heart
Grows ever dearer and dearer --
Its eggs and bloaters, when nicely brown'd,
Come home to one's feelings still nearer.

How the sausages sang in the spluttering fat.
The fieldfares, those very delicious
And roasted angels with apple sauce,
All warbled a welcome propitious.

"Thou'rt welcome, countryman," warbled they,
"Full long hast thou been delaying!
"Full long hast thou with foreign birds
"In foreign lands been straying!"

Upon the table stood also a goose,
A silent, kindhearted being;
Perchance she loved me in younger days,
When our tastes were nearer agreeing.

Full of meaning she eyed me, cordial but sad,
And fond, like the rest of her gender;
She surely possess'd an excellent soul,
But her flesh was by no means tender.

A boar's head they also brought in the room,
On a pewter dish, for me to guzzle;
The bores with us are always deck'd out
With laurel leaves round their muzzle.





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