lunes, 25 de noviembre de 2013

An Alphabet of celebrities, Olivier Herford (1ª parte)

A´s Albert Edward, well meaning but flighty,
who invited King Arthur, the blameless and mighty,
to meet Alcibiades and Aphrodite.
 B is for Bernhardt, who fails to awaken
much feeling in Bismarck, Barabbas, and Bacon.
C is Columbus, who tries to explain
how to balance an egg—to the utter disdain
of Confucius, Carlyle, Cleopatra, and Cain.
 D is for Diogenes, Darwin, and Dante,
who delight in the dance Of a Darling Bacchante.
 E is for Edison, making believe
He's invented a clever contrivance for Eve,
Who complained that she never could laugh in her sleeve.
 F is for Franklin, who fearfully shocks
the feelings of Fenelon, Faber, and Fox.
G is Godiva, whose great bareback feat
though Gounod and Goldsmith implore and entreat.
 H is for Handel, who pours out his soul
through the bagpipes to Howells and Homer, who roll
on the floor in an ecstasy past all control.
I is for Ibsen, reciting a play
while Irving and Ingersoll hasten away.
 J is for Johnson, who only says "Pish!"
to Jonah, who tells him his tale of a fish.
K is the Kaiser, who kindly repeats
some original verses to Kipling and Keats.
L is Lafontaine, who finds he's unable to interest Luther and Liszt in his fable,
while Loie continues to dance on the table.
M is Macduff, who's prevailed upon Milton
and Montaigne and Manon to each try a kilt on.
 N is Napoleon, shrouded in gloom,
with Nero, Narcissus, and Nordau, to whom 
he's explaining the manual of arms with a broom.

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