L’horlogeThe Clock
Impassive clock! Terrifying, sinister god, Whose finger threatens us and says: “Remember! The quivering Sorrows will soon be shot Into your fearful heart, as into a target; Nebulous pleasure will flee toward the horizon Like an actress who disappears into the wings; Every instant devours a piece of the pleasure Granted to every man for his entire season. Three thousand six hundred times an hour, Second Whispers: Remember! — Immediately With his insect voice, Now says: I am the Past And I have sucked out your life with my filthy trunk! Remember! Souviens-toi, spendthrift! Esto memor! (My metal throat can speak all languages.) Minutes, blithesome mortal, are bits of ore That you must not release without extracting the gold! Remember, Time is a greedy player Who wins without cheating, every round! It's the law. The daylight wanes; the night deepens; remember! The abyss thirsts always; the water-clock runs low. Soon will sound the hour when divine Chance, When august Virtue, your still virgin wife, When even Repentance (the very last of inns!), When all will say: Die, old coward! it is too late!” The Flowers of Evil (Fresno, CA: Academy Library Guild, 1954) Other translations of L’horloge. |
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