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Lindsay, Vachel: Néger szentbeszéd: Simon Legree (A Negro Sermon: Simon Legree in Hungarian)

Portre of Lindsay, Vachel

A Negro Sermon: Simon Legree (English)

Legree’s big house was white and green.
His cotton-fields were the best to be seen.
He had strong horses and opulent cattle,
And bloodhounds bold, with chains that would rattle.
His garret was full of curious things:
Books of magic, bags of gold,
And rabbits’ feet on long twine strings.
BUT HE WENT DOWN TO THE DEVIL.

Legree he sported a brass-buttoned coat,
A snake-skin necktie, a blood-red shirt.
Legree he had a beard like a goat,
And a thick hairy neck, and eyes like dirt.
His puffed-out cheeks were fish-belly white,
He had great long teeth, and an appetite.
He ate raw meat, ‘most every meal,
And rolled his eyes till the cat would squeal.
His fist was an enormous size
To mash poor niggers that told him lies:
He was surely a witch-man in disguise.
BUT HE WENT DOWN TO THE DEVIL.

He wore hip-boots, and would wade all day
To capture his slaves that had fled away.
BUT HE WENT DOWN TO THE DEVIL.

He beat poor Uncle Tom to death
Who prayed for Legree with his last breath.
Then Uncle Tom to Eva flew,
To the high sanctoriums bright and new;
And Simon Legree stared up beneath,
And cracked his heels, and ground his teeth:
AND WENT DOWN TO THE DEVIL.

He crossed the yard in the storm and gloom;
He went into his grand front room.
He said, “I killed him, and I don’t care.”
He kicked a hound, he gave a swear;
He tightened his belt, he took a lamp,
Went down cellar to the webs and damp.
There in the middle of the mouldy floor
He heaved up a slab, he found a door—
AND WENT DOWN TO THE DEVIL.

His lamp blew out, but his eyes burned bright.
Simon Legree stepped down all night—
DOWN, DOWN TO THE DEVIL.
Simon Legree he reached the place,
He saw one half of the human race,
He saw the Devil on a wide green throne,
Gnawing the meat from a big ham-bone,
And he said to Mister Devil:

“I see that you have much to eat—
A red ham-bone is surely sweet.
I see that you have lion’s feet;
I see your frame is fat and fine,
I see you drink your poison wine—
Blood and burning turpentine.”

And the Devil said to Simon Legree:
“I like your style, so wicked and free.
Come sit and share my throne with me,
And let us bark and revel.”
And there they sit and gnash their teeth,
And each one wears a hop-vine wreath.
They are matching pennies and shooting craps,
They are playing poker and taking naps.
And old Legree is fat and fine:
He eats the fire, he drinks the wine—
Blood and burning turpentine—
DOWN, DOWN WITH THE DEVIL;
DOWN, DOWN WITH THE DEVIL;
DOWN, DOWN WITH THE DEVIL.



Uploaded byP. T.
Source of the quotationhttp://www.poemhunter.com

Néger szentbeszéd: Simon Legree (Hungarian)

Legree nagy háza: zöld-fehér.
Nincsen szebb gyapotföldeinél.
Gyönyörűk csordái, csődörei.
Zord vérebe láncát csörgeti.
Padlásán furcsa, avítt kacatok:
varázskönyvek, aranygyűrűk:
nyúlláb - rajt dupla zsinór lafog.
De végre lement a pokolba!

Zekéje pitykés, inge veres,
a nyakkendője kígyóbőr.
Szakálla kecskeszakáll, hegyes.
Szeme mint sár, a nyakán bozont-szőr.
Hal-has-fehér a buckapofája.
Agyara hosszu, meg az étvágya.
Nyershúst zabál minden faláskor.
Forgatja szemét, míg a macska nyivákol.
A négernek, ha füllenteni mer,
vasökle - zurr! - iszonyut lekever.
Démon ez álcába vonva,
de végre lement a pokolba!

Lovaglócsizmában gyalogol,
hogy szökött szolgáit csípje nyakon.
Most végre lement a pokolba!

Tamás bácsit halálra püfölte.
Az érte, míg lelkét kilehelte,.
imádkozott, majd szállt Évához,
sugaras, új csuda szentségházhoz.
Legree bambán bámulva csak állt,
toppantott csikorgatva fogát.
Most végre lement a pokolba!

Zord szélben az udvaron átloholt.
A tiszta szobába rohant, karatyolt:
„Fene bánja! megöltem!” - Egy nagyot
rúgott a kutyába, szitkot huritott.
Lámpát vett, s összébb húzta övét,
nyirok-hálós pincébe tért,
és ott a penészes föld közepén
meglelte az ajtó vaslemezét,
s felemelte, lement a pokolba!

Lámpája kihúnyt, szeme szórta tüzét.
Kutyagolt lefelé, így töltve az éjt,
le az Úrdöghöz, a pokolba!
Simon Legree ama helyre ért.
Ott látta az emberi faj felét,
zöld trónon ülve a Főgonoszat:
combcsontról rágta a koncokat.
S így szólt az Ördög úrhoz:

„Látom: lakomája tündököl!
Vörös combcsont nyilván gyönyör!
Látom: oroszlán-lábu Ön!
Látom: alakja finom s kövér.
Színmérget vedel, értem én!
Égő terpentín, benne vér!"

Köszönté a Gonosz Legree urat:
„Tetszik a stílusa: nyegle, pimasz.
Megosztom Önnel a trónomat!
Mulassunk és ugassunk!
Ülnek, s csikorgatják fogukat,
viselnek komló koszorukat,
kockáznak, és snúroznak ott,
pókereznek, verik a lapot.
Öreg Legree finom és kövér.
A láng, a bor garatába tér:
égő terpentín, benne vér!
Lenn az ördögnél a pokolban.
Lenn az ördögnél a pokolban!
Lenn az ördögnél a pokolban!



Uploaded byP. T.
Source of the quotationJ. I.

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