Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, ed. Poems of Places: An Anthology in 31 Volumes.
Spain, Portugal, Belgium, and Holland: Vols. XIV–XV. 1876–79.
In the Sierra
By Théophile Gautier (1811–1872)Translated by C. F. Bates
W
Their shivering feet plants never dare to set
Where lofty heads hide ’neath a silver shroud;
On these sharp peaks how blunt the plough would get!
Naught hints of man or of his curse of care;
An eagle-host sails their free atmosphere,
And echo hisses back the bandits’ air.
They are not useful, send no gifts abroad,
But I prefer them to the fertile fields,
So far from heaven we never can see God!