The Mines

by Władysław Tarnowski

And remember my fetters! ^[1]

St. Paul.

Galilee vicisti! . . . ^[2]

       Fires burn among the mines ^[3]
       As in the abyss of hell,
       Naked men with chains
       They hit in rocks with willing palm
            Cyclop’s hammers! . . .
And their hearts is heavier as these clods of rocks –
Before their white souls from tame bodies will blow away,
Then they whisper to you, that there is God in heaven,
But on earth the Tzar, Lord of life and punishments! . . .
And mines burst out laughing, rang the Echo of hammers,
That not so infernal immortal Hell! . . .
       It rumbles wildly, thunders, gets lost
       Woe! woe! woe! woe! . . .
                   Hammer will shoot!
                   Sometimes whistles the knout! ^[4]
       Someone died! . . .
       Forward!
       Ask the Tzar!
       In chorus knout! ^[5]
       Death for you!
       Son of a bitch!
       And crop for me!
       And act for me!
       Tzar will give! . . . ^[6]
Fetters sound, victims groan
Burst out laughing around ^[7]
And calls for revenge! . . . ^[8]
They beats, strikes with willing palm
       To the rhythm of hell the hammer
Falls! in the distance fires burn,
Sweat in stream flows!
Clods rumble, thunder, fall,
Tresses of sparks fly,
And undergrounds plays the sound
Of hammers, groans, glitters choir,
That hell itself seems to fear,
Though they abuse them savagely
With Moscow’s gadflies chorus!
They beats! strikes! with thousands hands
Simultaneous lifting,
That vaults tremble.
And with hot sweat
Cold tear of stone
Gets lost – and perishes –
And wild sound flows
In precipices of eclipse!
And the chorus of prisoners among tortures
By long night drowns the pains
And with hammers loud sounds
Hugs in the quiet voice of song
It flowed . . . it flowed . . .
„Poland is not yet lost! . . .”
But so pale and fainting
As under the cross Mary,
That whole Calvary
Near it seemed laughing! . . .
Chorus hums, and heart hurts
Resurrected ^[9] among captivity! . . .
       Worse hammers in the hearts of Poland
       Beats, routs, this puts to death!
       There – women like a cattle rush
       Fettered in chains.
       Near fire they fall
                    harassed! . . .
Wolf's eye in shadow shines! . . .
In Enlightenment days of Ages . . . !
***
There in deep – great – shadow,
Mother lies trembling, pale,
Hammers rumble: woe! woe!
She looks at the vault,
Because she gave birth to a child today,
And she trembles because him in bestiality
Schism did not baptize with tar ! . . .
But near steep rock,
There! springlet arose,
When in men sense got lost –
Spring sobs the black rock,
Near silent prisoner with beard
Forges with hammer – and he said: in body
For ever word – has itself happen! . . .
I’m a priest poor mother!
And he baptized the child with water –
Again more one soul –
And so stealthily he baptized child,
As if he was plotting a crime treacherous,
Unhappy mother ^[10] whispers,
Let him be called Bolesław! . . .
And let over rays of the sun
He loves Poland until – to – the end! . . .
And she died – and from chains
The soul went with chorus of spirits,
With sound of hammers she flew away
As from a lily, from a body form,
And baby stayed,
Over him only the God!
Which over threshold of despairs
He raises souls – piles up the [dead] bodies
Among the thugs a small child
Mayby you will grow up the savior of the country! –
Maybe you „according to custom”
Tzar will nursed so well
And will drill so bravely,
That Różycki ^[11] from you will be,
When the country will call,
Thousandfold ^[12] always, everywhere! . . .
The spirit of martyrdoms, bloody May! . . .
***
They beats! hits! thunder with hammers,
Echo dies in precipices,
And over choir in fetters,
Tormented in terrible sweat
Gigantic shadow, Christ's
Snow-white! ^[13] gets up! and his head
Thorns carries over vault
With „second” cross suffering! . . .
Great! over the summit of Himalayas
Purplish red in the blues of auroras ! . . .
On the tops of our pains
It flows! from over infernal gang! . . .
Upwards hearts! ^[14] in the precipice forehead! . . .
Let no one cry for vengeance! . . .
He glides divine! gleaming! . . .
Like a again by bloody work
He cried out from the cross, dying:
For what did you leave me, for what!
Father! I'm loving son! . . .
For him his Holy Mother.
Then Polish patrons,
Bishops, hetmans,
Sobiekis and Kościuszkos,
From Bar ^[15] – and apostles! . . .
They move crying,
They testify – appear before the court! . . .
And for them Poland’s bells
Voices happens, to their thrones,
So as play among oak wood
From Wawel! Częstochowa! . . .
So as they blow from over wave of cereals! . . .
Oh! there in the distance! . . . in dear distance! . . .
              In holy distance! . . .
And this dew on the ears of the fields
In my eyes I feel tearful! . . .
And their voice in my harp’s voices
In the depths of the chest – I feel bloodily! . . .
Shadows flow! over spaces! . . .
Over the smoke, hammers, crimes, virginity! . . .
And voice blew in world of shadows
As Word-flesh! ^[16]
You will resurrect!
As I resurrected! . . . ^[17]
And Shadow after shadow blows,
Because here the day of Easter! . . .
They get up – flow, flow, perish! . . .
And Alleluia! chorus sings . . .
Among the heaven’s night of the spirit! . . . ^[18]
And chorus in below thunders the hammers,
Alleluia! of pains! . . .
They beats! rumble! fires burn!
Thousand hands in lively work,
The terrible pallor coated the faces! . . .
They pray already desperate,
Give us to dig – to hell!
Because not so bad among the flames! . . .
Suddenly, chorus rustled from above! . . .
Prisoners fell on knee! . . .
The earth choruses, heavens choruses
Alleluia! . . . o hosanna! . . .
As harp of seas overflowing
They sing history second rhapsody! . . .
***
With bright sparks tresses
Night gets lost in vaults,
Song resounding in the chasms
The song – that grain of Resurrection!
Vipers are already eating Murawiew
And song and under the ground sings –
Every hammer their work of torture,
It rings: „She is not yet lost! . . .”
And the mine’s bowels ^[19]
Shakes, roars with thunders
Like a chest of hell would roar:
„Poland is not yet lost! . . .” ^[20]
Lwigród, 1867.

1. The Epistle of St. Paul to the Colossians, (Letter to the Collosians) 4,18. King James Version „The salutation by the hand of me Paul. Remember my bonds. Grace be with you. Amen.” Christopher R. Seitz „Colossians (Brazos Theological Commentary on the Bible)”: „Remember my fetters!”
2. Galilaee vicisti! – You Won, Galilean! (phrase of Emperor Julian Apostate.)
3. In one mine or many mines.
4. Sometimes the knout whistles!
5. In the choir knout! Knout in the choir!
6. These eight verses are partly in Polish and partly in Russian, (although not in Cyrillic). The translation does not reflect this.
7. It [sound] burst out laughing around
8. And [it i.e. sound] calls for revenge! . . . And [it i.e. sound] calls about revenge! . . .
9. Zmartwychwstańców – members of the Community of the Resurrection; or in metaphor: person who resurrected (recovered) from the stupefaction or the shock of captivity.
10. Unlucky mother.
11. Różycki – Różycki – general Edmund Różycki (1827-1893), he spent his youth in the Russian Army; then he took part in the January Uprising, winner in the Battle of Salicha, in emigration 1864-1872, after returning to Krakow in 1872 he was involved in insurance.
12. Multiplied in thousands.
13. Snow or snow-white!
14. „Upwards hearts” from „look upwards hearts”.
15. „Barscy” – Bar Confederates.
16. As word [became] flesh [and blood]!
17. Like I resurrected! . . .
18. Or „Among the blue night of the spirit! . . .”
19. And the mine shakes the bowels.
20. „Poland did not get lost yet! . . .”