 | The Poems of St. George Tucker of Williamsburg, Virginia 1752-1827 |  |
[2 God's! To Elysium what a passport's here]
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In another undated letter, Page wrote, “Mousr. De la Borde was going on a visit to Ferney; Madam du Barry begged of him to give Voltaire two kisses from her. He sent her in return these four lines:
Quoi! deux baisers sur la fin de ma vie!Quel passeport daigner vous in envoyer!
Ah! c' en est trop, adorable Egerte.
Je serais mort de plaisir au premier.
Only think of these Verses, when he was almost eighty!”
Page then offered two verse translations of his own:
Ah, dear Egeria you have given
One passport sure too much,
One kiss would send me quick to heaven
Of what use then two such?
One passport sure too much,
One kiss would send me quick to heaven
Of what use then two such?
What! two kisses when near my end!
What passport have you deigned to give me!
Ah! too much of it my dear you send
The first with joy would kill, believe me
What passport have you deigned to give me!
Ah! too much of it my dear you send
The first with joy would kill, believe me
Tucker replied with this one:
Two kisses by Egeria given!
The second I shall lose, I fear:
Transported by the first to heaven.
| The Poems of St. George Tucker of Williamsburg, Virginia 1752-1827 | |