Translation from the French of Victor Hugo

e Poëte, inspiré lorsque la terre ignore,Ressemble á les grands monts que la nouvelle auroreDore avant tous á son réveil,Et qui, longtemps vainqueur de l’ombre,Gardent jusque dans la nuit sombreLe dernier rayon du soleil.

Moorland and meadow slumberIn deepest darkness now,But the sunrise hues of the wakened daySmile on the mountain’s brow.

And when eve’s mists are shroudingMoorland and meadow fast,That mountain greets day’s sunset light,Her loveliest and her last.

And thus the God-taught minstrel,Above a land untaught,Smiles lonely in the smiles of heavenFrom his hill-tops of thought.