Sketch from Behind, Poem by Charles Cros

Poem by Charles Cros Collection The Sandalwood CasketPeriod 19th century

He works by day in a brand-new bazaar,
Shouting: “Everything’s thirteen, and there, everything’s twenty-nine!”
His cap is the most superb of caps,
Of silk, and sets off his plump pink curves.
A yellow scarf winds around his fat neck,
Red, which his close-cropped hair reveals.
Since his acquaintance has work tonight,
He is free and content. For he never rages,
Unless she dawdles. So it is with a grand air
That he cries out at the café: “Waiter! a mazagran!”

Charles Cros

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