Arany János - Győrei Zsolt (szerk.): The trill of the nightingale (Budapest, 2019)

III - „His voice, once fine and heady, still a grumble deep” - Poem for an Occasion (Thomas Cooper)

May clops of cattle hooves resound, And horses, oxen, donkeys, mules, While calves graze in the pastures lush And children study in the schools. And may the Magyar nation grow To outmatch, outstrip any foe.

This new year may the Lord provide Whatever yet we’ve been denied.

But may our country be at peace At home, abroad, and know no strife, Let peasants bound for marketplace Fear neither thief nor brigand’s knife. May there be peace in every heart, May there be peace in every hearth. This new year may the Lord provide Whatever yet we’ve been denied.

May magistrate, as he has done, Perform his office honestly,

And punish sin, but sinner show Compassion, kindness, lenity.

When thirst for justice tips the scale, May goodwill nonetheless prevail. This new year may the Lord provide Whatever yet we’ve been denied.

May we be spared all din and fuss,

All uproar, clamor, strife, and brawl, May no one weary us with talk Of revocation or withdrawal.

May there be unity anew,

And faith in our shared future too.

This new year may the Lord provide Whatever yet we’ve been denied.

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