Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, ed. Poems of Places: An Anthology in 31 Volumes.
Spain, Portugal, Belgium, and Holland: Vols. XIV–XV. 1876–79.
To the Guadalquivir
By Luis de Góngora (15611627)Translated by Edward Churton
L
Bright heir of fame, of waters crystalline,
Whose brows a garland rude of sturdy pine
Hath girdled, and thy wavy-streaming hair;
Where from thy rock-built nest in cavern bare
Thou leavest cold Segura’s mountain-side,
And, proudly foaming, royally dost ride
To Andalusian vales and summer air:
Tell me, while on thy fruitful banks I stray,
Rapt with thy wondrous beauty, yet with awe,
That bids my feet thy bright sands softly press,
Of all the village-maidens fair as day,
Imaged in thee, if e’er thy waters saw
A grace to vie with Clara’s loveliness.