Nikolai Alexajewitsch Nekrassow
Ivan Ssawitsch Nikitin
Constantine Michailowitsch Fofanow
Semijon Jakolowitsch Nadson




To the Reader.

The translations in this little collection make no pretension to being
more than an effort to share the delight found in them; from which most
of the world is debarred by the difficulty of the language in which they
are written. They have been chosen at random, each for some intrinsic
charm or because of its bearing upon some peculiar phase of the author.
Very few of the lyrics of Pushkin have been included, for the reason
that the great founder of Russian poetry has been more widely translated
than any other Russian poet, and is therefore available in several
languages.

Remembering always that Heine declared translation was betrayal,--the
rhyme and smoothness have in every case been sacrificed when necessary
to preserve the exact rhythm, and as far as possible the vigour and
colour, as well as thought of the original; a task entirely beyond me
save for the co-operation of an accomplished Russian linguist who has
kindly assisted in the literal translation of every poem here presented.

M.G.D.B.