After all, it’s really mean to become entangled, - And the comrade betrayed, the rascal, and told everything: Of things long passed, about the row - he told everything to Sashka, - And to two in blue, to two in plain-cloth, the black crow... Good-bye, Tanya, and maybe - so long! Good-bye, Tanya, if you are able - don’t be angry! But all is so mean, that without further ado Strike out of life a full precious quarter! At court the judge said: "Twenty-five! Till I see you!" At former times I should have wrung ons’s neck for such a speech! And now - I endure the offence, I don’t show, - If I meet Sashka - oh, how shall I beat him to a cripple! Good-bye, Tanya, and maybe - so long! Good-bye, Tanya, if you are able - don’t be angry! But all is so mean, that without further adlo Strike out of life a full precious quarter!
© Elisabeth Jelinek. Translation, 2018