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by Stephen Crane (1871 - 1900)

Truth," said a traveller
Language: English 
"Truth," said a traveller,
"Is a rock, a mighty fortress;
Often have I been to it,
Even to its highest tower,
From whence the world looks black."

"Truth," said a traveller,
"Is a breath, a wind,
A shadow, a phantom;
Long have I pursued it,
But never have I touched
The hem of its garment."

And I believed the second traveller;
For truth was to me
A breath, a wind,
A shadow, a phantom,
And never had I touched
The hem of its garment.

Available sung texts:   ← What is this?

•   R. Hermann 

R. Hermann sets stanzas 1-2

About the headline (FAQ)

Text Authorship:

  • by Stephen Crane (1871 - 1900), no title, appears in The Black Riders and Other Lines, no. 28, first published 1895 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]

Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):

  • by Richard Hermann , ""Truth," said a traveller", 2008, stanzas 1-2, from Four Song from Steven Crane, no. 1 [sung text checked 1 time]

Researcher for this page: Sharon Krebs [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website: 2008-08-31
Line count: 17
Word count: 84

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