by Vachel Lindsay (1879 - 1931)
The Haughty Snail‑king
Language: English
Chosen for Diff
(What Uncle William told the Children) Twelve snails went walking after night. They'd creep an inch or so, Then stop and bug their eyes And blow. Some folks . . . are . . . deadly . . . slow. Twelve snails went walking yestereve, Led by their fat old king. They were so dull their princeling had No sceptre, robe or ring -- Only a paper cap to wear When nightly journeying. This king-snail said: "I feel a thought Within. . . . It blossoms soon. . . . O little courtiers of mine, . . . I crave a pretty boon. . . . Oh, yes . . . (High thoughts with effort come And well-bred snails are ALMOST dumb.) "I wish I had a yellow crown As glistering . . . as . . . the moon."
Text Authorship:
- by Vachel Lindsay (1879 - 1931), "The Haughty Snail-king", appears in The Congo and Other Poems, in 4. Fourth Section: Twenty Poems in which the Moon is the Principal Figure of Speech, in 1. First Section: Moon Poems for the Children/Fairy-tales for the Children, no. 2 [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 Jake Heggie (b. 1961), "The Haughty Snail-king", 1998, first performed 1998 [voice and piano], from Songs to the Moon, Part 1: "Fairy-Tales for the Children", no. 3. [text verified 1 time]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2009-09-13
Line count: 20
Word count: 140