Liberties

As soon as the Goats have grazed, A certain sense of independence Makes them seek out fortune; off they go To the parts of the pasture Least frequented by humans. There, if there is a place without roads or paths, A cliff, a mountain with precipices, That is where these Ladies walk away their whims; Nothing can stop this climbing animal. Two Goats, then, taking liberties, Both of them having credentials, Left the lower meadows, each going her way. The one going toward the other quite by chance. A stream is encountered, and for a bridge a plank. Two Weasels abreast could hardly have crossed This bridge; Besides, the swift water and the deep creek Must have made these Amazons tremble with fear. Despite so many dangers, one of these beings Sets foot on the plank, and the other does the same. I imagine seeing, with Louis the Great, Philippe of Spain approaching On the Isle de la Conférence. Thus, step-by-step, Nose-to-nose, our Adventuresses, Who, both being very haughty, Half-way across the bridge refused to yield To one another. They could boast having Among their race (as the History is told) One particular Goat whose merits were peerless, Whom Polyphemus gave to Galatea, And the other, the goat Amalthea, By whom Jupiter was nursed. Neither backing away — they fell together; Both tumbled into the water. Such accidents are not unusual On the road to Fortune.