The First Men on Mercury

This is a favourite of mine by Edwin Morgan, who was one of the poets at the first poetry reading I ever attended. (The others were George Bruce, Robert Garioch and Pete Morgan: it was quite an evening!)

The First Men on Mercury

-We come in peace from the third planet.
Would you take us to your leader?

-Bawr stretter! Bawr. Bawr. Stretterhawl?

-This is a little plastic model
of the solar system, with working parts.
You are here and we are there and we
are now here with you, is this clear?

-Gawl horrop. Bawr Abawrhannahanna!

-Where we come from is blue and white
with brown, you see we call the brown
here ‘land’, the blue is ‘sea’, and the white
is ‘clouds’ over land and sea, we live
on the surface of the brown land,
all round is sea and clouds. We are ‘men’.
Men come –

-Glawp men! Gawrbenner menko. Menhawl?

-Men come in peace from the third planet
which we call ‘earth’. We are earthmen.
Take us earthmen to your leader.

-Thmen? Thmen? Bawr. Bawrhossop.
Yuleeda tan hanna. Harrabost yuleeda.

-I am the yuleeda. You see my hands,
we carry no benner, we come in peace.
The spaceways are all stretterhawn.

-Glawn peacemen all horrabhanna tantko!
Tan come at’mstrossop. Glawp yuleeda!

-Atoms are peacegawl in our harraban.
Menbat worrabost from tan hannahanna.

-You men we know bawrhossoptant. Bawr.
We know yuleeda. Go strawg backspetter quick.

-We cantantabawr, tantingko backspetter now!

-Banghapper now! Yes, third planet back.
Yuleeda will go back blue, white, brown
nowhanna! There is no more talk.

-Gawl han fasthapper?

-No. You must go back to your planet.
Go back in peace, take what you have gained
but quickly.

-Stretterworra gawl, gawl…

-Of course, but nothing is ever the same,
now is it? You’ll remember Mercury.