Collection of poetry «A Belarusian Piper or a Little of Everything»

Annotation

The fourth book of poetry includes a versed novella in two scenes "Shchaury Harvests" (1857) and "A Verse of Navum Prygavorka" (1856), both in Belarusian, a narrative address "To Uladzislau Syrakomlia" (1857), a noted Polish and Belarusian poet, which is regarded a kind of preface to the versed story in three parts "The Writers’ Concerns" (1856) and a poem "To the Honourable Belarusians" (1857), both in Polish.

The Belarusian State Archives-Museum of Literature and Art has a handwritten copy of the book transribed by an unknown person in the 1890s and the second edition of "Shchaury Harvests" in Latin script printed by the St. Petersburg-based publishing house "Zagliane sontsa i u nasha akantsa" in 1910.

A novella in verse "Shchaury Harvests" defines responsibility and diligence as the main criteria to evaluate a person. The story tells how the villagers choose the best girl, so-called queen of the harvest, and even resort to a witch. After the harvest, they all have fun and make merry at the landlord’s house.

"A Verse of Navum Prygavorka" is written on the occasion of the visit to Minsk of the violin player and composer Apalinary Kontsky, the poet, playwright, translator, critic and local specialist Uladzislau Syrakomlia, and the composer and conductor Stanislau Maniushka.

The Belarusian State Archives-Museum of Literature and Art has a handwritten copy of this verse transcribed by B. Epimakh-Shipila in the 1890s.

A poem "To the Honourable Belarusians" is a preface to the whole book.

A story in verse "The Writers’ Concerns" tells about the hard lot of the poet who decides to devote himself to the common people.