The Cry Goes Unheard

From Bertolt Brecht's The Caucasian Chalk Circle
Translation by Ralph Manheim and R. Berlau

Soldier, when you were fighting in the battle,
the bloody battle, the bitter battle,
I found a child who was helpless
I had not the heart to leave it.

Soldier, when you were fighting in the battle,
the bloody battle, the bitter battle,
I had to care for what would have perished,
to bend down for breadcrumbs,
to fight for what was not mine:
A stranger, a stranger, a stranger.

Someone must help, for a sapling needs water.
The baby calf strays when the cow herd sleeps.
And the cry goes unheard.
And the cry goes unheard.