II + 

Thus mused a madcap young, who drove + 

Through clouds of dust at postal pace, + 

By the decree of Mighty Jove, + 

Inheritor of all his race. + 

Friends of Liudmila and Ruslan, + 

Let me present ye to the man, + 

Who without more prevarication + 

The hero is of my narration! + 

Onegin, O my gentle readers, + 

Was born beside the Neva, where + 

It may be ye were born, or there + 

Have shone as one of fashion’s leaders. + 

I also wandered there of old, + 

But cannot stand the northern cold. + 