LATE AUTUMN
Reading edition
The fragrant autumn winds float painted leaves Across the plains at sunset's evening hour, A scarlet rose, a zinnia in the flower Stand brilliant there beneath the cottage eaves. The locust hums his song, the spider weaves His silken web in every shady bower, Where thunder clouds pile high in tumbled tower; The farmer's loft is bursting with great sheaves; And cornstalks bend with heavy golden loads, For rains have blessed the land the summer long. Now children trip on winding trails from school; They swing in rhythmic time along the roads; A hungry, hearty crowd, suntanned and strong. This glorious fall day in evening cool.