XII 



MAY DAYS 



THE lifeless dun of the close-cropped 

 southward slopes and the tawny tangles 

 of the swales are kindling to living green 

 with the blaze of the sun and the moist 

 tinder of the brook's overflow. 



The faithful swallows have returned, 

 though the faithless season delays. The 

 flicker flashes his golden shafts in the 

 sunlight and gladdens the ear with his 

 merry cackle. The upland plover wails 

 his greeting to the tussocked pastures, 

 where day and night rings the shrill 

 chorus of the hylas and the trill of the 

 toads continually trembles in the soft 

 air. 



The first comers of the birds are al- 

 ready mated and nest-building, robin and 

 song sparrow each in his chosen place 

 setting the foundations of his house with 

 mud or threads of dry grass. The crow 

 clutters out his softest love note. The 

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