Page:The Excursion, Wordsworth, 1814.djvu/55

29 That he was often seated at his loom,

In summer, ere the Mower was abroad

Among the dewy grass,—in early spring,

Ere the last Star had vanished.—They who passed

At evening, from behind the garden fence

Might hear his busy spade, which he would ply,

After his daily work, until the light

Had failed, and every leaf and flower were lost

In the dark hedges. So their days were spent

In peace and comfort; and a pretty Boy

Was their best hope,—next to the God in Heaven.

Not twenty years ago, but you I think

Can scarcely bear it now in mind, there came

Two blighting seasons when the fields were left

With half a harvest. It pleased heaven to add

A worse affliction in the plague of war;

This happy Land was stricken to the heart!

A Wanderer then among the Cottages

I, with my freight of winter raiment, saw

The hardships of that season; many rich

Sank down, as in a dream, among the poor;

And of the poor did many cease to be