THE sun withdrew his last pale ray,
And clos’d the short and chearless day;
Loud blew the wind, and rain and sleet
Against the cottage casement beat.
The busy housewife trimm’d her fire,
And drew the oaken settle nigher,
[p6]
And welcom’d home her own good man
To his clean hearth, his pipe, and can;
For Homespun and his bustling wife
Were honest folks in humble life,