New-York tribune., 1878-10-24
GATHERING THE CORN.

Now mellow October days, bright moonlight
nights, aud gathering the Com" cutting up as
the farmers call it. Now. all over the country. a
certain green and broWn-drab clOquence seeming to
call out " You that pretend 10 give the news. and
all that's going why not give Us noticeV Truly,
o fields as for the notice.
Take. we give 1t willingly" Only We must do
il in our own way. Leaving tho domestic dietary
and commercial parts Of the question (which are
enormous, IN fact. hardly second 10 those Of any
other of our great soil-productsl, we Will just
sauntcr down n lane we know on an average West
Jersey farm and let the fancy of the hour ltemize
Americas most typical agricultural show and
specially.
Gathering the Corn-;hc British call It maize The
oid Yankee farmer Indian corn. The great plumes,
the ears wr-onvelopcd in their husks the long and
pointed leaves, like green brocade rbands, with n
yellow stem-line in the middle. all now
turned dingy. the sturdy stalks, and the
rustlipg IN the breeze-the breeze itself well tenn
pering the sunny noon-the varied "reminiscences
recalIed-the ploughing aud planting in Spring
fthe whole family IN the field even the little girls
and BOYS dropping seed in the hl)-the gorgeous
sight through July and Augustine walk and OBJ
seryation early IN the day-the ehcery call OF the
robin aud the low whiu of the insects IN the grass
the Western huslting party, when rlpe-the moon
light gathering and the calls, songs, laughter OF the
young fellows
Not 10 forget hereabout, the old worm fences
with the gray rails and their scabs OF moss ana
lchen-those old rails, weather beaten, out StrohB
vet Why not come down from literary dlRnlty'
and confess We are sitting on one now' hhder the
shade of great walnut tree! why not cohnue
that these lines are penclled on the edge ol
,y,odv hank with a glistening pond and creek seen
., Wpn n
ing about close at hand on the north 7 Why not
pnt in tho delicious scent Of the " life everlasting
tina. grows 80 profusely in every directon-the
syarp,, Of white and straw-colored butterfies-the
chromatic song of the one peTscyenDg locust the
insect is scaIcer this Fall and the past Summer than
for many yearel beginning slowly rising ana swell
ing 70 mucb emphasis and then abruptly faillng-
80 appropriate TO the scene, so quaint SO racy ana
suggestive in the warm sunbeams, we could slt mere
and look and listen for an hour. Why, not even the
tiny turte-shaped, yellow-baekcd' Dlhch-spo''eu
Lady's Bug that has lit on the shirt-seeye OF the
arm indicting thisl Ending our list with the Fall
drying grass, the October days themselves.
"Sweet days; so cool. so calm, so bright Uet
not so cool either, about noon-the horse-mlut' tno
wild carrot the MULLEN, and the DunDle-ooes'
How the halfmad vision OF william DlaAo-no"
the far freer far frmer fantasy that "Ioto Ai'u
summer Nights Dream" would have le'elieo h'Eh'
or day, and beyond stint, in one OF our AiiSr'ca1
Corn Fields Truly, in color, outline material ana
spiritual sugCestiveness, where any more ncloslng
theme for idealist, poet, literary artlstf
What we have written has been at noon
day-but perhaps better still to steal on
By yourself these fine Autumn nights ana
20 slowly. musingly down the lane, when the dry
and green-gray leaves seem whisper-gossipping all
over the field in low tones, as II every nil had
something TO say-and you sit or lean recluSe near
by. and inhale that rare. rich. ripe ana peculiar
odor of the plant which comes out best only 10 .ie
night air. The complex Impressions OF tno lar
snread field, and woods In the night, are blended
mystcally. soothingly. indefinitely. and yet palpa-
bly 70 you (appealing curousy. perhaps mostly, TO
the sense of smelly. All ia comparative silence ana
shadow below. and the stars are up there with