| James and Mary Ford, eds. Every Day in the Year. 1902. | | | | September 14 | | The Comfort of the Trees | | By Richard Watson Gilder (1844–1909) |
| | | | William McKinley died September 14, 1901. |
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GENTLE and generous, brave-hearted, kind, | |
| And full of love and trust was he, our chief; | |
| He never harmed a soul! Oh, dull and blind | |
| And cruel, the hand that smote, beyond belief! | |
| Strike him? It could not be! Soon should we find | 5 |
| ’Twas but a torturing dream—our sudden grief! | |
| Then sobs and wailings down the northern wind | |
| Like the wild voice of shipwreck from a reef! | |
| By false hope lulled (his courage gave us hope!) | |
| By day, by night we watched,—until unfurled | 10 |
| At last the word of fate!—Our memories | |
| Cherish one tender thought in their sad scope: | |
| He, looking from the window on this world, | |
| Found comfort in the moving green of trees. | | | |
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