E. Cobham Brewer 1810–1897. Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 1898.
Indian Summer (The).
The autumnal summer; generally the finest and mildest part of the whole year, especially in North America.
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“The gilding of the Indian summer mellowed the pastures far and wide. The russet woods stood ripe to be stript, but were yet full of leaf. The purple of heath-bloom, faded but not withered, tinged the hills… Fieldhead gardens bore the seal of gentle decay; … its time of flowers and even of fruit was over.”—C. Brontë: Shirley, chap. xxvii.
