Edmund Clarence Stedman, ed. (1833–1908). An American Anthology, 1787–1900. 1900.

By Charlotte PerkinsStetson

1413 A Common Inference

A NIGHT: mysterious, tender, quiet, deep;

Heavy with flowers; full of life asleep;

Thrilling with insect voices; thick with stars;

No cloud between the dewdrops and red Mars;

The small earth whirling softly on her way,

The moonbeams and the waterfalls at play;

A million million worlds that move in peace,

A million mighty laws that never cease;

And one small ant-heap, hidden by small weeds,

Rich with eggs, slaves, and store of millet seeds.

They sleep beneath the sod

And trust in God.

A day: all glorious, royal, blazing bright;

Heavy with flowers; full of life and light;

Great fields of corn and sunshine; courteous trees;

Snow-sainted mountains; earth-embracing seas;

Wide golden deserts; slender silver streams;

Clear rainbows where the tossing fountain gleams;

And everywhere, in happiness and peace,

A million forms of life that never cease;

And one small ant-heap, crushed by passing tread,

Hath scarce enough alive to mourn the dead!

They shriek beneath the sod,

“There is no God!”