I could not run or play In boyhood. In manhood I could only sip the c… Not drink— For scarlet-fever left my heart di…

To all in the village I seemed, n… To go this way and that way, aimle… But here by the river you can see… The soft-winged bats fly zig-zag h… They must fly so to catch their fo…

When my moustache curled, And my hair was black, And I wore tight trousers And a diamond stud, I was an excellent knave of hearts…

It is true, fellow citizens, That my old docket lying there for… On a shelf above my head and over The seat of justice, I say it is… That docket had an iron rim

Ye aspiring ones, listen to the st… Who lies here with no stone to mar… As a boy reckless and wanton, Wandering with gun in hand through… Near the mansion of Aaron Hatfiel…

All they said was true: I wrecked my father’s bank with my… To dabble in wheat; but this was t… I was buying wheat for him as well… Who couldn’t margin the deal in hi…

The buzzards wheel slowly In wide circles, in a sky Faintly hazed as from dust from th… And a wind sweeps through the past… Beating the grass into long waves.

What do you see now? Globes of red, yellow, purple. Just a moment! And now? My father and mother and sisters. Yes! And now?

The idea danced before us as a fla… The sound of martial music; The thrill of carrying a gun; Advancement in the world on coming… A glint of glory, wrath for foes;

All your sorrow, Louise, and hatr… Sprang from your delusion that it… Of spirit and contempt of your sou… Which made me turn to Annabelle a… You really grew to hate me for lov…

Father, thou canst never know The anguish that smote my heart For my disobedience, the moment I… The remorseless wheel of the engin… Sink into the crying flesh of my l…

Out of the lights and roar of citi… Drifting down like a spark in Spo… Burnt out with the fire of drink,… The paramour of a woman I took in… But to hide a wounded pride as wel…

Maurice, weep not, I am not here… The balmy air of spring whispers t… The stars sparkle, the whippoorwil… But thou grievest, while my soul l… In the blest Nirvana of eternal l…

Henry got me with child, Knowing that I could not bring fo… Without losing my own. In my youth therefore I entered t… Traveler, it is believed in the vi…

I looked like Abraham Lincoln. I was one of you, Spoon River, in… But standing for the rights of pro… A regular church attendant, Sometimes appearing in your town m…