57. THE CROWS AT NIGHTFALL
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��In the twilight of yellow clouds
The crows seek their nests by the city wall.
The crows are flying home, cawing — ^^C
Cawing to one another in the tree-tops.
Lo, the maid of Chin-chuan at her loom c»jX*
Weaving brocade, — for whom, I wonder? "Tp
She murmurs softly to herself '
Behind the blue mist of gauze curtain.
She stops her shuttle, and broods sadly,
Remembering him who is far away —
She must lie alone in her bower at night,
And her tears fall like rain.
��The theme of this poem is a well-known story of a young wife, who was left alone in Chang-an by her hus- band while he lived in another city with his mistress. The deserted wife composed poems of her love and fi- delity, and weaving them into a piece of brocade, sent it to her husband, who was so moved thereby that he called her to his side and lived with her in happiness ever after.
Chin Chuan is an old name of Chang-an. [87]
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