I .

Suddenly, as the busy crowd
Surges and roars along the street,
Over the housetops broods the cloud,
And down the first loose raindrops beat!
While black umbrellas here and there
Flutter up in the troubled air;
With pitter-patter of many feet
Into shelter the throngs retreat;
In a moment the rush and roar
Are still'd, and the Shower begins to pour,
The eager Shower, with its twofold sound —
The splash close by, and the murmur all round!

II .

Splash, splash! while the murmurous sound
Gathers and deepens all around!
And on the streets with leaden strokes
Strikes the Rain, till the pavement smokes
And where the great drops plash and pelt
Quicksilver-rings are made and melt!
While under the archways, at open doors,
The wet folk gather, down it pours, —
The eager Shower, with its twofold sound, —
The splash close by, and the murmur around!

III .

And now ... how quiet all things look!
Still as a picture in a book!
And lo! the crowding people seem
Spell-bound, like figures in a Dream!
Silently they shelter and stare
On the rain-lash'd street, thro' the misty air: —
Trembling the little sempstress stands,
Holding her bandbox in her hands,
Lifting her skirt and peeping down
At her thin wet shoes with a shrug and a frown;
The fop his silk umbrella grips,
Holding it from him while it drips;
The city man with impatient glance
Looks at the clouded sky askance,
Mutters, and quietly unfolds
The evening newspaper he holds;
The loafer leaneth against the wall,
Straw in his mouth, with a grin for all;
The urchin, reaching out his foot,
Into the puddle dips his boot,
Or cap in hand thrusts out his bare
Head, that the drops may pelt his hair!
" Buses and cabs crawl slowly by,
Glistering moistly under the sky;
A mist steams up from the slippery ground,
While louder and louder grows the sound —
The splash close by, and the murmur around!

IV .

Then, all of a sudden, the air grows bright;
The moist black pools flash back the light,
The sun shines cheerily over all,
And lo, the Shower has ceased to fall!
The spell is broken, and now once more
The crowd flows onward with busy roar!