Autumn Arrives

"Divinest autumn! who may paint thee best, forever changeful o'er the changeful globe?"

R. H.  Stoddard

(1825 - 1903)

Richard Henry Stoddard, a nineteenth century American critic and poet, originally trained as a blacksmith and later worked as an iron moulder.  In his leisure time he read poetry and he acquainted himself with other men interested in literature.  In 1853 Nathaniel Hawthorne helped him to secure a job as customs inspector for the Port of New York.  He held this job until 1870, making a living and also advancing his literary pursuits.  His poetry is elegant and erudite and his lyric poems, set to music, earned him a reputation as a writer of songs.