elions when they first come out.

What is the phrase that suggests that they are
dandelions? "Yellow coats."

What does the author actually mean by the
"veterans"? The dandelions, when they have gone
to seed.

What phrase suggests this? "Their trembling
heads and gray."

Where did the "trooper band" make their
appearance? On the hillside.

When? On a "showery night and still".

Why is such a night selected? Because it makes
the dandelions bloom in great numbers.

To what is the coming of the dandelions
compared? To an army taking possession of a
hill.

What words tell how they came? "Without a sound
of warning", "surprised", "We were not waked by
bugle notes", "No cheer our dreams invaded".

Explain "surprised the hill". Marched upon it
when they were least expected, and seized it.

Give the meaning of "held it in the morning".
Had undisputed possession of it.

Tell, in your own words, how the dandelions
came. Suddenly and unexpectedly.

How did this attack differ from a real military
attack? There were no notes of the bugle or
shouts of the soldiers to announce the capture
of the hill.

Change "No cheer our dreams invaded" into prose
order, and explain the meaning. No cheer
invaded our dreams. Our sleep was not disturbed
by the victorious shouts of soldiers.

How did the coats of the soldiers you have seen
differ in colour from those of the dandelions?

What is the meaning of "at dawn"? The first
appearance of light in the morning.

"Green slopes"? Grassy hillsides.

"Paraded"? Marched up and down.

About what time has elapsed between the
incident of the first stanza and that of the
second? Probably a week or thereabouts.

What deed is referred to in the first stanza?
The seizure of the hill.

What is meant by "idly walking"? Without any
definite purpose in view.

"Marked"? Noticed.

About what were the veterans probably
"talking"? About their military exploits in
years gone by.

What words are suitably used in describing
these veterans? "Trembling" and "gray" suggest
old a