Oriental Stories/Volume 1/Issue 1/The Yellow River

by Frank Owen

The Yellow River

By Hung Long Tom

Some say the Yellow River
Rises and flows
Across the breast of China,
That the color of the water
Is caused by loess
And mud deposits
Drifting on the river shallows.

But I say
The Yellow River
Is the rising tide
Of yellow men
That sweeps throughout
All China,
Mongolia, Manchuria, Kansu,
Splashing and foaming
On the shores of other countries.
It is a Yellow River.

The yellow is a reflection
Of the sun
That shines upon the people,
Though sometimes
It is due to the gold
That lies within the man.