Autumn had arrived in northern Michigan, autumn with its crisp, chilly air, cold moonlit nights and bright, dazzling red, orange and yellow leaves that decorated the trees like Christmas trees and covered the ground like a thick carpet. The sky was clear blue, the sun shining brightly down through the beautiful foliage and casting an almost magical appearance on the road. "Couple of them's missing," said his wife, taking the bowl of potatoes to the table. "I went outside today to slop the pigs, an' I noticed there weren't fifteen cows like there's s'posed t'be."