Twas the Night Before Christmas
By Clement Cluck Moore
'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there;
The chickens were nestled all snug in their beds,
While visions of succulent earthworms danced in their heads;
And my dog in her collar, and I in my cap,
Had just settled down for a long winter's hibernation,
When out in the barn there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter.
Away to the window I flew like a flash,
Tore open the shutters, which fell of and went smash.
The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow
Gave the lustre of mid-day to frozen objects below,
When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,
But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny rein-ducks,
With a little old driver, so lively and quick,
I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick.
So up to the barn-top the duckies, they flew,
With the sleigh full of corn, and St. Nicholas too.
And then, in a ker-plunkling, I heard on the roof
The prancing and pawing of each little waddling foot.
As I drew in my head, and was turning around,
In the Barn St. Nicholas went with a bound.
He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his foot,
And his clothes were all tarnished with shavings and poop;
A bundle of corn he had flung on his back,
And he looked like a peddler just opening his pack.
His eyes -- how they twinkled! his dimples how merry!
His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry!
His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,
And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow;
The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth,
And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath;
He had a broad face and a little round belly,
That shook, when he laughed like a bowlful of jelly.
He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,
And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself;
(awkward pause)
A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,
Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread;
He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,
And filled all the feeders; then turned with a jerk,
And laying his finger aside of his nose,
And giving a nod, up the chimney that wasn't even there he rose;
He sprang to his sleigh, to his ducks gave a whistle,
And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.
But I heard him exclaim, E-R-E. Hhhm. Wonder what that means? He drove out of sight,
"Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good-night."
