Zodiac Town Part 9

The squirrels merely looked sulky, and so the Brownie addressed himself to Amos. "What," he asked, "is your candid opinion about the wood-folk, anyway?"

"The wood-folk?" Amos said. He had not known that he had any opinion about the wood-folk, but just then a clock struck four, and suddenly he formed an opinion on the spot.

"The wood-folk scamper to and fro; They have no tasks to do.

It's here and there and high and low For them, the whole day through; Up to the tops of highest trees, In holes and caves, and where they please.

"They have no clothes to guard with care, No shoes upon their feet,-- For fur and feathers never tear, And claws are always neat,-- No hooks to hook, no strings to tie.

Small wonder that they skip and fly!

"The wood-folk frolic everywhere, With all the sky o'erhead, A swaying bough for rocking-chair, A hollow trunk for bed.

And yet, for all this woodland joy, Who would not rather be a boy?"

"Well, everyone to his taste," remarked an odd-looking elf, who appeared suddenly from nowhere in particular. "For my part, I prefer to be just exactly what I am. Once a witch changed me into a boy for ten minutes, and I give you my word I never was so uncomfortable in my life."

"Are witches _here_?" cried Ann, as she fixed her big eyes on the elf.

"Certainly," said the elf and the Brownie briskly, in one breath. "Don't you have witches up your way?"

"Only at Hallowe'en," Amos told them.

The elf looked thoughtful. "Oh, at Hallowe'en," he said. Then his eyes began to twinkle, and he spoke as follows:--

"Suppose this year at Hallowe'en, without a bit of warning, The roly-poly pumpkin heads we cut and carved that morning Should grow slim bodies, legs, and feet, And quick, from post and steeple, Come skipping 'mongst us, pert and fleet, Real, frisky pumpkin people!

Suppose that you and I had just completed one that minute, As day grew late, down by the gate, and set a candle in it, So that its eyes were deep and wide, Its mouth a grinning yellow, Then turn to find him at our side, A living pumpkin fellow?

Suppose we ran with twinkling heels and met a throng advancing, Their teeth a-row, their eyes aglow, all whirling, pranking, prancing; Suppose they twirled us merrily, The whole dark landscape lighting-- This Hallowe'en, I think, would be A little too exciting!"

NOVEMBER

_XI_

_NOVEMBER_

[Ill.u.s.tration: _Sagittarius_]

The next house stood just back from the street, In a gray little narrow lane.

A table loaded with things to eat They saw through the window-pane.

A cozy old lady came out to the door And said, "There is turkey in here, Potatoes and rice, and cake with spice, And no one to dine, oh, dear!"

[Ill.u.s.tration: _The next house stood just back from the street_]

Amos and Ann looked at the Journeying Man. "It must be very hard on her, J. M.," they said.

"What's hard on her?" returned J. M. "Having turkey and potatoes and all that?"

Amos and Ann turned red. "Having no one to eat them," they said in a low voice.

It had been some hours since they left the gypsy camp, and they were beginning to be very hungry indeed.

The little old lady stood at the door and waited.

"We might help her out if there's time," J. M. said suddenly.

"Oho!" cried Amos. "There's plenty of that, you know, in Zodiac Town!"

Two minutes later they were seated round the table.

"It's like Thanksgiving," Ann said in delight.

"Just think--" J. M. replied--

"Just think, the little Pilgrim boys That came ash.o.r.e, you know, From off the good Mayflower s.h.i.+p That wild day long ago,

"They had no roasted turkey-breast For dinner; not a sc.r.a.p Of gravy, stuffing, and the rest Saw any hungry chap.

"No apple sauce, no pumpkin pies, No nuts and raisins plump, No oranges and gingersnaps, No taffy in a lump.

"I'm glad that things are different now-- 'T would give me quite a shock To see our dinner-table look As bare as Plymouth Rock.

"And yet, those little Mayflower lads Were thankful to be living-- A splendid reason, after all, For anyone's thanksgiving!"

"I think I'm thankfulest of all," Ann said--and a little clock tinkled and sent her into rhyming.

"I think I'm thankfulest of all For that old house of ours; The maple by the garden wall, The borders full of flowers;

"The front doorsill that's hollowed out By many pa.s.sing feet; The different pictures hung about, With faces kind and sweet.

"The firewood's flame is red and gold And makes a spicy smell; There's nothing half so clear and cold As water from our well;

"And through the window, sleepy nights, Just at the stairway's head, A white star like a candle lights Me safely up to bed.

"So brightly all my blessings s.h.i.+ne That many thanks I give-- But mostly for that home of mine Where I was put to live."

The old lady was delighted with all this rhyming, and on the spur of the moment she made up a very good rhyme of her own. Amos and Ann thought it was the best of all that they had heard that day--and goodness knows they had heard a great many!

"Suppose you lived in a gingerbread house, With a roof of jujube paste, And sugar shutters, and peppermint pipes, And doors that you could taste; In a land where weather could do no harm, Absurd as that may seem, With chocolate ground and lemonade rain And plenty of snow ice-cream?

"Plenty of snow ice-cream for you, And a soda-water pump, And a little garden where gumdrops grew, And taffy all in a lump.

Taffy all in a lump, hurrah!

And tarts and cookies and all.

If ever you move to a house like that, I'll make an early call!"