Horror Poetry, Volume 4
Not exactly mine, but I cleaned it up so much it might as well be mine.
"The Flame"
Mommy and Dad went out one day,
And left Pauline alone to play;
Around the room she gayly sprung,
Clapp'd in her hands, and danced, and sung.
Now, on the table close at hand,
A box of matches chanced to stand,
And kind Mommy and Dad had told her,
That if she touched them they would scold her.
But Pauline said, "Oh, what a pity!
For, when they burn, it looks so pretty;
They crackle so, and spit, and flame;
And Mommy often does the same -
I'll only light a match or two
As I have seen my mother do."
When her pet pussy-cats heard this
They raised their paws and gave a hiss -
"Meow!!" they said, "Me-ow, me-oh!
You'll burn yourself, if you do so,
It is forbidden, don't you know."
But Pauline would not take advice,
She lit a match, it was so nice!
It crackled so, it burned so clear,-
And felt good when she held it near.
She jumped for joy and ran about,
And was too pleased to put it out.
And when the little cats saw this,
They said, "Oh, naughty, naughty Miss!"
"Meow!!" they said, "Me-ow, me-oh!
You will be burnt if you do so,
It is forbidden, don't you know. "
Now see! Oh! What a dreadful thing
The fire caught her apron-string;
Her apron burns, her arms, her hair;
She burns all over, everywhere.
Then how the pussy-cats did mew!
What else, poor pussies, could they do?
They screamed for help, 'twas all in vain,
So then, they said, "We'll scream again.
Make haste, make haste! Me-ow! Me-oh!
She'll burn to death,- we told her so."
So she was burnt with all her clothes,
And arms and hands, and eyes and nose;
Till she had nothing more to lose
Except her little scarlet shoes...
And nothing else but these were found
Among her ashes on the ground.
Edited by Frank Aiden Ryan
Taken from the translation by Robert Godwin-Jones of "Die gar traurige Geschichte mit dem Feurzug".