Rhymes of a Child's World by Miriam Clark Potter - HTML preview

 THE JACK O’LANTERN

To the man who tends the garden little brother said today—

“We want a yellow pumpkin, very round”;

And the wind among the corn-stalks, where we stood a-hand-in-hand

Made a funny little rattling sort of sound;

It was very bright and frosty, and the man said, “Come with me,—

I will find you what you want, if you will wait”;

Then he took us through the corn-lines past the heavy apple trees;

There were piles of yellow pumpkins by the gate.

And he asked, “To make a pie with? or to roll upon the ground?”

And he smiled when little brother shook his head;

Then, “I really won’t be guessing, but I think I know the kind—

I was little once myself, you know,” he said;

And we looked at him and twinkled, while he hunted all about,

Till he got the very roundest of them all;

Then he made a wink at brother, and a funny face at me,

And he set the pumpkin up upon the wall.

“‘Tis the king of all the others!” cried the cheery garden-man;

“I’ll be scooping out the middle, if you say”;

And we told him “Yes” in whispers, for it was our secret plan,

And we watched him while he cut the heart away;

Then he asked us—“And his eyes? Shall his nose be long and wise?

Shall he have a ragged, jagged sort of smile?”

And we told the garden-man, “Please, as quickly as you can;

We can only wait a very little while.”

Then he laid the knife beside him, as he said, “Here is the man;

He’ll be looking very happy with a light”;

And we rolled him in our jackets, as we thanked the garden-man,

And we hurried home to wait until the night;

Then a little moon is shining; then we’ll hide behind the wall,

And we’ll put the yellow candle in its place;

In the pretty lighted windows of the children that we know,

While the fathers read the papers, and the mothers sit and sew,

There will shine a merry Jack O’Lantern face.