The Enchanted Wood.
A dark old Raven lived in a tree,With a little Tree-frog for company,In the midst of a forest so thick with treesOnly thin people could walk with ease.Yet though the forest was dank and dark,The little Tree-frog was gay as a lark;He piped and trilled the livelong day,While the Raven was just the other way:He grumbled and croaked from morn till night,And nothing in all the world was right.The moon was too pale, or the sun too bright;The sky was too blue, or the snow too white;The thrushes too gay, or the owls too glum;And the squirrels—well, they were too squirrelsome.And as for the trees,whydid they growIn a wood, of all places?—he’d like to know.
A dark old Raven lived in a tree,With a little Tree-frog for company,In the midst of a forest so thick with treesOnly thin people could walk with ease.Yet though the forest was dank and dark,The little Tree-frog was gay as a lark;He piped and trilled the livelong day,While the Raven was just the other way:He grumbled and croaked from morn till night,And nothing in all the world was right.The moon was too pale, or the sun too bright;The sky was too blue, or the snow too white;The thrushes too gay, or the owls too glum;And the squirrels—well, they were too squirrelsome.And as for the trees,whydid they growIn a wood, of all places?—he’d like to know.
A dark old Raven lived in a tree,With a little Tree-frog for company,
A dark old Raven lived in a tree,
With a little Tree-frog for company,
In the midst of a forest so thick with treesOnly thin people could walk with ease.
In the midst of a forest so thick with trees
Only thin people could walk with ease.
Yet though the forest was dank and dark,The little Tree-frog was gay as a lark;
Yet though the forest was dank and dark,
The little Tree-frog was gay as a lark;
He piped and trilled the livelong day,While the Raven was just the other way:
He piped and trilled the livelong day,
While the Raven was just the other way:
He grumbled and croaked from morn till night,And nothing in all the world was right.
He grumbled and croaked from morn till night,
And nothing in all the world was right.
The moon was too pale, or the sun too bright;The sky was too blue, or the snow too white;
The moon was too pale, or the sun too bright;
The sky was too blue, or the snow too white;
The thrushes too gay, or the owls too glum;And the squirrels—well, they were too squirrelsome.
The thrushes too gay, or the owls too glum;
And the squirrels—well, they were too squirrelsome.
And as for the trees,whydid they growIn a wood, of all places?—he’d like to know.
And as for the trees,whydid they grow
In a wood, of all places?—he’d like to know.
A wood is so dark and unhealthy, too,For trees; and besides, they obstruct the view.And so it went on from morn till night:The Tree-frog piping with pure delight,And the Raven croaking with all his mightThat nothing in all the world was right.Well, in this same wood, it chanced one dayThe enchanter Merlin lost his way;And stopping to rest ’neath the very treeWhere the Raven and Tree-frog were taking their tea,
A wood is so dark and unhealthy, too,For trees; and besides, they obstruct the view.And so it went on from morn till night:The Tree-frog piping with pure delight,And the Raven croaking with all his mightThat nothing in all the world was right.Well, in this same wood, it chanced one dayThe enchanter Merlin lost his way;And stopping to rest ’neath the very treeWhere the Raven and Tree-frog were taking their tea,
A wood is so dark and unhealthy, too,For trees; and besides, they obstruct the view.
A wood is so dark and unhealthy, too,
For trees; and besides, they obstruct the view.
And so it went on from morn till night:The Tree-frog piping with pure delight,
And so it went on from morn till night:
The Tree-frog piping with pure delight,
And the Raven croaking with all his mightThat nothing in all the world was right.
And the Raven croaking with all his might
That nothing in all the world was right.
Well, in this same wood, it chanced one dayThe enchanter Merlin lost his way;
Well, in this same wood, it chanced one day
The enchanter Merlin lost his way;
And stopping to rest ’neath the very treeWhere the Raven and Tree-frog were taking their tea,
And stopping to rest ’neath the very tree
Where the Raven and Tree-frog were taking their tea,
He divined of a sudden, by magic lore,A thing I forgot to mention before:That the forest and all that therein did dwellOwed their present shape to an ancient spell.Now a spell, though a tiresome job to make,Is the easiest thing in the world to break,When once you know how to perform the trick,As Merlin did. Waving his magic stick,He cried, “Let this forest and everything in itTake its former shape!” When lo! in a minute,In place of the Raven, a stern old sageAll robed in black and all bent with age;And where the little Tree-frog had beenSat a goodly youth all dressed in green;And around about was a flowery lawnWhere the forest had been. Said the sage, with a yawn:“I must have been dozing—well, to resume—As I was saying, this world of gloom—”“Oh, bother the world of gloom—just hearThat thrush!” cried the youth; “the first this year!”
He divined of a sudden, by magic lore,A thing I forgot to mention before:That the forest and all that therein did dwellOwed their present shape to an ancient spell.Now a spell, though a tiresome job to make,Is the easiest thing in the world to break,When once you know how to perform the trick,As Merlin did. Waving his magic stick,He cried, “Let this forest and everything in itTake its former shape!” When lo! in a minute,In place of the Raven, a stern old sageAll robed in black and all bent with age;And where the little Tree-frog had beenSat a goodly youth all dressed in green;And around about was a flowery lawnWhere the forest had been. Said the sage, with a yawn:“I must have been dozing—well, to resume—As I was saying, this world of gloom—”“Oh, bother the world of gloom—just hearThat thrush!” cried the youth; “the first this year!”
He divined of a sudden, by magic lore,A thing I forgot to mention before:
He divined of a sudden, by magic lore,
A thing I forgot to mention before:
That the forest and all that therein did dwellOwed their present shape to an ancient spell.
That the forest and all that therein did dwell
Owed their present shape to an ancient spell.
Now a spell, though a tiresome job to make,Is the easiest thing in the world to break,
Now a spell, though a tiresome job to make,
Is the easiest thing in the world to break,
When once you know how to perform the trick,As Merlin did. Waving his magic stick,
When once you know how to perform the trick,
As Merlin did. Waving his magic stick,
He cried, “Let this forest and everything in itTake its former shape!” When lo! in a minute,
He cried, “Let this forest and everything in it
Take its former shape!” When lo! in a minute,
In place of the Raven, a stern old sageAll robed in black and all bent with age;
In place of the Raven, a stern old sage
All robed in black and all bent with age;
And where the little Tree-frog had beenSat a goodly youth all dressed in green;
And where the little Tree-frog had been
Sat a goodly youth all dressed in green;
And around about was a flowery lawnWhere the forest had been. Said the sage, with a yawn:
And around about was a flowery lawn
Where the forest had been. Said the sage, with a yawn:
“I must have been dozing—well, to resume—As I was saying, this world of gloom—”
“I must have been dozing—well, to resume—
As I was saying, this world of gloom—”
“Oh, bother the world of gloom—just hearThat thrush!” cried the youth; “the first this year!”
“Oh, bother the world of gloom—just hear
That thrush!” cried the youth; “the first this year!”