New Ulm weekly review. [volume] (New Ulm, Minn.) 1878-1892, 1881-12-21
'Nellie's Dream.

One Christmas Eve our little Nell,
stated with sweets deectable,
And longing for little quiet,
Away from all our madcap riot,
Stole quietly to another room,
For peace within its gathering gloom;
AND, with shawl wrapt closely round her,
no maiden.s sleep was ever sounder:
At least think so; she AYERS
Giake which you like, my word or hers)
She saw and heard in wakeful state,
The marve(s that now narrate.
First, looking through the window, she
BY the fast-fading light can see
some stragglers only, wading slow
Yet cheerily, through banks Of snow.
ocus-pocus !-soon the scene
Is changed rs by Fairy Queen.
The street, erewhile so dull. Is rife
With sights and sounds Of merry life.
Mis-shape snOwballs boys had made
Are all alive, with light arrayed;
Like turnip-lanterns urchins make,
10 cause the little ones to quake.
And oh the saucy FRANKS they play:
A poor girl filling with dismay
Who crOuches, on our doorstep sitting,
With gil these snOw-imps round her hitting.
And, archly smiling in her face jaw
they wink and blink, and dance about,
The noisiest, merriest, maddest rout.
You never saw such funny creatures,
ana all with the grotesquest features:
DS3XS-
They have no bodies-come their legs.
This strange ice-pudding, dubious race
Hold all wayfaring folk in chase;
Who feel their feet OH sudden fail them,
Nor know what treacherous foes assail
them:
Nor hear the eltlsh laugh historical
OutDoasting from those goblins spherical,
Fen 1cicles slip from of the roof,
And from eaves-dropping hold aloof.
And boys and girls they follow after,
With tiny shrieks Of tinkling laughter:
ANA JON IN many Maynard freak
Now making necks with moisture reek,
Now cuddling 'gainst dimpled cheek:
Or. greatly daring, taking sips
" nectar straight from maidens' lips.
And strangcst music everywhere
IL Permeating all the air:
The SNOWFALL COLLINS hum tune
~ deep as that of the bassOon;
While castanets family played by icicles
Sound like the jingling bells of bicycles.
But suddenly the scene takes flight,
More quickly than it came to light:
Nell rubs her eyes with some surprise
As thus the fairy vision dies;
She looks into the quiet street.
No maiden now is on the seat,
The moons mild rays are swectly sleeping
"nere 1mps their cantraps late were keep
And not sound is louder heard
Than chirp of Nellie's little bird,
Or fOlly on the hob suSurring,
Or Pussy on the hearthrug purring,
Or now and then the clinking fall
" red-hOt Cinders-that is all
What was the talismnn that broke
The o. IN her fancy did evoke?
ne cOnjurOr was her brother Freddy,
Loud-screaming-'Nel lie, tea is ready"
Thoughts of the girl vexed Nellie's breast:
Was she phantom like the rest?
Or some fOrlOrn one, doomed to roam,
Such bitter night without a home?
Nell threw the front door Open-LO!
There lay the child, half-swathed in snow:
Stretched at full length, inanimate,
Like some fair corpse laid out in state
Nell lifted, bore her to the hall;
Where soon, in answer to her call,'
FlOcked ready helpmates to her side,
Who prompt restoratives applied.
One brought hot soup within q minute,
With just dash of brandy IN it;
Another for the warm bath raced,
In which the fainting girl was placed:
Nor vain our efforts, fOragain
The lifeblOOd cOursed through every vein.
SO, what might else have been right trag-
ical,
Was turned to joy by Loves might magic
al:
And having snatched from Death his prey
Made sweeter still our Christmas Day
London illustrated News.