THE SCARUM CAT.

PRECIOUS dolly Dorothy, I’ve been having trouble, And the weight of anxiousness Nearly bent me double; For I saw the Scarum cat, In the slumber pillows, Creeping, creeping toward me Through the bending willows. Oh, my dolly Dorothy, I was frightened, frightened! For the clouds were very dark, And it lightened, lightened! And the creeping Scarum cat, Coming through the willows, Made my heart go pit-a-pat, In the slumber pillows. And I wanted to cry out, But, oh dear, I couldn’t! And I hoped the cat would turn, But, oh dear, it wouldn’t! And I tried to run away, But could not leave the willows, And the creeping Scarum cat, In the slumber pillows. Then, my dolly Dorothy, I was nearly frantic, When a foamy wave came up From the big Atlantic— Caught me from the Scarum cat, Among the bending willows, And dropped me in my little bed, And woke me—on the pillows. Mamma said, though dreams are dread They vanish like a bubble; “But,” said she, “a simple tea Would save you such a trouble. If you eat just bread and milk, You will not see the willows, And the creeping Scarum cat, In the slumber pillows.”