Chapter I: Do You Know?

Behind the currant bushes, when the night was coming on,
There was such a funny whisper--do you know?
It made us shiver-shiver, and it made our hearts beat quick,
And we knew it wasn’t any good to carry out a stick,
But we did it just the same, or else you never would have gone--
_Do you know?_

Beyond the old syringa, when the stars were peeping out,
There was such a funny shadow--do you know?
And over in the flower-bed you had left your father’s spade,
And you had to go and get it, and you said you weren’t afraid,
But you told me afterward about the creeping Indian scout--
_Do you know?_

Beneath the kitchen window, when the moon was climbing high,
There was such a funny coldness--do you know?
No matter if ’twas summer, it was cool just like a well,
And the reason was because a ghost--but when you tried to tell,
I put my fingers in my ears, and how I used to cry!
_Do you know?_