'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the hen house,

Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;

The stockings were hung by the window with care,

In hopes that Santa soon would be there;

The chicks were nestled all snug in their coops;

While visions of corn mash danced in their heads;

And mama hen in her 'kerchief had just settled her feathers,

When out over the pasture there arose such a clatter,

Mama sprang from her nest box to see what was the matter.

Away to the window she flew like a flash.

The moon shown bright on the new-fallen snow,

Gave a lustre of midday to objects below,

When what to her well-developed eyes did appear,

But a miniature sleigh and eight broad-breasted whites (turkeys),

With a little old turkey tom so lively and quick,

She knew in a moment he must be Santa.

He ruffled his feathers as he gobbled:

"Now, Fernando! now, Cecil! now Casey and Bernard!

On, Sharon! on, Mindy! on, Mabel and Clyde!

To the top of the coop! to the top of the wall!

Now fly away! fly away! fly away all!"

So up to the hen house the turkeys they flew

With the sleigh full of corn mash, and Santa, too—

And then, in a twinkling, mama hen heard on the roof

The prancing of eight broad breasted turkey paws.

As mama hen drew in her neck to look around,

Down the chimney Santa came with a bound.

He was dressed all in feathers, from his head to his hocks,

And his pin feathers were all tarnished with litter and shavings;

A bundle of corn mash he had flung around his neck,

As he gobbled and gobbled while opening his pack.

His eyes — how they twinkled! his feathers, how white!

His wattle was like a rose, his snood like a cherry!

And the beard on his breast was as black as the night;

The tail feathers encircled his backside like a wreath;

He had a rough caruncle and a little round belly

That shook when he gobbled.

He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old turkey,

And mama hen laughed when she saw him.

A wink of his eye and a twist of his head

Soon gave her to know she had nothing to dread;

He spoke not a word (other than a gobble),

And filled all the stockings with corn mash for the chicks;

Then, with a twist of his head and a gobble and prance,

After giving a nod, up the chimney he flew;

He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a gobble,

And away they all flew as he exclaimed,

“gobble gobble, gobble gobble” (which when translated means)

“Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night!”

The Christmas classic we didn't know we needed

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