My White Mouse

Portrait of Robert William Service
Robert William Service 1874–1958

At dusk I saw a craintive mouse That sneaked and stole around the house; At first I took it for a ghost, For it was snowy white - almost.

I've seen them in captivity, But this white mouse was wild and free, And every eye with stealth it stole And foraged in the garbage hole.

I told the folks, yet wondered why No one could see the mouse but I; For it was really, truly white, And not just silvered by moonlight.

And then there came a big black cat, And thought I said: "Get out of that!" It stared at me with savage eyes, As big and yellow as moonrise.

And often times I wonder whether They didn't just go off together, In the bright moonlight, paw in paw, For never more my mouse I saw.

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