The Disrespectful Summons
A story by Edward Gorey
The Devil gave a sudden leap
And struck Miss Squill all of a heap.
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He swooped her up from off the groundAnd twirled her madly round and round.
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That night she saw when she undressed
His mark was burned upon her breast.
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Next day flew in her open door
A creature named Beelphazoar.
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It brought a recipe for fudge
Of pounded pencil-stubs and sludge.
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Also a book called
Ninety-twoEntirely Evil Things To Do
She cindered toast and rotted silk,
Corroded tin and curdled milk.
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Her laugh made beetles swoon; her frown
Made geese and cows turn upside down.
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She did her neighbours' forms in wax
And stuck them full of pins and tacks.
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They then expired with frightful pains
Inside their bowels, lungs, and brains.
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She got from somewhere stones with eyes
And plants that gave out screams and sighs.
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But then the demon, much too soon,
Returned one Sunday afternoon.
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He seized her hair, and with his hoof
He kicked a way out through the roof.
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The end had come, and this was it;
He dropped her in the Flaming Pit.