The Ride-by-Nights, by Walter de la Mare

(Edward Ardizzone, illustration from Eleanor Estes’ wonderful The Witch Family (New York: Harcourt Brace, 1960); found here)

 

Up on their brooms the Witches stream,
Crooked and black in the crescent’s gleam;
One foot high, and one foot low,
Bearded, cloaked, and cowled they go.
’Neath Charlie’s Wain they twitter and tweet,
And away they swarm ’neath the Dragon’s feet,
With a whoop and a flutter they swing and sway,
And surge pell-mell down the Milky Way.
Between the legs of the glittering Chair
They hover and squeak in the empty air.
Then round they swoop past the glimmering Lion
To where Sirius barks behind huge Orion;
Up, then, and over to wheel amain,
Under the silver, and home again.

(From Peacock Pie: A Book of Rhymes, London: Constable and Co., 1913)

These twittering, squeaking little witches seem more fitting to our modern concept  of Hallowe’en than anything more sinister and warty. I loved this poem as a child, and my ambition was to be a witch when I grew up (I am still disappointed that this isn’t a valid career choice – and I do mean proper witchery, with flying and spells and talking cats, no namby-pamby gentle New Agery for me thank you).

May your night be free of ghosties and ghoulies and long-legged beasties, dear readers!

Comments

[Stefanie]

It really is a disappointment that one can't really be a proper witch, isn't it? If it were a valid career choice I am sure we'd be meeting regularly at the witch's sabbath! I hope you had a happy Halloween!

[litlove]

You always make me laugh! I do hope you had a lovely Halloween. Ours was disturbed only by a few witches in search of trick or treats... Your post did remind me of the replies to the question: What Do You Want To Be When You Grow Up? that were posted on the wall in my son's infant school classroomm. There were several dinosaurs, a couple of fairies, and one child had simply replied: To Be Great. I just loved that. I do hope he got his wish.

[Helen]

Oh Stefanie, it would be such fun, wouldn't it? And flying would be so convenient. And the ability to turn certain people into toads.

Fortunately for the children of Belgium, none of them knocked on our door on Hallowe'en - I had bought a big bag of what I thought were delicious sweets but turned out to be utterly vile. Had I distributed them I should probably have been accused of being a witch after all. Salted liquorice is the Devil's food, that's for sure.

That's a fabulous wish, litlove! I too hope he got his wish. But I wouldn't mind being a dinosaur either, now you mention it.

[Iris]

To be a witch when you grow up - that is a wonderful wish. Now I am sad that that isn't a valid option too.

[Helen]

It is disappointing isn't it? However, I can at least comfort myself that I am looking more and more witchlike as I grow older, heh heh!