Lily gave a party,
And her little playmates all,
Gayly dressed, came in their best
To dance at Lily's ball.
Little Quaker Primrose
Sat and never stirred,
And, except in whispers,
Never spoke a word.
Tulip fine and Dahlia
Shone in silk and satin;
Learned old Convolvulus
Was tiresome with his Latin.
Snowdrop nearly fainted
Because the room was hot,
And went away before the rest
With sweet Forget-me-not.
Pansy danced with Daffodil,
Rose with Violet;
Silly Daisy fell in love
With pretty Mignonette.
But when they danced the country-dance,
One could scarcely tell
Which of these two danced it best—
Cowslip or Heather-bell.
Between the dances, when they all
Were seated in their places,
I thought I'd never seen before
So many pretty faces.
But of all the pretty maidens
I saw at Lily's ball,
Darling Lily was to me
The sweetest of them all.
And when the dance was over,
They went down stairs to sup,
And each had a taste of honey-cake,
With dew in a buttercup.
And all were dressed to go away
Before the set of sun;
And Lily said "Good-by!" and gave
A kiss to every one.
And before the moon or a single star
Was shining overhead,
Lily and all her little friends
Were fast asleep in bed.