A is for Amy who fell down the stairs
B is for Basil assaulted by bears
C is for Clara who wasted away
D is for Desmond thrown out of a sleigh
E is for Ernest who chocked on a peach
F is for Fanny sucked dry by a leach
G is for George smothered under a rug
H is for Hector done in by a thug
I is for Ida who drowned in a lake
J is for James who took lye by mistake
K is for Kate who was struck with an ax
L is for Leo who swallowed some tacks
M is for Maud who was swept out to sea
N is for Neville who died of ennui
O is for Olive run through with an awl
P is for Prue trampled flat in a brawl
Q is for Quentin who sank in a mire
R is for Rhoda consumed by a fire
S is for Sarah who perished of fits
T is for Titus who flew into bits
U is for Una who slipped down the drain
V is for Victor squashed under a train
W is for Winnie embedded in ice
X is for Xerxes devoured by mice
Y is for Yorick whose head was knocked in
Z is for Zillah who drank too much gin

Edward Gorey, The Gashleycrumb Tinies

To his clubfooted child said Lord Stipple,
As he poured his post-prandial tipple,
   "Your mother's behaviour
   Gave pain to Our Savior
And that's why He made you a cripple."


Edward Gorey, The Listing Attic

Each night Father fills me with dread
When he sits at the foot of my bed;
   I'd not mind that he speaks
   In gibbers and squeaks,
But for seventeen years he's been dead.


Edward Gorey, The Listing Attic

There was a young curate whose brain
Was deranged from the use of cocaine;
   He lured a small child
   To a copse dark and wild,
Where he beat it to death with his cane.


Edward Gorey, The Listing Attic