NEW YORK -- A descendant of the author of A Visit From Saint Nicholas, better known as Twas the Night before Christmas, says that the inspiration for the popular children's story was a real-life burglary. Velveeta C. Moore-Lugosi explained that her great-great-grandfather, Clement C. Moore, "was a light sleeper" and that one summer night he heard someone in the house. "Pops came down to the drawing room, completely naked as was his custom, and discovered that a fat guy with a white beard had come in through the chimney and was rummaging through Pops' stuff. Well, sir, the crook took one look at Pops and dropped his sack and took off like a shot."
Moore was so incensed by the crime that he penned a diatribe against the burglar that contained lines such as the following: "The criminal was hung by the chimney with care, in hopes he would soon get the electric chair." But Moore's publisher convinced him that the story made no sense and, besides, it would sell much better as a Christmas poem. According to Moore's great-great grandaughter, "in less than a half-hour, Pops changed a word here and a word there" to create the beloved Christmas classic.
"And that," explained Ms. Moore-Lugosi, "is why everyone has heard of Twas the Night Before Christmas but no one is familiar with the original story, The August 12th Burglary."
