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He turned in den an' lay him on a log aside of his fish, an' goes back an' gets de oder one. When he got back again, ol' Rabbit took his fish an' was gone.

4. RABBIT MAKES FOX HIS RIDING-HORSE.1

De fox an' de rabbit was goin' to see de girl. An' de rabbit he got sick an' he tol' de fox he couldn't go. An' de rabbit says to de fox, "If you tote me, I ken go." — "I can't tote you." — "If you don't, I can't go, I'm so sick." An' de rabbit says, "If you take me on your back, I can go." An' de fox took him on his back; an' de rabbit says, "Fox, I'm so sick I can't stay up yer back unless I put a saddle on." An' he says to de fox, "I'll have to put a spur on my heel. I'm used to ridin' with a spur on my heel." An' de fox says to de rabbit, "When you git up into de yard, I'll stop den, an' you ken get down." An' de rabbit he stuck his spur into de fox, an' made de fox run in front of de door where de girls could see. An' de rabbit hollered out to de girls, "Girls, I told you Mr. Fox was my ridin'-horse!"

(Second Version.2)

Mr. Bar an' Mr. Rabbit dey was goin' a-cortin' to see Miss Lizzy Coon. Mr. Rabbit he wanted to git in ahead of Mr. Bar; an' he went out one day, an' de garls was all dere, an' he tole de garls Mr. Bar was his ridin'-horse, an' if dey didn't believe it, nex' time he come roun' he'd show 'em. So he slipped around an' went by Mr. Bar's house to see him, to set a day when dey was to go 'bout together. He went on to Mr. Bar's house dat day, an' de time he got dere he was powerful sick. He couldn't walk, he couldn't sit up, he couldn't do no way. He got after Mr. Bar, an' let him put a saddle on him to let him ride him over dere, he was so sick. He had a cowhide to ride with, an' he put a spur on too. He got on nearer to de house, an' he wanted him to git down. He said, "Jus' go a leetle farder, a leetle farder!" He put de spur on him, an' rode him up to de yard an' jumped off, an' said, "Good even', ladies! I tol' you Mr. Bar was my ridin'-horse."

1 Informant 1. Compare JAFL 25: 285-286; Jones, VII, XIII; Harris 1: VI; MAFLS 2: 112-113; Parsons, XVII; Smith, 17-18.

2 Informant 4.

Variant: Fox an' Rabbit was courtin' one place. me! dat's my ridin'-horse." "Oh, no!" says the girl. street, an' I'll show you how it is."

Talkin' 'bout Mr. Fox. "Lor'

"Yes, you come down the

4 Variant: Fox and Rabbit agree to ride each other by turns. "Jes' before they get to de bars, Mr. Fox said, "Mr. Rabbit, get down! let me ride you." - "Please, Mr. Fox, let me stay on till we get through de bars." He shoved his spur in the ol' fox's side. He run de ol' fox up to de house." . . .— Another variant: Fox and Rabbit come to a river. "Hop on my back," says Fox to Rabbit. "Your legs short, my legs long."

5. THE RACE: RELAY TRICK.1

De deer an' de tarpin was goin' to run de race. An' de tarpin he gits three others besides himself, which made four, an' he placed them along his race-path. When they started to race, de tarpin an' de deer together they had such a certain distance to run. Then when they run that distance, de deer hailed to de tarpin, "Where you at now, brother Tarpin?" De tarpin says, "Here me, on ahead here!" Then when they started to run again, when they went a certain distance, de deer said again, "Where you at now, brother Tarpin?” An' de tarpin says, "Here me, on ahead here!" An' de nex' time they started agin, an' run a certain distance agin, an' de deer hailed to de tarpin agin, "Where you at now, brother Tarpin?" Tarpin said, "Here me, on ahead here!" An' dis time, de las' race, de deer says, "I must outrun dat tarpin." An' he says, "Where you at now, brother Tarpin?" An' de tarpin says, "Here me, on ahead here!" An' de deer, bein' so outrun by de tarpin, he runs to de tarpin, an' he jus' stomps de tarpin all to pieces. From that day to this a deer has no use for a tarpin.

race.

(Second Version.2)

One time dere was a rabbit an' a tarpin. Dey was goin' to run a De tarpin would run under de groun', while de rabbit would run on top of de groun'. Ol' Tarpin went an' put a tarpin at ev'ry pos'. Five-mile race. Ev'ry time ol' Rabbit let out, he run to his pos'. He says to Tarpin, "Wha' you?"-"Here me!" He run on to ev'ry pos'. "Wha' you?" "Here me!" When he got his fivemile pos', he called out, "Wha' you?" "Here me!"

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6. THE RACE: SLOW BUT STEADY.3

Bet so many

Terpin made a bet. Terpin could beat the snail. dollars. Started out. Mr. Terpin he crawled along. Night come, he had to rest. Mr. Snail crawlin' all the time, night an' day. "Mr. Snail, how you gettin' 'long?"—"You sleep, an' I keep a-pullin'. I'll beat you." Gain half a day on Terpin. "You here, Mr. Snail?" -"Yes, I here." Mr. Terpin says, "You beat me, isn't you? I expect that you so round you jus' roll downhill. I have to crawl." Mr. Terpin jumped on Snail an' tried to kill it. "I got a house on me too. You can't ketch me." Mr. Terpin killed Mr. Snail.

1 Informant I. Compare JAFL 9: 290, (I); Jones, VII; Harris 1 : XVIII; MAFLS 3: 69; Parsons, L; Pub. Folk-Lore Soc. 55 : XII.

2 Informant 5.

Informant 3. See this number, pp. 214, 226.

7. ABOVE THE GROUND AND UNDER THE GROUND.1 Devil an' a prospec' went to farmin'. Devil said he would take everything grown in the groun'; an' Prospec', out of de groun'. Plant a crop o' corn. Prospec' got all de crop, Devil didn't get nothin'. Devil said, "We'll try it again. I'll take what grows out de groun', you take what grows in de groun'." -"All right." Planted a crop of potatoes. Prospec' he got dat crop.2 Devil said, "You can't whip me." Prospec' said, "All right, try dat. What you want me to fight with?" Devil say, "I'm going to take de foot ad [adze?], you take de peg-an'-awl."—"All right, we'll have to fight dis battle in a hogshead." 3

8. NO TRACKS OUT.1

Once there was a rabbit, an' he was travellin'. Come to Mr. Fox's house. Fox call out, "Mr. Rabbit, come spend de night wi' me! Lots o' rabbits spend the night with me." - "Mr. Fox, I see lots of tracks going in, but none comin' out. So I guess I'll have to journey on."

9. IN THE CHEST.5

De ol' rabbit an' fox. He said to de rabbit, "I hear Dan Jones' hounds acomin'." Ol' Rabbit says, "What mus' I do?"— “You get in de chest, an' I will lock you up. Den I can run." De rabbit got in de chest, an' de fox locked him up. Put him on a kettle of An' set down in a corner an' commenced pettin' [patting; i.e., beating time] an' singin',

"Rabbit good fry,

Rabbit good boiled,

Rabbit good stew,

Rabbit good any way.

I eat Mr. Rabbit."

An' he pour de water over de chest. "Gettin' hot in here," said ol' Rabbit. "Turn over an' get cool!"

(Second Version.")

De fox an' de rabbit knowed where dere was a whole lot of oranges an' apples. An' so dey made a plot to call each other an' go befo' de 1 Informant 6. Compare JAFL 6: 48.

: Variant: Rabbit agreed with Fox that he, Fox, would "take all what grows on top of de groun' an' I take all what grows under de groun'." That's a bargain. "I take all de 'taters an' gi' you all de vines."

It was explained that the "foot ad" was a tool that had to be drawn inward, whereas the peg-an'-awl could be struck outwards.

• Informant 6. See this number, p. 222. Informant 2. Compare Harris 1 : XIV.

• Informant 7.

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light come. An' de ol' fox he went off an' left de ol' rabbit, an' got his an' come back home. Den went over to de ol' rabbit's house. Says, "I know where a whole lot of apples an' oranges is. Come on, Mr. Rabbit, an' go with me!" Went on with him home. Said, they begin to fuss an' quarrel. Said, after a while de fox says, "Mr. Rabbit, jump in my chist! a whole lot of hound-dogs is comin' after you." He got in de chist, an' de ol' fox begin' to shut de do', fastened de chist-lid down, put him a kittle of water on de fire, begin to bore holes in de chist. De rabbit would say, "What are you doin', Mr. Fox?" "I'm goin' to give you air." Then he got his kittle of water an' begin to pour into the little cracks. The rabbit would say,

"Chick a flea
Bitin' me."

De ol' fox say, "Turn over on de oder side."

IO. PAY ME NOW.

Bout de fox an' de goose. Once de ol' fox went to de ol' goose's nest, an' said, "Mrs. Goose, I want them little baby." She said, "Please don't take my little babies! To-morrow mornin' come over soon, an' I will go with you where ol' hawg got a whole lot o' little baby-pigs." An' the nex' mornin' they went. An' she got up on top of the log an' he at de do'.2 An' de ol' dawg got after de fox, an' he run, an' call out, "I'll pay yer for it, Mis' Goose! I'll pay yer!" Ol' Goose was flyin'. An' she say, "Pay me now, pay me now!"

(Second Version.3)

An'

De rabbit tol' de fox he knowed where dere was some geese hid. de fox he went to git de geese. An' de dawg was in dere, an' de dawg after de fox an' chased de fox; an' he run, an' he says, "Brother Rabbit, I'll pay you for this." An' de rabbit says to de fox, "Pay me now!" De fox says, "I ain't got time to tarry here now, for de greyhounds is on behind." An' de fox he run so hard an' he run all night long, an' just at sun-up he crossed over de mountins; an' de sun lookin' so red behind de fox, he says, "I run so hard, I set dis old world on fire, an' now I'm runnin' by de light of it."

II. TALKS TOO MUCH.4

Man goin' along found skeleton of a man's head. "Ol' Head, how come you here?" - "Mouth brought me here. Mouth's goin'

1 Informant 2. Compare Jacottet I: 40.

Ol' Fox

2 Variant: "Mr. Fox, you stan' right here. De ol' hawg goin' come out." went out his hole. De ol' goose commence peckin' on de log to scare out de hawg. ol' dawg come.

De

Informant 1.

Informant 6. Heard in Greensborough.

to bring you here." He goes up to de town an' tellin' about de ol' head. A great crowd of people went with him down there. They called on this head to talk to them. The head never said nothin'. They fell on this feller an' beat him. The ol' Head turned an' said, "Didn't I tell you Mouth was goin' to bring you here?"

(Second Version.1)

In slave'y time colored man travellin' 'long came to where dere was a terrapin. Terrapin spoke to him. Said, "One day you shall be free." He done him so much good, he jus' couldn' keep it. Goes up to his master's house, an' says, "A terrapin spoke to me this mornin'." An' his master say, "What did he say?" "One day you shall be free." - "I'm goin' down here, an' if this terrapin don't talk to me, I'm goin' to whip you to death." So he called upon de terrapin, an' he went back in his house. He commence whippin' dis colored feller. He near by whipped him to death. So de ol' terrapin raised up on his legs an' says, "It's bad to talk too much."

12. DIVIDING THE SOULS.2

One time a colored man an' a white man out hick'ry-nut huntin'. Found big hick'ry nut an' small walnut. Lay 'em up on de gatepost. Go into de graveyard. Say, "We'll divide what we got. You take this one, an' I'll take the other." They divided all dey had in de graveyard. Then said, "We'll go up to de gate-pos' an' divide. You take the black, an' I'll take the white." Man on outside goin' along, an' he heard 'em talkin'. An' he become frighten. An' he went back to his neighbor's house where there was an ol' man had the rheumatism. An' he said, "You go with me. I'll tote you." Goes on with him, an' he says, "Jesus Christ an' the Devil is up there dividin' up the dead." An' when they got along near the gate-post says, “You take the black one, an' I'll take the white one." So he throws this white man down, an' he run off. An' the ol' man beat him back home.3

13. THE INSULT MIDSTREAM.4

De rabbit went to de river, an' he couldn't git across, an' wanted de elephant to carry him across on his back. An' de elephant said he couldn't carry him. An' de rabbit said, "If you carry me across, I'll pay you." An' de rabbit says to de elephant, "Oh, you so slow, you not get across to-night." An' de elephant says to de rabbit,

1 Informant 6.

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2 Informant 6. See this number, p. 215.

Compare this number, p. 184.

Informant 1. Compare Parsons, II.

VOL. XXX. NO. 116.-12.

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