"I"m starving!" said Raccoon. "The Frogs are so sly now I can't catch them."
"Lie there and play dead," said Rabbit. "Don't move!"
Then Rabbit yelled, "Raccoon's dead!"
Bullfrog came. "I don't believe it."
"Well, let's bury him," said Rabbit. "Start digging."
Bullfrog and all the Frogs started digging.
"Deep enough!" said Bullfrog.
"Can you jump out?" asked Rabbit.
Bullfrog hopped out.
"Keep digging!" said Rabbit.
They dug and dug.
And dug and dug.
"Can you jump out?"
"No!" said Bullfrog.
"Rise up, Raccoon," said Rabbit, laughing. "Frogs in the hole, and supper's ready!"
Inspired by: A Treasury of Afro-American Folklore by Harold Courlander.
Notes: This is "Brer Coon Gets His Meat" (p. 467), and Courlander cites as his source A. W. Eddins in the Publication of the Folk-Lore Society of Texas, 1916. The original story is full of all kinds of fun details and sound effects of the frogs croaking, etc.
That was a terribly sly trick to play on the poor frogs!
ReplyDeleteThe moral is don't be gullible haha!
DeleteIt's a cunning way of getting food more like jonathan!
Delete