Myths and Tales of the Southeastern Indians: Title Page

could hold on better and manage to get there," so Wolf finally consented to be bridled. Finally Rabbit wanted to put on spurs. Wolf
replied, "I am too ticklish," but Rabbit said, "I will not spur you with them. I will hold them away from you but it would be nicer to have
them on," so Wolf finally agreed, saying only, "I am very ticklish; you must not spur me." "When we got near the house," said Rabbit, "we
will take everything off of you and walk the rest of the way."
So Rabbit and Wolf started on, but when they were nearly in sight of the house Rabbit plunged the spurs into Wolf and before he
p. 65
knew it they had passed right by the house. Then Rabbit said, "They have seen you now. I will tie you here and go up to see them and
come back after a while and let you go." So Rabbit went to the house and said to the girls, "You all saw it, did you not?" "Yes," they
answered, and he sat down and had a good time with them.
After a while Rabbit thought he ought to let Wolf go and started back to the place where he was fastened. He knew that Wolf was angry
with him and thought up a way by which he could loose him with safety to himself. First he found a thin hollow log which he beat upon as
if it were a drum. Then he ran up to Wolf as fast as he could go and cried out, "Do you know they are hunting for you? You heard the
drum just now. The soldiers are after you." Wolf was very much frightened and said "Let me go." Rabbit was purposely a little slow in
untying him and he had barely gotten him freed when Wolf broke away and went off as fast as he could run. Then Rabbit returned to the
house and remained there as if he were already a married man.
Near this house was a large peach orchard and one day Rabbit said to the girls, "I will shake the peaches off for you." So they all went to
the orchard together and he climbed up into a tree to shake the peaches off. While he was there Wolf came toward them and called out,
"Old fellow, I am not going to let you alone." By that time he was almost under the tree. Then Rabbit shouted out loud as if to people at a
distance, "Here is that fellow for whom you are always hunting," and Wolf ran away again.
Some time after this, while Rabbit was lying close under a tree bent over near the ground, he saw Wolf coming. Then he stood up with the
tree extended over his shoulder as if he were trying to hold it up. When Wolf saw him he said, "I have you now." Rabbit, however, called
out, "They told me to hold this tree up all day with the great power I have and for it they would give me four hogs. I don't like hog meat
but you do, so you might get it if you take my place," Wolf's greed was excited by this and he was willing to hold up the tree. Then Rabbit
said, "If you yield only a little it will give way, so you must hold it tight." And he ran off. Wolf stood under the tree so long that finally he
felt he could stand it no longer and he jumped away quickly so that it would not fall upon him. Then he saw that it was a growing tree
rooted in the earth. "That Rabbit is the biggest liar," he exclaimed, "if I can catch him I will certainly fix him."
After that Wolf hunted about for Rabbit once more and finally came upon him in a nice grassy place. He was about to spring upon him
when Rabbit said, "My friend, don't punish me. I have food for you. There is a horse lying out yonder." Wolf's appetite was again moved
at the prospect and he decided to go along. Then
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Myths and Tales of the Southeastern Indians: Title Page
[paragraph continues] Rabbit said, "It is pretty close to a house, therefore it would be well for me to tie your tail to the horse's tail so that you can
drag it off to a place where you can feast at leisure." So Rabbit tied the two tags together. But the horse was only asleep, not dead, as Wolf
supposed, and Rabbit ran around to its head and kicked it. At once the horse jumped up and was so frightened that it kicked and kicked
until it kicked Wolf to death.
The end. 1
Footnotes
66:1 My informant volunteered the information that at the end of a story all of the listeners would spit.
73. RABBIT RIDES WOLF (61, 71)
(SECOND VERSION)
An old woman lived in a certain place with her daughter whom Rabbit wanted to marry. One time he visited them and assured them that
be had some property, including a riding horse, and he said, "Some day I will ride him past."
Then he found Wolf and said to him, "My friend, there is to be a big council up here and I want to go but I am unable to walk." Wolf
answered, "Get on my back and I will carry you." Rabbit wanted to ride by the house where that girl lived so as to show her and her
mother that he did have a horse. After he had mounted he said, "I might falloff. I could hold on better if I had a bridle." But after the bridle
was put on he said, "That does not quite suit me. It would be better if I had a saddle blanket." After he had gotten that he continued, "It is
not quite right yet. It would be better if I had a saddle." And a saddle was prepared for him. "I am not yet quite, suited," said Rabbit. "It
would be better if I had spurs." So he made some spurs out of sand burs (oklafM'na). Then he mounted and they set out, passing by the
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