Tall Tales

The Whistling River - so named because twice a day, it reared up to a height of two hundred feet and let loose a whistle that could be heard for over six hundred miles - was the most ornery river in the U.S. of A. It took a fiendish delight in plaguing the life out of the loggers who worked it. It would tie their logs into knots, flip men into the water then toss them back out onto the banks, and break apart whole rafts of logs as soon as the loggers put them together.

This fact by itself might not have been enough by itself to get Paul Bunyan involved. But one day Paul was sitting on a hill by the river combing his beard with a large pine tree when without warning the river reared up and spat four hundred and nineteen gallons of muddy water onto his beard. This startled Paul somewhat, but he figured if he ignored the river, it would go away and leave him alone. But that ornery river jest reared up again and spat five thousand and nineteen gallons of muddy water onto his beard, adding a batch of mud turtles, several large fish and a muskrat into the mix. Paul Bunyan was so mad he jumped up and let out a yell that caused a landslide all the way out in Pike's Peak.

"By jingo, I am gonna tame that river or bust a gut trying!" he cried.

So Paul sat for four days eating popcorn and trying to figure out how to tame that river. He ate so much popcorn that the air was soon filled with white bits and the ground for three miles around was covered with eighteen inches of popcorn scraps. This caused several hundred small animals and a few dozen birds to conclude that they were in a blizzard and so they froze to death. This furnished the loggers at the camp with pot pies for several days.

Just as he ran out of popcorn, Paul decided that the way to tame the river was to pull out the kinks. He would hitch the river to Babe the Blue Ox and let him yank it straight. Of course, Paul knew that an ordinary log chain and the skid hook wouldn't work with water. So he and Babe took a short walk up to the North Pole. There, Paul made a box trap baited with icicles that he set near a blizzard trail. Then he and Babe wandered away. Paul started to throw icebergs out into the ocean so Babe could play fetch. But he had to stop the game since each time Babe jumped into the water a tidal wave threatened to swamp the coast of Florida. After lunch, Paul went back to check the trap. He had caught six young blizzards and an old nor'wester. He put two of the young blizzards in his sack and released the rest. Then he and Babe went back to their camp.

As he walked into camp, Paul yelled to Ole, the Big Swede to build him the largest log chain that's ever been built. Then he staked out the two blizzards, one on each side of the river. Right away, the river began to freeze. By morning, the river had a tough time rearing up to whistle because it was frozen solid for more than seventeen miles. When Paul Bunyan finished his breakfast, he harnessed Babe and wrapped the chain seventy-two times around the foot of the frozen Whistle River. Yelling to the men to stand clear, he shouted at Babe to pull. Babe pulled that chain into a solid bar and sank knee deep into solid rock, but that ornery river refused to budge. So Paul grabbed the chain and he and Babe gave such a yank that the river jerked loose from its banks and they dragged it across the prairie so fast it smoked. After a while, Paul looked back and saw the river was as straight as a gun barrel. But the river was much shorter with the kinks out, and all the extra lengths that used to be in the kinks were running wild out on the prairie. So Paul got his big cross-cut saw and a lot of baling wire and sawed the extra lengths of river into nine-mile pieces, rolled them up and tied them off with the baling wire. He later used them to float his logs when he logged out the desert.

But now that it was straight, the Whistling River lost its gimp and refused to whistle. Which made everyone mad at Paul Bunyan, because now they didn't know when to wake up in the morning. Paul might have been in real trouble if Squeaky Swanson hadn't showed up right about then. Squeaky's speaking voice was no louder than a whisper. But when he yelled, you could hear him clean out in Kansas. So each morning Squeaky got up at the crack of dawn and yelled the blankets off of every bed in camp. Naturally, the men found it hard to sleep in the cold without their blankets, so they got up. Squeaky was a great success, and for the rest of his life he did nothing but get up at dawn and let out one really loud yell. Read More......

The tale of how Brer Rabbit had got mixed up with the Tar Baby got around the neighborhood. Miss Meadows and the gals, who were great friends of Brer Rabbit, heard the tale too--and the next time Brer Rabbit paid them a visit, Miss Meadows asked him about it, and burst out laughing. Brer Rabbit sat up just as cool as a cucumber and let them giggle as much as they wanted.

He was quiet as a lamb and, by and by, he crossed his legs, winked his eye slowly, and said, "Ladies, Brer Fox was my daddy's riding horse for thirty years, maybe more, but thirty years that I know of, for sure." Then he paid them his respects, tipped his hat, and marched off just as stiff and stuck-up as a poker.
Next day, Brer Fox came calling, and, when he began to laugh about Brer Rabbit, Miss Meadows and the gals told him what Brer Rabbit said. "Well, well. Fancy you being ridden by a rabbit, Brer Fox!"
Brer Fox gritted his teeth and looked mighty grumpy, and when he rose to go, he said, "Ladies, I'm not disputing what you report, but I'll make Brer Rabbit chew up his words and spit them out right here where you can see him." And with that, off he went.
When he got onto the main road, he shook the dew from his tail and made straight for Brer Rabbit's house. Brer Rabbit was expecting him, so the door was shut fast. Brer Fox knocked by nobody answered. So, he knocked again--Blam!Blam!Blam! Brer Rabbit called out weakly, "Is that you Brer Fox? I want you to run and fetch the doctor. That parsley I ate this morning made me feel sick. Go, please, Brer Fox, run quick," said Brer Rabbit.
Brer Fox said, "I'm here to fetch you. Miss Meadows is havin' a party and all the gals are there. They said it wouldn't be a real party without you, so here I am to bring you along."
Brer Rabbit moaned, "I'm mighty sick."
"No you ain't!" Brer Fox barked.
"I'm too sick to walk so far," complained Brer Rabbit.
"No problem," said Brer Fox. "I'll tote you in my arms."
"Oh, no," whined Brer Rabbit. "You might drop me."
"I wouldn't do a thing like that, Brer Rabbit. I'm stronger than bad breath."
"I wouldn't argue with you there, but I'm still afraid. I'll go if you carry me on your back."
"Well, all right," Brer Fox said reluctantly.
"But I can't ride on your back unless I have a saddle to sit on."
"I'll get you a saddle," said Brer Fox.
"It's no good me sitting in a saddle unless I've some reins to hold on by," said Brer Rabbit.
Brer Fox was getting a little tired of this, but he agreed to get a bridle.
"I won't ride you unless you wear blinkers," said Brer Rabbit. "If you don't wear blinkers, Brer Fox, you'll be shying at the tree-stumps along the road, and I'll fall off."
"I'll get some blinkers," said Brer Fox.
"You get all those things and I'll go to the party," said Brer Rabbit.
Brer Fox told brer Rabbit he could ride him almost up to Miss Meadow's, if he'd get down and walk the rest of the way so no-one would see Brer Fox wearing a saddle, and Brer Rabbit agreed to that, so Brer Fox ran off to get the saddle and bridle. Of course, Brer Rabbit knew why Brer Fox had come for him, and he was determined to outdo him.
By the time Brer Rabbit had combed his hair, twisted his mustache, and cleaned up, Brer Fox was back, wearing a saddle and bridle, looking as smart as a circus pony. He trotted up to the door and stood there pawing the ground and chomping the bit in his mouth like a proper horse. Brer Rabbit jumped up and off they went.
Brer Fox couldn't see behind him with the blinkers on, but, by and by, he felt Brer Rabbit raised one of his feet.
"What you doing, Brer Rabbit?" he asked.
"Shortening the left stirrup, Brer Fox."
Then Brer Rabbit raised up the other foot.
"What you doing now, Brer Rabbit?" he asked.
"Pulling down my pants, Brer Fox." But all this time, Brer Rabbit was putting on a pair of sharp spurs. When they got close to Miss Meadow's where Brer Rabbit was to get off, Brer Fox came to a halt, but Brer Rabbit just smiled and jabbed his spurs into Brer Fox's flanks.
"Ooowwww!" howled Brer Fox, and away he galloped as fast as he could.
When they got to the house, Miss Meadows and all the gals were sitting on the porch. Brer Rabbit dug his spurs into Brer Fox again, and they went galloping by the house in great style, Brer Rabbit waiving to Miss Meadows as they passed. Way down the road they saw him come to a halt and turn his "horse". Then he came trotting by the house a-whooping and a-hollering. He turned Brer Fox around again, slowed him to a trot, and rode on up to the house, where he got off and tied Brer Fox to the hitching post before he could take his revenge. Brer Rabbit sauntered into the house, and shook hands with the gals. Then he sat down and smoked his cigar, just like a gentleman.
By and by, he drew in a long puff, letting it out in a cloud, sat up straight and said, "Ladies, didn't I tell you Brer Fox was the riding horse for our family? He's sort of losing his gait now, but I expect I can get him into shape after I've ridden him for a month or so."
Brer Rabbit grinned, the gals giggled,, and Miss Meadows said, "Brer Rabbit, you sure do have a fine pony." And there was poor Brer Fox, hitched fast to the rack, not able to do a blessed thing about it.
"You just wait 'till you ride me home, Brer Rabbit!" said Brer Fox, gritting his teeth. "You just wait!"
Brer Rabbit visited with Miss Meadows and the gals for a while. They talked, and they sang, and they played the piano, until, by and by, it became time for Brer Rabbit to leave. He bade them all good-bye, and strutted out to the horse rack as if he were the king of the castle. He untied Brer Fox, mounted on his back, and with a little nudge of the spurs, rode off.
Brer Fox didn't say anything at all. He just tore off and kept his mouth shut. Brer Rabbit knew Brer Fox must be angry with him, and he sort of felt there was trouble coming. So he held on to the reins tightly and waited to see what old Brer Fox was going to do.
Brer Fox ambled on 'till he got in the long lane, out of sight from Miss Meadows' house, and then he just went wild! He ripped and he roared, he snorted and cavorted, he reared and he bucked!
He was trging to fling Brer Rabbit off his back, but he might just as well have wrestled with his own shadow for all the good it did him. Every time he reared, Brer Rabbit jabbed him with the spurs, and every time he bucked, Brer Rabbit yanked hard on the bridle. On they went, up and down. That Fox fairly tore up the ground, jumping so high and so quick that he mighty near took his tail off, but Brer Rabbit didn't budge. He rode that fox just like a cowboy, digging in those spurs and yanking on that bridle 'till soon Brer Fox was as mad as a bee-stung bear.
They kept on going this way until, by and by, Brer Fox had the clever idea to lie down and roll over, and this finally unsettled Brer Rabbit, But by the time Brer Fox got back on his feet Brer Rabbit was whipping through the underbrush like a racehorse. Brer Fox lit out after him and got so close that it was all Brer Rabbit could do to dart into a hollow tree. Fortunately for Brer Rabbit, the hole was too little for Brer Fox, so he lay down to rest and gather his thoughts together.
While he was lying there, Mr. Buzzard came flapping along, and seeing Brer Fox stretched out on the ground, he lit nearby. Mr. Buzzard shook his wings, put his head on one side, and murmured to himself, "Brer Fox is dead, and I'm so sorry."
"No, I'm not dead, either, " said Brer Fox. "I got old man Rabbit penned up in this tree and I'm going to get him this time if it takes twelve Christmases."
After some more talk, Brer Fox made a bargain with Mr. Buzzard to watch the hole and keep Brer Rabbit there while Brer Fox went for his axe. Brer Fox loped off and Mr. Buzzard took up his stand at the hole in the tree. By and by, when all got quiet, Brer Rabbit scrambled down close to the hole and hollered out, "Brer Fox! Oh Brer Fox!"
Brer Fox, of course, was gone, and Brer Buzzard stayed quiet. Then Brer Rabbit yelled as if he was mad, " you needn't talk unless you want to. I know you're there, and I don't care. I just want to tell you that I wish mighty bad that Brer Turkey Buzzard was here," he said.
Then Mr. Buzzard tried to talk like Brer Fox "what you want with Mr. Buzzard?" he asked.
"Oh, nothing in particular, except there's the fattest gray squirrel in here that ever I've seen," replied Brer Rabbit, "and if that Brer Turkey Buzzard was around, he'd be mighty glad to get him. "How is Mr. Buzzard going to get him?" asked the Buzzard.
"Well, there's a little hole round on the other side of the tree," said Brer Rabbit, "and if that Brer Turkey Buzzard was here, he could take up his stand there, and I'd drive that squirrel out."
"Drive him out, then," shouted Mr. Buzzard, "and I'll see that that Brer Turkey Buzzard gets him."
Then Brer Rabbit kicked up a racket, pretending to drive something out, Mr. Buzzard rushed around to catch the squirrel, and Brer Rabbit dashed out and ran for home. Read More......

Brer Wold had a daughter who was sho' nuf good-looking. Now, before I go any further I can hear you thinking that Brer Wolf been killed off twice. What that got to do with anything? Am I the tale? Is the tale me? Or is the tale the tale? Well, you can figure that out. If I ain't the tale and the tale ain't me, it don't make one bit of difference if Brer Wolf was dead or alive. Ain't that so?

Dead or dead, Brer Wolf had a daughter and she was a fine young thing. All the animals was hitting on her! First one was Brer Fox. He was sitting on the porch talking his stuff to her, and everybody know that Brer Fox could talk stuff sho' nuf'. All of a sudden the mosquitoes started coming around. The mosquitoes at Brer Wolf's house was near 'bout big airplanes and just as loud. Brer Fox started hitting and slapping at them. Brer Wolf came out of the house and told Brer Fox to go. "Any man what can't put up with a few mosquitoes can't court my daughter."
Next was Brer Coon. He hardly got one foot on the porch before he was slapping and biting at the mosquitoes. Brer Wolf showed him how the road run the same both ways.
Next was Brer Mink and he declared war on them mosquitoes. Brer Wolf told him to fight his war somewhere else.
It went on this way until all the animals had eliminated themselves except Brer Rabbit. He sent word that he was coming courting. Brer Wolf's daughter, who had always thought Brer Rabbit was kind of cute, put on her mascara and eyeliner and whatever else it is that the women put on their face. She squeezed herself into a pair of jeans four sizes too small. Have mercy! And she put on a pink halter top! When Brer Rabbit saw her, he thought he'd died and gone to heaven.
When Brer Wolf saw what his daughter was looking like, he said there was no way in this lifetime she was gon' sit there in the porch swing by herself with Brer Rabbit. Not with all he knowed about Brer Rabbit! So he pulled his rocking chair out and sat with them.
They hadn't been there long before Brer Rabbit heard the mosquitoes coming. Zoom, zoom, zoom.
"Mighty nice place you got here, Brer Wolf."
Zoom, zoom, zoom.
"Some say it's too low in the swamps." Brer Wolf answered.
Zoom, zoom, zoom.
The mosquitoes were zooming so fierce that Brer Rabbit started getting scared, and when Brer Rabbit gets scared his mind works like a brand-new car motor.
"I was in town today, Brer Wolf, and I saw a spotted horse. Never seen a spotted horse in my life.
"Do tell! I ain't never seen one of them myself."
"You're wonderful," said the girl. She figured wouldn't nobody else in the world could've seen a spotted horse. Shows you how far gone she was.
Zoom, zoom, zoom.
"My granddaddy was spotted, Brer Wolf."
"Do tell!"
Zoom, zoom, zoom
"That's the naked truth I'm telling you. He was spotted all over. He had one spot right here." Brer Rabbit slapped his face and killed one of the mosquitoes.
"I don't want nobody to laugh, but my granddaddy had spots all over. Had that one on the side of his face which I just showed you. Had another one right here on his leg."
Slap!
Another mosquito gone.
"Even had one right here in between his shoulder blades."
Blip!
And one down here at his hipbone
Phap!
Brer Rabbit kept on talking about his granddaddy's spots until near 'bout every mosquito in the county was dead. Brer Wolf was so tired of hearing about Brer Rabbit's granddaddy's spots he fell asleep.
At which point, Brer Wolf's daughter went on a walk with Brer Rabbit in the woods, and thestory don't go no further. Read More......

Rabbit and Terrapin met near the stream one morning. It was a lovely clear day, and they both basked in the warm sunshine and swapped some stories. Rabbit started boasting that he was the fastest runner in the world. Terrapin

wasn't having any of that! No sir!
"I bet I can beat you in a race," Terrapin said to Rabbit. Rabbit laughed and laughed at the idea.
"You crawl so slow you hardly look like you are moving," Rabbit said. "You'll never beat me!"
Terrapin was mad now. "I will win the race. You meet me tomorrow morning right here," said he. "I will wear a white feather on my head so you can see me in the tall grass. We will run over four hills, and the first one to reach the stake at the top of the fourth hill will be the winner."
Rabbit laughed again and said: "That will be me! I will see you tomorrow for the race!" Then Rabbit hopped off, still chuckling to himself.
Terrapin was in a bind now. He knew he could not run faster than Rabbit. But he had an idea. He gathered all of his family and told them that their honor was at stake. When they heard about the race, the other turtles agreed to help him.
Terrapin gave each of his family members a white feather, and placed them at various stages along the route of the race. The first was at the top of the first hill, the second in the valley, the third at the top of the second hill, and so on. Then Terrapin placed himself at the top of the fourth hill next to the winner's stake.
The next morning, Rabbit came down to the stream and found Terrapin with his white feather waiting at the starting line. "Ready, set, go!" said the Rabbit and he ran up and up the first hill. The Terrapin with the white feather started crawling along behind him. As soon as Rabbit was out of sight, he disappeared into the bushes.
As Rabbit reached the top of the first hill, he saw ahead of him Terrapin with his white feather crawling as fast as it could go down into the valley. Rabbit was amazed. He put on a burst of speed and passed the Terrapin with the white feather. As soon as Rabbit had his back turned, the second Terrapin took off the white feather and crawled into the bushes, chuckling to himself.
When Rabbit reached the valley floor, there was Terrapin ahead of him again, crawling up the second hill with his white feather. Rabbit ran and ran, leaving Terrapin far behind him. But every time he reached a hilltop or a valley, there was Terrapin again with his white feather, crawling along as fast as he could go!
Rabbit was gasping for breathe when he reached the bottom of the third valley. He had passed Terrapin yet again at the top of the third hill, but here was that rascally turtle appearing on the racetrack ahead of him, crawling as fast as he could go up the slope of the fourth hill.
Rabbit was determined to win the race, so he plucked up the last few ounces of his strength and sprinted up the hill, passing the Terrapin with the white feather. He was nearly there! Rabbit rounded the last corner and braked to a halt in astonishment. Sitting by the stake, waving his white feather proudly, was Terrapin. He had won the race! Read More......

Now Rabbit had a favorite place on the river where he always went to drink water. It was on a bend in the river, and two Snakes lived there, one on the upper side of the bend and one on the lower. Rabbit soon learned that neither of the Snakes knew that the other Snake lived there.
Ho, ho, ho, thought Rabbit. I am going to have a bit of fun!

Rabbit went to the Snake that lived on the upper bend of the river. "I am a very strong Rabbit," he told the Snake. "I bet I can pull you right out of the water."
"I bet you can't!" said the Snake, who was very strong indeed.
"I will go get a grape vine," said Rabbit. "You will pull one end and I will pull the other. "If I pull you out of the water, I win the contest. If you pull me into the water, then I win."
The Snake on the upper bend agreed. Then Rabbit went to the Snake on the lower bend and made the same deal. He told both Snakes that he would be standing out of sight on top of the river bank and would give a whoop when he was in place and ready to start the contest. Both Snakes were pleased with the arrangement. They were sure they would win against such a feeble little Rabbit.
Rabbit took a long grape vine and strung it across the wide bend in the river. He handed one end to the first Snake and the other end to the second Snake. Then he gave a loud whoop from the middle of the river bank and the two Snakes started tugging and pulling with all their might.
"That Rabbit is really strong," thought the Snake on the upper bank. He would tug and tug and the vine would come a little closer to him and then he would nearly be pulled out of the water.
"My, Rabbit is much stronger than he appears," thought the Snake on the lower bank after he was almost hurled out of the water by an extra strong pull from up the river.
Rabbit sat on the bank above both Snakes and laughed and laughed. The Snakes heard him laughing and realized that they had been fooled. Letting go of the rope, they swam to the middle of the bend and met each other for the first time.
Both Snakes were angry with Rabbit for making them look foolish. They agreed that Rabbit could no longer drink from his favorite place on the river bend where they lived. In spite of his protests, they sent Rabbit away and would not let him come down to the riverbank anymore. So whenever Rabbit grew thirsty, he had to turn himself into a faun in order to get a drink from the river.
After that, Rabbit decided not to play any more jokes on Snakes. Read More......

One fine morning, Brer Fox decided to plant him a patch of goober peas. He set to with a will and before you know it, he had raked and hoed out a beautiful patch of ground and he put in a fine planting of peas. It didn't take too long before those goober vines grew tall and long and the peas ripened up good and smart.
Now Brer Rabbit, he'd watched Brer Fox planting the goobers and he told his children and Miz Rabbit where they could find the patch
.
Soon as those peas were ripe, the little Rabbits and Brer Rabbit would sneak on in and grab up them goobers by the handfuls. It got so bad that when Brer Fox came to the goober patch, he could hardly find a pea to call his own.
Well, Brer Fox, he was plenty mad that he'd worked so hard on those peas only to have them eaten by someone else. He suspected that Brer Rabbit was to blame for this, but the rascally rabbit had covered his tracks so well that Brer Fox couldn't catch him. So Brer Fox came up with a plan. He found a smooth spot in his fence where a cunning rabbit could sneak in, and he set a trap for Brer Rabbit at that spot. He tied a rope to a nearby hickory sapling and bent it nearly double. Then he took the other end of the rope and made a loop knot that he fastened with a trigger right around the hole in the fence. If anybody came through the crack to steal his peas, the knot would tighten around their body, the sapling would spring upright, and they would be left hanging from the tree for everyone to see.
The next morning, Brer Rabbit came a-slipping through the hole in the fence. At once, the trigger sprung, the knot tightened on his forelegs, and the hickory tree snapped upright, quick as you please. Brer Rabbit found himself swung aloft betwixt the heaven and the earth, swinging from the hickory sapling. He couldn't go up and he couldn't go down. He just went back and forth.
Brer Rabbit was in a fix, no mistake. He was trying to come up with some glib explanation for Brer Fox when he heard someone a-rumbling and a-bumbling down the road. It was Brer Bear, looking for a bee-tree so he could get him some honey. As soon as Brer Rabbit saw Brer Bear, he came up with a plan to get himself free.
"Howdy, Brer Bear," he called cheerfully. Brer Bear squinted around here and there, wondering where the voice had come from. Then he looked up and saw Brer Rabbit swinging from the sapling.
"Howdy Brer Rabbit," he rumbled. "How are you this morning?"
"Middling, Brer Bear," Rabbit replied. "Just middling."
Brer Bear was wondering why Brer Rabbit was up in the tree, so he asked him about it. Brer Rabbit grinned and said that he was earning a dollar-a-minute from Brer Fox.
"A dollar-a-minute!" Brer Bear exclaimed. "What for?"
"I'm keeping the crows away from his goober patch," Brer Rabbit explained, and went on to say that Brer Fox was paying a dollar-a-minute to whomever would act as a scarecrow for him.
Well, Brer Bear liked the sound of that. He had a big family to feed, and he could use the money. When Brer Rabbit asked him if he would like to have the job, Brer Bear agreed. Brer Rabbit showed him how to bend the sapling down and remove the knot from his forepaws. When Brer Rabbit was free, Brer Bear climbed into the knot and soon he was hanging aloft betwixt heaven and earth, swing to and from the sapling and growling at the birds to keep them away from the goober patch.
Brer Rabbit laughed and laughed at the sight of Brer Bear up in the sapling. He scampered down the road to Brer Fox's place and told him that his trap was sprung and the goober thief was hanging from the hickory tree. Brer Fox grabbed his walking stick and ran down the road after Brer Rabbit. When he saw Brer Bear hanging there, Brer Fox called him a goober thief. Brer Fox ranted and raved and threatened to hit Brer Bear with his walking stick. He yelled so loud that Brer Bear didn't have time to explain nothing!
Brer Rabbit knew that Brer Bear would be plenty mad at him when he found out he had been tricked, and so he ran down the road and hid in the mud beside the pond, so that only his eyeballs stuck out, making him look like a big old bullfrog. By and by, a very grumpy Brer Bear came lumbering down the road.
"Howdy, Brer Bullfrog," Brer Bear said when he saw Brer Rabbit's eyes sticking out of the mud. "You seen Brer Rabbit anywhere?"
"Brer Rabbit jest ran on down the road," he told the grumpy Brer Bear in a deep croaking voice that sounded just like the voice of a frog. Brer Bear thanked him and trotted down the road, growling fiercely.
When Brer Bear was out of sight, Brer Rabbit jumped out of the mud. He washed himself off in the pond and then scampered home, chuckling to himself at how he'd escaped from Brer Fox and Brer Bear, and already thinking up a new way to get into Brer Fox's goober patch to get him some peas to eat.
Read More......

Now Brer Rabbit was skipping down the road one day heading for his home in the briar patch when he spotted Sis Cow grazing in the field. It was a mighty hot day and Brer Rabbit was thirsty. Some milk would be real fine on such a warm afternoon


, but Sis Cow always refused to let Brer Rabbit milk her when he asked. So Brer Rabbit thought up a plan.
"Howdy Sis Cow," said Brer Rabbit, walking up to her in the field.
"Howdy yourself, Brer Rabbit," said Sis Cow. "How are your folks?"
"Fair to middling," said Brer Rabbit. "How is Brer Bull?"
"So-so," replied Sis Cow.
"I'm wondering if you could help me out," Brer Rabbit said to Sis Cow. "I'd like to get some persimmons down out of that tree, but it's too high for me to climb." He pointed over to a nearby persimmon tree.
"I ain't no good at climbing myself," said Sis Cow dubiously.
"I don't need for you to climb," said Brer Rabbit. "Just butt your head against the tree a few times, and the persimmons will all fall down."
Sis Cow considered this a moment, and then she agreed. Sis Cow backed up a bit and ran at the tree with her horns down. BANG! She butted the tree as hard as she could. But the persimmons were still green and none of them fell down. So Sis Cow backed up again and ran at the tree with her horns down. SMACK! She butted the tree as hard as she could. And her large horns got stuck in the tree. She pulled and tugged, but her horns were held fast.
"Help me out, Brer Rabbit," Sis Cow pleaded.
"I can't climb up that high," said Brer Rabbit. "But I'll run and fetch Brer Bull."
So saying, the rascally Brer Rabbit ran home to fetch his Missus and all of the kids. They brought a mighty big pail to the field and they milked the trapped Sis Cow until not a drop of milk was left. Sis Cow was pretty sore at Brer Rabbit. She kept pulling and tugging, but she couldn't get free.
"I'll come back tomorrow for more milk," Brer Rabbit said. "Seeing as you're probably stuck 'til daybreak."
Brer Rabbit and his family left the field with their big pail of milk, leaving Sis Cow trapped in the tree. Well, Sis Cow, she tugged and tugged, trying to free her horns from the tree. It took her near 'til morning, but finally she broke loose. Once she was free, she had a quick graze of the green grass to calm herself down. As she ate, she made a plan to revenge herself on Brer Rabbit for his nasty trick
As soon as it was daybreak, Sis Cow put her head down and stuck her horns back into the holes she had made in the tree, pretending she was still stuck. Now Brer Rabbit had come early to the field and had seen Sis Cow grazing as free as you please, so he knew she was up to something when she put her horns back in the tree. He decided to play along with her game for a while to see what she was up to.
Quick as a wink, Brer Rabbit went back down the road and came clippity-lippity, hippity-hoppity down the road, singing as loud as you please. "How are you feeling this morning, Sis Cow?" asked Brer Rabbit when he reached the field.
"Poorly, Brer Rabbit," said Sis Cow slyly. "I've been stuck here all night. But if you grab my tail, you can help pull me out."
Oh ho, thought Brer Rabbit to himself. She means to trample me. Aloud he said: "I'm a puny ol' man Sis Cow. If I pull your tail, I might get crushed. So this is as close to you as I'm going to get!"
Well, Sis Cow was furious that her plan hadn't work. She pulled her horns out of the tree lickety-split and started chasing that rascally Brer Rabbit down the road.
Brer Rabbit ran as fast as lightning. He reached the Briar Patch well ahead of Sis Cow and threw himself into the brambles. He watched Sis Cow sail passed his hiding spot. Then she stopped because her quarry had disappeared. She looked around, trying to locate him.
Brer Rabbit chuckled to himself. He folded back his long ears, made his eyes extra wide, and then peered out of a shady corner of the Briar Patch, pretending to be Brer Big Eyes. "What are you doing Sis Cow?" he asked in a high-pitched voice quite unlike his own.
"I'm looking for Brer Rabbit, Brer Big Eyes," said Sis Cow, who did not recognize the trickster rabbit in the dim light of dawn.
"He jest ran passed lickety-split," Brer Rabbit lied.
That was all Sis Cow needed to hear. She gave a bellow of rage, lowered her horns, and ran on down the road.
Brer Rabbit, he just laughed and laughed, rolling about among the briars. He had fooled Brer Fox and Brer Buzzard in the past, and now he had fooled Sis Cow. He was a real rascal, no mistake!
Humming happily to himself, Brer Rabbit went home to have a big drink of milk, courtesy of Sis Cow. Read More......

One day, Brer Rabbit and Brer Fox and Brer Coon and Brer Bear and a lot of other animals decided to work together to plant a garden full of corn for roasting. They started early in the morning and raked and dug and raked some more, breaking up the hard ground so it would be ready for planting. It was a hot day, and Brer Rabbit got tired mighty quick. But he kept toting off the brush and clearing away the debris 'cause he didn't want no one to call him lazy.
Then Brer Rabbit got an idea. "Ow!" he shouted as loudly as he could. "I got me a briar in my hand!" He waved a paw and stuck it into his mouth. The other critters told him he'd better pull out the briar and wash his hand afore it got infected. That was just what Brer Rabbit wanted to hear. He hurried off, looking for a shady spot to take a quick nap. A little ways down the road, he found an old well with a couple of buckets hanging inside it, one at the top, and one down at the bottom.
"That looks like a mighty cool place to take a nap," Brer Rabbit said, and hopped right into the bucket.
Well, Brer Rabbit was mighty heavy - much heavier than the bucket full of water laying at the bottom. When he jumped into the empty bucket, it plummeted right down to the bottom of the well. Brer Rabbit hung onto the sides for dear life as the second bucket whipped passed him, splashing water all over him on its way to the top. He had never been so scared in his life.
Brer Rabbit's bucket landed with a smack in the water and bobbed up and down. Brer Rabbit was afraid to move, in case the bucket tipped over and landed him in the water. He lay in the bottom of the bucket and shook and shivered with fright, wondering what would happen next.
Now Brer Fox had been watching Brer Rabbit all morning. He knew right away that Brer Rabbit didn't have a briar in his paw and wondered what that rascal was up to. When Brer Rabbit snuck off, Brer Fox followed him and saw him jump into the bucket and disappear down the well.
Brer Fox was puzzled. Why would Brer Rabbit go into the well? Then he thought: "I bet he has some money hidden away down there and has gone to check up on it." Brer Fox crept up to the well, listening closely to see if he could hear anything. He didn't hear nothing. He peered down into the well, but all was dark and quiet, on account of Brer Rabbit holding so still so the bucket wouldn't tip him into the water.
Finally, Brer Fox shouted down into the well: "Brer Rabbit, what you doing down there?"
Brer Rabbit perked up at once, realizing that this might be his chance to get out of the well.
"I'm a fishing down here, Brer Fox," says he. "I thought I'd surprise everyone with a mess of fresh fish for lunch. There's some real nice fish down here."
"How many fish are there?" asked Brer Fox skeptically, sure that the rascally rabbit was really counting his gold.
"Scores and scores!" cried Brer Rabbit. "Why don't you come on down and help me carry them out?"
Well, that was the invitation Brer Fox was waiting for. He was going to go down into that well and get him some of Brer Rabbit's gold.
"How do I get down there?" asked Brer Fox.
Brer Rabbit grinned. Brer Fox was much heavier than he was. If Brer Fox jumped into the empty bucket at the top, then Brer Rabbit's bucket would go up, and Brer Fox's bucket would go down! So he said: "Jest jump into the bucket, Brer Fox."
Well, Brer Fox jumped into the empty bucket, and down it plummeted into the dark well. He passed Brer Rabbit about halfway down. Brer Rabbit was clinging to the sides of the bucket with all his might 'cause it was moving so fast. "Goodbye Brer Fox," he shouted as he rose. "Like the saying goes, some folks go up, and some go down! You should make it to the bottom all safe and sound."
Brer Rabbit jumped out of the well and ran back to the garden patch to tell the other critters that Brer Fox was down in the well muddying up the waters. Then he danced back to the well and shouted down to Brer Fox: "There's a hunting man coming along to get a drink o' water, Brer Fox. When he hauls you up, you'd best run away as fast as you can!"
Then Brer Rabbit went back to the garden patch. When the thirsty hunter hauled up the bucket full of water, a wet and shaky Brer Fox sprang out and ran away before the hunter could grab for his gun.
An hour later, Brer Fox and Brer Rabbit were both back in the garden, digging and hauling away debris and acting like nothing had happened. Except every once in a while, Brer Fox would look sideways at Brer Rabbit and grin, and the rascally rabbit would start to laugh and laugh 'cause both of them had looked so silly plummeting up and down in that ol' dark well. Read More......

Well now, Brer Rabbit had made friends with Old Man Tarrypin, a big turtle that lived in the pond near his house. Brer Rabbit and Old Man Tarrypin liked to pull tricks on Brer Fox, and that rascally fellow got pretty mad about it.
Since he couldn't catch Brer Rabbit nohow, Brer Fox decided that he'd get even with Old Man Tarrypin instead. He started walking beside the pond every day, hoping to find the turtle out of the water.
One morning, as he was taking his daily stroll, Brer Fox saw Old Man Tarrypin sitting right in the center of the road. The old turtle looked hot and bothered about something. He kept shaking his head back and forth and he was panting like he was out of breath.
"Howdy, Brer Tarrypin," said Brer Fox, stopping beside the old turtle. "What's the matter wid you?"
"I was a-strolling in the field beside my pond when the farmer came along and set it on fire," Old Man Tarrypin gasped. "I had to run and run, but that ol' fire was faster than me, so I curled up in my shell while it passed right over me! My shell is hotter than the noon-day sun, and I think I done singed my tail!"
"Let me have a look," said Brer Fox. So Old Man Tarrypin uncurled his tail and poked it out of his shell. Immediately, Brer Fox grabbed him by the tail and swung him right off the ground.
"I gotcha now, Brer Tarrypin," cried Brer Fox. "You ain't gonna bother me no more!"
Well, Old Man Tarrypin begged and begged Brer Fox not to drown him. He'd rather go back into the fire in the field on account of he'd kind of gotten used to being burned.
Brer Fox swung the poor old turtle back and forth by his tail, trying to decide what to do. Putting Old Man Tarrypin into the fire was a tempting idea, but then he remembered how the old turtle had curled up into his shell so the fire couldn't touch him. Brer Fox frowned. Fire was no good, then.
Brer Fox decided to drown Old Man Tarrypin instead. He tucked the turtle under his arm and carried him down to the springhouse by the pond.
"Please, oh please don't drown me," Old Man Tarrypin begged.
"I ain't making no promises," Brer Fox retorted. "You've played too many tricks on me, Brer Tarrypin."
Brer Fox thrust him into the water and began bouncing him up and down.
"Oh, I is drowning," shouted Old Man Tarrypin when his head bounced out of the water. "Don't let go of my tail, Brer Fox or I'll be drowned for sure!"
"That's the idea, Brer Tarrypin," Brer Fox yelled back and let go of his tail.
Immediately Old Man Tarrypin splashed down and down into the water and thumped onto the mud on the bottom, kerplicky-splat.
That's when Brer Fox remembered that Old Man Tarrypin lived in the pond, and there was never any fear of him drowning, nohow! He could hear him laughing from the bottom of the pond: "I-dare-ya-ta- come-down-'ere".
Brer Fox jumped up and down in fury. Old Man Tarrypin had escaped him!
From the other side of the pond, Brer Bull Frog called out: "Knee-deep! Knee-deep!"
Brer Fox glared at the pond, and then looked back at Brer Bull Frog. "It's only knee-deep?" he asked suspiciously.
"Knee-deep, knee-deep!" Brer Bull Frog said again.
All the little frogs joined in the chorus then. "Better-believe-it! Better-believe-it!"
Well, thought Brer Fox, if it was only knee deep, then he'd have no trouble catching Old Man Tarrypin.
"Wade-in, wade-in!" croaked Brer Bull Frog.
"Knee-deep, knee-deep!" agreed all the little frogs.
Brer Fox didn't much like water, but he really wanted to catch Old Man Tarrypin. He approached the edge of the pond cautiously. From underneath the water, Old Man Tarrypin laughed at him, and his words bubbled up to Brer Fox: "I-dare-ya-ta- come-down-'ere! I-dare-ya-ta- come-down-'ere."
Well. That did it. Brer Fox ran right up to the edge of the pond. Leaning over, he looked into the water and saw another fox staring at him.
"Dat's-your-brother! Dat's-your-brother," Brer Bull Frog told Brer Fox.
Brer Fox was thrilled. He didn't know he had a brother. Now that there were two foxes, catching Old Man Tarrypin would be a cinch! Brer Fox leaned down to shake hands with his new-found brother, and toppled right down into the deep water of the pond.
All of the frogs laughed and laughed at the trick they had played on Brer Fox, and Old Man Tarrypin started swimming up from the bottom of the pond, his red eyes fixed on Brer Fox's tail. Brer Fox knew that the old turtle wanted to pull him down under that water and drown him, so he learned to swim mighty quick! With much splashing and squirming and kicking, Brer Fox made it to the edge of the pond, where he jumped out and ran away as fast as he could, while Brer Bull Frog laughed and the little frogs shouted with glee.
The last thing he heard as he rounded the corner was the voice of Old Man Tarrypin calling: "I-dare-ya-ta- come-down-'ere".
Brer Fox never messed with Old Man Tarrypin again. Read More......

Well now, that rascal Brer Fox hated Brer Rabbit on account of he was always
cutting capers and bossing everyone around. So Brer Fox decided to capture and kill Brer Rabbit if it was the last thing he ever did! He thought and he thought until he came up with a plan. He would make a tar baby! Brer Fox went and got some tar and he mixed it with some turpentine and he sculpted it into the figure of a cute little baby. Then he stuck a hat on the Tar Baby and sat her in the middle of the road.
Brer Fox hid himself in the bushes near the road and he waited and waited for Brer Rabbit to come along. At long last, he heard someone whistling and chuckling to himself, and he knew that Brer Rabbit was coming up over the hill. As he reached the top, Brer Rabbit spotted the cute little Tar Baby. Brer Rabbit was surprised. He stopped and stared at this strange creature. He had never seen anything like it before!
"Good Morning," said Brer Rabbit, doffing his hat. "Nice weather we're having."
The Tar Baby said nothing. Brer Fox laid low and grinned an evil grin.
Brer Rabbit tried again. "And how are you feeling this fine day?"
The Tar Baby, she said nothing. Brer Fox grinned an evil grin and lay low in the bushes.
Brer Rabbit frowned. This strange creature was not very polite. It was beginning to make him mad.
"Ahem!" said Brer Rabbit loudly, wondering if the Tar Baby were deaf. "I said 'HOW ARE YOU THIS MORNING?"
The Tar Baby said nothing. Brer Fox curled up into a ball to hide his laugher. His plan was working perfectly!
"Are you deaf or just rude?" demanded Brer Rabbit, losing his temper. "I can't stand folks that are stuck up! You take off that hat and say 'Howdy-do' or I'm going to give you such a lickin'!"
The Tar Baby just sat in the middle of the road looking as cute as a button and saying nothing at all. Brer Fox rolled over and over under the bushes, fit to bust because he didn't dare laugh out loud.
"I'll learn ya!" Brer Rabbit yelled. He took a swing at the cute little Tar Baby and his paw got stuck in the tar.
"Lemme go or I'll hit you again," shouted Brer Rabbit. The Tar Baby, she said nothing.
"Fine! Be that way," said Brer Rabbit, swinging at the Tar Baby with his free paw. Now both his paws were stuck in the tar, and Brer Fox danced with glee behind the bushes.
"I'm gonna kick the stuffin' out of you," Brer Rabbit said and pounced on the Tar Baby with both feet. They sank deep into the Tar Baby. Brer Rabbit was so furious he head-butted the cute little creature until he was completely covered with tar and unable to move.
Brer Fox leapt out of the bushes and strolled over to Brer Rabbit. "Well, well, what have we here?" he asked, grinning an evil grin.
Brer Rabbit gulped. He was stuck fast. He did some fast thinking while Brer Fox rolled about on the road, laughing himself sick over Brer Rabbit's dilemma.
"I've got you this time, Brer Rabbit," said Brer Fox, jumping up and shaking off the dust. "You've sassed me for the very last time. Now I wonder what I should do with you?"
Brer Rabbit's eyes got very large. "Oh please Brer Fox, whatever you do, please don't throw me into the briar patch."
"Maybe I should roast you over a fire and eat you," mused Brer Fox. "No, that's too much trouble. Maybe I'll hang you instead."
"Roast me! Hang me! Do whatever you please," said Brer Rabbit. "Only please, Brer Fox, please don't throw me into the briar patch."
"If I'm going to hang you, I'll need some string," said Brer Fox. "And I don't have any string handy. But the stream's not far away, so maybe I'll drown you instead."
"Drown me! Roast me! Hang me! Do whatever you please," said Brer Rabbit. "Only please, Brer Fox, please don't throw me into the briar patch."
"The briar patch, eh?" said Brer Fox. "What a wonderful idea! You'll be torn into little pieces!"
Grabbing up the tar-covered rabbit, Brer Fox swung him around and around and then flung him head over heels into the briar patch. Brer Rabbit let out such a scream as he fell that all of Brer Fox's fur stood straight up. Brer Rabbit fell into the briar bushes with a crash and a mighty thump. Then there was silence.
Brer Fox cocked one ear toward the briar patch, listening for whimpers of pain. But he heard nothing. Brer Fox cocked the other ear toward the briar patch, listening for Brer Rabbit's death rattle. He heard nothing.
Then Brer Fox heard someone calling his name. He turned around and looked up the hill. Brer Rabbit was sitting on a log combing the tar out of his fur with a wood chip and looking smug.
"I was bred and born in the briar patch, Brer Fox," he called. "Born and bred in the briar patch."
And Brer Rabbit skipped away as merry as a cricket while Brer Fox ground his teeth in rage and went home. Read More......