Run up to house an’ say, “Wife an’ pickney, go up alof’, Brar Dead dah come!” Brar Dead come in sit down so in de house wait ’pon dem. Pickney cry out, “Pupa, me hungry!” Say, “Brar Dead, open you han’, pickney a come!” Six pickney now, de las one come, say can’t do any more. Now Mrs. Anansi cry out, “Brar Dead, open yo’ han’, me a come!” Anansi drop now, drop in de dirt. From dat time you see Anansi live in de dirt.
b. Goat and Plantain.
Rennie Macfarlane, Mandeville.
Goat plant his plantain tree an’ when it begun to bear he go an’ look at it, an’ when he look at it he say it will soon fit. The nex’ day he go again an’ say, “It is fit; it will soon ripe!” An’ the nex’ day when he come to cut it, Br’er Nansi cut it an’ eat it. Br’er Goat said, “Baa-a-a, where’s me plantain?” He go to Anansi house an’ Anansi an’ his wife an’ two children run up in house-top. Br’er Goat wait down below. Anansi daughter said she was tired, wanted to drop on the groun’ an’ she drop an’ Goat cut her up an’ put her in his tread-bag, an’ he said, “Baa-a-a, here’s me plantain!” Anansi son say he wanted to drop an’ he drop. An’ Br’er Goat cut him up an’ put him in his tread-bag, an’ he said, “Baa-a-a, here’s me plantain!” An’ Anansi wife say, “I want to drop!” an’ she drop an’ Goat cut her up an’ put her in the tread-bag, an’ said, “Baa-a-a, here’s me plantain!”
An’ Br’er Anansi said, “As I’m so fat, sprinkle some ashes on the groun’ an’ when I drop I won’t mash.” An’ Br’er Goat sprinkle it on the groun’ an’ Anansi drop an’ the ashes fly up in Goat face an’ blind him. An’ Br’er Nansi keep the plantain-tree for himself an’ when it bear, he eat it.
[1] A cement platform for drying coffee or piment berries. [↑]