MYTH SEVEN.
The Rabbit and the Tar Wolf.
Once there was such a long spell of dry weather that there was no more water in the creeks and springs, and the animals held a council to see what to do about it. They decided to dig a well, and all agreed to help except the Rabbit, who was a lazy fellow, and said, “I don’t need to dig for water. The dew on the grass is enough for me.” The others did not like this, but they went to work together and dug the well.
They noticed by and by that the Rabbit kept sleek and lively, although it was still dry weather and the water was getting low in the well. They said, “That tricky Rabbit steals our water at night,” so they made a wolf of pine gum and tar and set it up by the well to scare the thief. That night the Rabbit came, as he had been coming every night, to drink enough to last him all next day. He saw the queer black thing by the well and said, “Who’s there?” but the tar wolf said nothing.
He came nearer, but the wolf never moved, so he grew braver and said, “Get out of my way or I will kick you.” Still the wolf never moved and the Rabbit came up and struck it with its front foot, but the tar held it fast. Now he was angry and said: “Turn my foot loose, or I will strike you with my other front foot”; still the wolf said nothing. Then the Rabbit struck the wolf with his other foot, and it stuck, and the Rabbit said, “Turn my foot loose or I will kick you,” and still the wolf was silent, and then the rabbit kicked with his right hind foot so hard that it stuck, and still the wolf said nothing; and the Rabbit said, “If you don’t turn my foot loose, I will kick you with my left hind foot, which never fails to accomplish what I want it to do”; yet the wolf was silent, and the Rabbit made his last kick and the foot stuck, just as the others had done.
The Rabbit plead with the wolf to let him go, and yet no response came, and, at last, when he found he was stuck fast with his feet, he said: “If you don’t turn me loose I will butt you with all my might,” and in his desperation, he struck with all his force, and his head stuck fast to the wolf.
In the morning all the animals came down to the well to drink as usual, and found the Rabbit stuck fast to the wolf of tar, and they began to discuss what disposition to make of him, so one suggested that they cut his head off, to which the Rabbit replied, “Please do cut my head off, for it is such an easy death to die,” but this aroused the suspicion of the animals, so that the fox said, “No, we will not do this for he deserves a harsher death than this,” whereupon they all agreed. Then the Wolf suggested that they burn him alive, to which the Rabbit said, “Please Mr. Wolf, have me burned, for that will be so easy,” but this did not please the audience, and another suggested that they take him to the briar patch, and throw him into the thickest part of the sharp briars to scratch him to pieces, to which the Rabbit said, “Oh, Mr. Fox, please do not allow me to be thrown into the briars for they stick and scratch me so much that I could never stand the pain”; and they all with one accord exclaimed, “Throw him in,” and they threw him into the briars, and the Rabbit sped away as fast as he could, saying, “This is where I was reared, this is my home, and this is all that I could desire.”