LESSON 69 THE TAR BABY

THE TAR BABY

I

1. Many years ago there were many black slaves in America, who had been brought from Africa to work on the cotton fields. They were great story-tellers, but the greatest of them all was Uncle Remus.

2. Uncle Remus was a very, very old negro [1] , who loved to tell funny animal stories to all the little boys and girls who came to visit him. This is one of his stories.

3. Brer Fox once tried to catch Brer Rabbit. He laid many plans one after another, but Brer Rabbit was too clever to be caught.

4. "Did the fox never catch the rabbit, Uncle Remus?" asked the little boy.

He came very near it, honey, sure's you're born—Brer Fox did. One day Brer Fox went to work and got some tar and mixed it with some turpentine [2] , and fixed up a contrivance [3] which he called a tar-baby, and he took this tar-baby and set her in the big road, and then he hid in the bushes to see what the news was going to be.

5. And he didn't have to wait long, because by and by here came Brer Rabbit pacing down the road—lippity-clippity, clippity- lippity—just as saucy [4] as a jay-bird [5] . Brer Fox, he lay low.

Brer Rabbit came prancing along till he spied the tar-baby, and then he sat back on his behind legs as if he was astonished. The tar-baby she sat there, she did, and Brer Fox, he lay low.

Morning! says Brer Rabbit, says he—"Nice weather this morning," says he.

Tar-baby wasn't saying anything, and Brer Fox, he lay low.

How do your symptoms [6] seem to get on? says Brer Rabbit, says he.

6. Brer Fox winked his eye slowly and lay low, and Tar-baby wasn't saying anything.

How do you come on then? Are you deaf? says Brer Rabbit, says he. "Because if you are, I can shout louder," says he.

Tar-baby stayed still, and Brer Fox, he lay low.

7. "You're stuck up, that's what you are," says Brer Rabbit, says he, "and I'm going to cure you, that's what I'm going to do," says he.

Brer Fox gave a chuckle in his stomach, he did, but Tar-baby wasn't saying anything.

I'm going to teach you how to talk to 'spectable folks, if it's the last act! says Brer Rabbit, says he. "If you don't take off that hat and tell me how d'ye do, I'm going to knock you wide open," says he.

Tar-baby stayed still, and Brer Fox, he lay low.

8. Brer Rabbit kept on asking him, and the Tar-baby she kept on saying nothing, till presently Brer Rabbit drew back with his fist, and "clip" he caught her on the side of the head. That's just where he came to grief. His fist stuck, and he couldn't pull loose. The tar held him. But Tar-baby, she stayed still, and Brer Fox, he lay low.

9. "If you don't let me loose I'll knock you again," says Brer Rabbit, says he, and with that he gave her a blow with the other hand, and that stuck. Tar-baby didn't say anything, and Brer Fox, he lay low.

10. "Turn me loose before I knock the inside out of you!" says Brer Rabbit, says he, but the Tar-baby, she wasn't saying anything. She just held on, and Brer Rabbit lost the use of his feet in the same way. Brer Fox, he lay low.

11. Then Brer Rabbit cried out that, if the Tar-baby didn't turn him loose, he'd butt [7] her lop-sided. And then he butted, and his head got stuck.

* * *

[1] negro: A black man of the African race; negroes were taken to America as slaves.

[2] turpentine: A strong smelling oil taken from pine trees.

[3] contrivance: Arrangement, machine.

[4] saucy: Cheeky.

[5] jay-bird: A bird of the crow family.

[6] symptoms: Signs of illness.

[7] butt: Bump head first.