"“It’s w-a-y down ‘long river, Ol’ Fox, his lodge. By-um-by he’s look out an’ see big light, big fire on hiss clos’ by his lodge, Ol’ Coon. Ol’ Fox he look, an’ he say to heself: ‘I wonda’ he’s come home, that ol’ rascal, an’ what fo’ he’s got big fire. I jus’ slip ‘roun’ that way an’ see what he’s do.’ So he’s call his little nephew what’s live with him, an’ tole ‘im don’t need to mek fire in lodge, cause he’s goin’ ‘way an’ not come back ‘til late. It’s what he sed, Ol’ Fox, an’ tell ‘em nephew: ‘You go sleep.’"
Tales of the Bark Lodges
A Dance and a Dinner
Another evening when the Boy and Neh-ah were sitting before the same cherry fire, while outside the northwest wind swirled and whistled through the bare branches of the walnut trees, Neh-ah, knowing well that a story would soon be asked for, said:
“Bra-ty, I don’ tole you’ bout how he’s wnet to Big Council, Ol’ Coon is it? That ol’ scamp, he’s jus’ know he betta’ keep out his way, Ol’ Fox, lit’l while, anyhow, caus’ he’s jus’ hope Ol’ Coon, mebbe so, his couz-zen he’ll forgot it ‘bout that craw-fishin’ when he’s prit’ near los’ it his tail.
“Co’se not, he don’t fo’get it, Ol’ Fox, an’ he don’ tole nobocy ‘bout that kin; fishin’ neitha’; an’ he’s jus’ hope Uncl’ Beaver wouldn’ sed ‘bout it to nobody too. But that Ol’ Beaver, he’s good ol’ fella, and jus’ heap like ‘im eva’body; anyhow, he’s jus’ got to tell ‘im his fren’ that Ol’ Otter.
“That Ol’ Otter, he’s jus’ jolly fella, an’ all a time jus’ laff good ‘bout all a kin’ a things; an’ that Beaver, he’s jus’ all a time likes to hear ‘im laff big, so, jus’ tell ‘im eva’ time, anything, that Otter.
“Any-how-
“It’s jus’ few days afta’ Ol’ Coon tole it, his couzzen how to ketch’em crawfish, he sed to he-self, Ol’ Coon: ‘Mebbe so I get out a way lit’l time, cause Fox he might try it somethin’ to get even.’ Any how it’s jus’ ‘bout that time, it’s come “Rah-shu,’ it’s what you call ‘em moccasin, he’s go all ‘roun’ diffunt village, an’ tell ‘em somthin’, eva’body. He sed this one, it’s goin’ be big Council way down ‘notha place.
“Ol’ Coon he’s always like to go, cause he’s good singa’, an’ he’s talk good sometimes, too. Anyhow he sed: ‘I go, bet’cha Ol’ Fox he’s don’ be there.’ Then he’s jus’ laff an’ he sed: ‘I tell ‘em all those fellas how’s Ol’ Fox he’s ketch’em crawfish.’
“So’s he’s get ready an’ he’s go. He’s fin’ lots of ‘em that place when eh’s got there. Somebody he sed: ‘Where is it Ol’ Fox an’ Turtle, it’s always come them fellas, wonda’ where id it an’ why don’ come.’ But afta’ while Ol’ Coon tell ‘em ‘bout how ketch’em crawfish, Ol’ Fox, he don’ say that no mo’, jus’ laff good.
“They all stay that place three-fouh days, talkin’ ‘bout lots thing, then Coon, he sed: ‘Well, time I go,’ an’ he’s pick up his lit’l drum an’ start back. He’s jus’ travel ‘long all day, sometime he’s sing lit’l bit, cometime he’s talk to he-self. He neva’ see nobody, ‘til he’s jus’ ‘bout home, when sun, he’s ‘bout go ova’ hill; then he’s meet Turtle, jus’ comin’ ‘long slow, he’s goin’ home too.
“ ‘’Kway, my fren’!’ he’s sed it, Ol’ Coon, ‘what fo’ you don’ bin there, Big Council? We look fo’ you, all time, we want you make good talk.’
“Ol’ Turtle, he sed: ‘I goin’ bin there, but jus’ when I start, Ol’ Fox, his woman he come my lodge, an’ he sed somethin’ wrong Ol’ Fox, he’s bad cross, don’ like nothin’. He want me come see ‘im, Ol’ Fox. So I tell ‘im I go see Ol’ Fox, mebbe so he’s sick, I doctah him. So, I go see him, but I can’t know what’s mattah with ‘im. He’s jus’ cross like dickens all time, an’ it’s heap sore, his tail.’
“ Ol’ Coon he’s jus’ lis’n an’ laff lit’l but, then he sed: ‘Ol’ Fox, he be a’right in few day. I go, now, I gotta’ fin’ suppa’ some kin’.’ So he’s go on. By-um-by he’s come out of bush, right by lake, oh it’s nice one, that lake, jus’ blue watah and jus’ clos’ to sho’ it’s swim ‘roun’ lots of goose; he’s fat one, too. Ol’ Coon, he’s jus’ look at those lots of goose, then he say: ‘Yo-ho, my fren’s you come, I tell it you somethin’; where I jus’ come, it’s eva’body jus’ sing an’ dance. It’s new dance. You fellas jus’ come out on nice sand, I show you how do it.’ It’s all those goose, he jus’ come step out on nice sand, jus’ walk like soldier, long string. Ol’ Coon jus’ take off belt, his lit’l drum, an’ sed it: ‘Well, my fren’s, you just make it big ring, I stay in middle. I sing an’ play drum, all you gooses jus’ shut eyes tight an’ dance slow jus’ like what I showed you now.’ Then Ol’ Coon he’s jus’ dance nice to show ‘em how, all those goose. He say, Ol’ Coon: ‘You musn’t stop dance ‘till I begin ding ‘gen, an’ jus’ keep shut all time, yo’ eye. It’s how they dance eva’body, down that place I jus’ come now.’
“So all that gooses jus’ make ring, like he’s tol’ ‘em Ol’ Coon, an’ all jus’ shut his eye an’ list’n while he’s sing good, Ol’ Coon, an’ jus’ beat it hard that drum. He’s jus’ sing:
‘Ho-he-yah, ho-ha,
Yah-dra-wah, ho-ye-yah,
Ho-ha, yah-dra wah.’
“then when Ol’ Coon, he quit singin’, all those olf goose jus’ dance ‘roun’ slow an’ easy like, all his eye jus’ shut. Now Ol’ Coon jus’ reach out queek, an’ grab one ol’ fat she-goose, jus’ snap his head off ‘fore he could squawk, an’ thro’it behin’ him in hurry. Then he’s sing agen, an’ when he’s stop sing, those goose jus’ dance ‘roun’ slow like, an’ he grab ‘notha one, fat one, an’ queek, twis’ head off an’ throw behin’ him, then he do same thing, an’ get notha’ one. But jus’ when he’s ketch ‘em las’ one, lit’l ol’ she-goose dancin’, open one eye jus’ lit’l bit, cause he want see if he ain’t bes’ dancer. That she-goose when he see what he’s do that Ol’ Coon, jus’ holler loud an’ sed: ‘Oh, he’s kill us!’ an’ all those goose he’s fly ‘way, like big hurry.
“Ol’ Coon he’s jus’ laff, an’ pick ‘em up his three goose an’ lit’l drum, an’ start on to his lodge. He’s think he’s got good suppa’ now.
“While he’s goin’ ‘long, he’s say to heself: ‘I b’lieve I like ‘em betta’ roas’ gooses.’ So when he’s come his lodge, he’s fix his gooses, an’ pick up lots of stick to mek big fire, cause by-um-by it’s burn all down an’ meks good lots coal an’ ashes, good place to roas’ ‘em gooses. It’s good suppa’ he’s got now, by-um-by, soon.
“It’s w-a-y down ‘long river, Ol’ Fox, his lodge. By-um-by he’s look out an’ see big light, big fire on hiss clos’ by his lodge, Ol’ Coon. Ol’ Fox he look, an’ he say to heself: ‘I wonda’ he’s come home, that ol’ rascal, an’ what fo’ he’s got big fire. I jus’ slip ‘roun’ that way an’ see what he’s do.’ So he’s call his little nephew what’s live with him, an’ tole ‘im don’t need to mek fire in lodge, cause he’s goin’ ‘way an’ not come back ‘til late. It’s what he sed, Ol’ Fox, an’ tell ‘em nephew: ‘You go sleep.’
“Well, ‘bout that time, his fire, Ol’ Coon, it’s all burn down , an’ make good ashes an’ hot coal. He’s take stick an’ scrap all ‘way that hot coal, an’ lay ‘em down that gooses on his back, all, one, two, three, in row, his foot all stick up straight out ashes jus’ like beans what’s jus’ come up in garden.
“It’s getting’ dark now, an’ wind it’s blow. He could hear ‘im up in limbs on tree. Ol’ Coon, up high on rocky hill, he’s set down by fire an’ jus’ lis’n. He’s kin’ tired that Ol’ Coon, an’ it’s jus’ soun’ easy that wind, ‘an make ‘im feel sleepy like. He’s lis’n to riva’ down there, too, jus’ soun’s good, an’ by-um-by he’s jus’ sleepy like eva’thing. So, he say to he-self: ‘I could take it nap while it’s cook, my supps’, I do that ‘cause nothin’ botha it ‘tall.’
“It’s some limbs way up high ova he head, jus’ makin’ noise’ ‘cause wind it’s blow and jus’ mek squeek when it’s rub togetha’ that limbs. Ol’ Coon he’s said: ‘Hey, you noisy fellas up tha’, I want sleep lit’l nap, you woke me id it’s botha anythin’ ‘bout my suppa’. He’s say a’right that limbs, an’ by-um-by that Ol’ Coon he’s curl up an’ sleep good, jus’ lit’l ways from fire.”
