The Montgomery advertiser., 1902-04-06
CURIOUS STORIES TOLD
 ABOUT EGGS AND RABBITS.
Folklore of the Old Plantations, Now Being Forgotten by the
 Negro Race

Negro Race. Written by Martha Young for The Sun l day Republican.
 | Since time immenori Il ,,ggs and rabbits | have beer assoclat ad with ;he old GUS | toms and ancient superstit!ons or Easter | tide. When at this season l see in the shop windows the bright-coiored Easter ,,r eggs. the numoeress little rabbits m ! china plaster wood. l am re minded or | the quaint superstition concerning eggs l and rabbits, the queer stories about rao- 1 bits that are tod all the year round on | the old plantations of the South. All 1 the world knows the ne gro belief tna' | there is luck in the left hind foot ot rabbit. especially if the foot be gotten | from a graveyard rabbit, that IS, one | caught in or near by d graveyard. | Less familiar is the belief that If in the chase the pursued rabbit gets chance l to stop long enough to lick one ot ms ] feet the dog and hunter will never catch him. It is dreadful luck for T rabbit to ! run from left to right across the road l you are trave!ng. rabbit IS. according 1 to plantation lore. the weakest. the most | with hisSbetters of all the beasts of the | field. Uncle Remus'' has made the world familiar with many Of the pranks | of "Brer Rabbit but hundreds Of sto- 1 ries of his cunning are yet to be tolo l Each community has its special records | of his doings and his "devilment. The negroes of the Alabama Black l Belt plantations tell with great gusto a Q | of Brother Fox when they planted | crop on shares. They both had heard ! much of the lusciousness of potatoes tiis 1 good. rich juicy, candN-ledking Nam' Both wanted a bank of potatoes lai2 by | for the next winter and they agreed to | plant 1t together. Brer Rabbit from his ! habit to haunt places close to mankind the pea patch and the collalI rows in l Miss Susans garden especially. had 1 learned more about sweet potatoes than | Brer Fox with his more limited ac- quaintance with humanity. had been able l to acauire When planting time came l Brer Rabbit caled d halt in the process | of setting slips to propose plan for | the digging time.
 Now. Brer Fox" he said, there must | be a plum fair dividin' of dis crap whah part II take. dat dat grows on de | groun or dat dat grows under de sroun | Brer Fox was greatl" puzzled now to answer this question. He wanted the best part. of course. as every well-regulated | partner in business does but how to l choose it? that was his query to himself,
 At last he chose. h3rer Fox. you know. never burrows like Brer Rabbit, so he | rarely gees underground and knows little | about what is there. He chose according to his knowledge and experience. "Brer
 Rabbit he said, you are more used is under de eround; I'll take what is on | de ground" "
 Brer Rabbit drew long face and de clared that the little man in bargain | must tdhe what lnck anu tndnce kdN' | him--and ''cut the pigeon wing as soon as Brer Fox's back was turned. At digging time Brer Fox banked up his potato vines. Brer Rabbit banked up
 the roots. good. sound sweet vams. When the banks were heaped with the old corn
 stalks. the earth piled oyer them. tn" ! blanks and pine-poles laid over all to
 Init off de cole" Brer Rabbit said to | Rrer Fox:
 ''Brcr Fox. de chooser may be de loser,
 You better aX Sis Cow to eat wid yer dis
 winter. for shes de only crittur l ever
 hearn on as could git any captions oute1
 de fros' tech 'em.
 Miss susan or Miss Sallie in the Ala
 bama stories takes the place of the | Miss Meadows that MT. Harris has i'm mortalized Miss Susan was great en-
 tertaner: every one felt at liberty to stop l and eat a bit at Miss Susan's house. cs-
 peciallv the preachers So 1t happened
 that one time her larier was bare and
 her poultry yard nearly SO. Only a
 rooster. long and thin. drake, tough
 and old a pigeon. red-eved and older, Il turkey gohbler and some guineas. With things in this state one sunshiny
 summers day a little cloud of dust begin | to advance down tho big road toward Miss | Susan's depleted premises.
 The rooster of course, being the croWef
 for company saw the little dust, anu
 faithful tu his duty. ran to the tront t' l call:
 
 ComD'nN at de do''
 Then he ran off fast as his sRlhh!
 legs could carry him.
 Turkey saw the dust, and. mindtul oi l his old uilarrel with Duck. US well as fuI of anxiety for his own safety. began:
 Duck! Duck! Duck
 Duck feet!
 With all these calls the negroes give
 A. ~f haF F1gAtp
 or thc sounds made bV beast or any creit- ture of whom thev tell the story WILT
 this Turkey was off. Duck although con
 nneror in the immemorlal ouarrcl ol tht
 nolltrv-yord between duck ana Sobn4e'
 began now to plead; Hush! Hush, Hush!
 lIsht Please, HuSh' Then the drake was "h to the .'itnvs n,
 bra1rh throokl that he know Of. ihe
 niaoo,, now reused herself from preenine
 her wings In the sum, and began to coo Hes come:
 Hes come:
 Hos comet
 Then the pigeon nutt'red away to the
 ,rba ruirea hearing this, set up all Al
 once screaminG
 1 IJc cWine ketch uSl | He gwine kctch usl | IIe swine ketch us'
 Of scurricd the gulhea'