. "Dar
now!" he exclaimed, before the echoes of the thunder had rolled away,
"Dat dust an' win', an' rain, puts me in mind er de time when ol' Brer
Rabbit got up a big race fer ter pleasure de yuther creeturs. It wuz de
mos' funniest race you ever hear tell on. Brer Rabbit went 'way off in
de woods twel he come ter de Rainmaker's house. He knocked an' went in,
an' he ax de Rainmaker ef he can't fix it up so dey kin have a race
'tween Brer Dust an' Cousin Rain, fer ter see which kin run de fastes'.
De Rainmaker growled an' jowered, but bimeby he 'gree, but he say that
ef 'twuz anybody but Brer Rabbit, he wouldn't gi' it but one thunk.

[Illustration]

"Well, dey fix de day, dey did, an' den Brer Rabbit put out ter whar de
creeturs wuz stayin' at, an' tol' um de news. Dey dunner how Brer Rabbit
know, but dey all wanter see de race. Now, him an' de Rainmaker had fixt
it up so dat de race would be right down de middle er de big road, an'
when de day come, dar's whar he made de creeturs stan'--Brer B'ar at de
bend er de road, Brer Wolf a leetle furder off, an' Brer Fox at a p'int
whar de cross-roads wuz. Brer Coon an' Brer Possum an' de yuthers be
scattered about up an' down de Road.

[Illustration]

"Ter dem what has ter wait, it seem like de sun stops an' all de clocks
wid 'im. Brer B'ar done some growlin'; Brer Wolf some howlin' an' Brer
Possum some laughin'; but atter while a cloud come up fum some'rs.
'Twant sech a big cloud, but Brer Rabbit know'd dat Cousin Rain wuz in
dar 'long wid Uncle Win'. De cloud crope up, it did, twel it got right
over de big road, an' den it kinder drapped down a leetle closer ter de
groun'. It look like it kinder stop, like a buggy, fer Cousin Rain ter
git out, so der'd be a fa'r start. Well, he got out, kaze de creeturs
kin see 'im, an' den Uncle Win', he got out.

[Illustration]

"An' den, gentermens! de race begun fer ter commence. Uncle Win' hep'd
um bofe; he had his bellows wid 'im, an' he blow'd it! Brer Dust got up
fum whar he wuz a-layin' at, an' come down de road des a-whirlin'. He
stricken ol' Brer B'ar fust, den Brer Wolf, an' den Brer Fox, an' atter
dat, all de yuther creeturs, an' it come mighty nigh smifflicatin' um!
Not never in all yo' born days is you y'ever heern sech coughin' an'
sneezin', sech snortin' an' wheezin'! An' dey all look like dey wuz
painted red. Brer B'ar sneeze so hard dat he hatter lay down in de road,
an' Brer Dust come mighty nigh buryin' 'im, an'