een'--dat w'at I notices."

"Uncle Remus," the little boy asked, after a while, "how did people
happen to find out about the rabbit's foot?"

"Oh, you let folks 'lone fer dat, honey! You des let um 'lone. W'at de
wimmen ain't up'n tell bidout anybody axin' un um, folks mighty ap' fer
ter fine out fer deyse'f. De wimmen, dey does de talkin' en de flyin',
en de mens, dey does de walkin' en de pryin', en betwixt en betweenst
um, dey ain't much dat don't come out. Ef it don't come out one day it
do de nex', en so she goes--Ant'ny over, Ant'ny under--up one row en
down de udder, en clean acrosst de bolly-patch!"

It may be that the child did n't understand all this, but he had no
doubt of its wisdom, and so he waited patiently for developments.

"Dey's a tale 'bout de rabbit foot," continued Uncle Remus, "but yo' eye
look watery, like ole man Nod 'bout ter slip up behime you; en let 'lone
dat, I 'speck Miss Sally clock clickin' fer you right now."

"Oh, no, it is n't, Uncle Remus," said the child, laughing. "Mamma said
she'd make 'Tildy call me."

"Dar, now!" exclaimed the old man, indignantly, "'Tildy dis en 'Tildy
dat. I dunner w'at yo' mammy dreamin' 'bout fer ter let dat nigger gal
be a-holl'in' en a-bawlin' atter you all 'roun' dish yer plan'ation. She
de mos' uppity nigger on de hill, en de fus' news you know dey ull all
hatter make der bows en call 'er Mistiss. Ef ole Miss wuz 'live, dey
would n't be no sech gwines on 'roun' yer. But nummine.[29] You des let
'er come a-cuttin' up front er my do', en I lay you'll year squallin'.
Now, den," continued the old man, settling himself back in his chair,
"wharbouts wuz I?"

"You said there was a tale about the rabbit foot," the little boy
replied.

"So dey is, honey! so dey is!" Uncle Remus exclaimed, "but she got so
many crooks en tu'ns in 'er dat I dunner but w'at I ain't done gone en
fergotted some un um off'n my min'; 'kaze ole folks lak me knows lots
mo' dan w'at dey kin 'member.

"In de days w'ence Brer Rabbit wuz sorter keepin' de neighborhoods
stirred up, de yuther creeturs wuz studyin' en studyin' de whole blessid
time how dey gwine ter nab 'im. Dey ain't had no holiday yit, 'kaze w'en
de holiday come, dey'd go ter wuk, dey would, en juggle wid one er n'er
fer ter see how dey gwine ter ketch up wid Brer Rabbit. Bimeby, w'en all
der plans, en der traps, en der jugglements ain't do no good, dey all
'gree, dey did, dat Brer Rabbit got some cunjerment w'at he t