Sacred Texts Native American Southeast Index Previous Next
Bear and Rabbit were traveling about together. They had become friends. Bear said to Rabbit, "Come and visit me. That red house way off yonder is my home." He went off. At the appointed time Rabbit set out and came to where Bear lived. Bear's home was a hollow tree. At the bottom of the tree was a hole. There was where he lived. When Rabbit came Bear said, "Sit down." So Rabbit sat down and both talked for a while.
Bear went around back of his house while Rabbit sat watching him. He went out of sight. When he came back to where Rabbit was sitting he had a lot of good lard. He put the lard into some beans which were cooking and when the beans were done he set them out for Rabbit, who ate all he could.
Now when Rabbit was preparing to go home he said, "Come and visit me, too. I live way over yonder where you see that white house. That is my home." Bear said, "All right." By a white house Rabbit meant white grass.
On the appointed day Bear started to visit Rabbit and reached his place. His house was made of dry grass. When Bear got there Rabbit said, "Sit down." So Bear sat down and they talked. Then Rabbit stood up and went round back of his house. Bear saw him and thought "He may hurt himself." While Bear was sitting there he heard Rabbit cry out "dowik." He started out and when he reached Rabbit found he had cut his belly and sat with a little blue [fat], hanging out of it. "Oh, I alone can do that. You have hurt yourself," he said. He took Rabbit and laid him down in his house.
Then Bear went out to look for a doctor. Finding Buzzard, he said to him, "My friend, Rabbit has hurt himself badly. I am looking
for a man able to treat him." "I make medicine," said Buzzard. So Bear led him back to the place where Rabbit was lying. When Buzzard saw him he said, "Make some hominy and place it near by and I will treat him." The hominy was prepared. "Now shut up the house and make a hole in the roof and I can treat him," he said. So the house was shut up and a hole was made in the roof. Then Buzzard sat in the room where Rabbit lay eating hominy. Presently Rabbit said "dowik." "What are you doing to him?" they called out. "He is afraid of the medicine," said Buzzard. As he sat there with Rabbit he struck at him, killed him, and ate him. He ate him all up and flew out through the roof. Then he said to the people, "He is lying there waiting for you," and he went away. Bear entered the house and found only Rabbit's bones lying there.
When Bear saw this he was very angry. Just then an orphan with a bow who was traveling around came to the place and Bear said to him, "We asked Buzzard to doctor Rabbit but he devoured him and has flown away. Shoot at him and see if you can hit him." The orphan shot at him and brought him down. Bear beat him and killed him, and hung him up. He lighted a fire under him and smoked him, and Buzzard hung there many days. He came to look yellowish, it is said. Therefore, because the little boy shot him and they hung him in the smoke, he is yellow.
This is how they tell it.