Читать книгу The First Americans: Legends, Folklore & Myths Across the U.S.A. - Phyllis Ph.D. Goldman - Страница 5

Many years ago Rabbit was a great hunter, one of the greatest hunters in the land. He lived with his wise old grandmother in the forest.

Their home was near a stream where they could drink all the sweet water they wanted and where Rabbit could catch the colorful fish that swam past.

All year long, Rabbit would go out into the forest and set up his traps, always knowing the best places to put them and the best ways to bait them. He always returned home with food.

However, one cold winter when the snow was deep and the days seemed shorter than usual, Rabbit went out to check on his traps, only to find them empty. Several mornings he went out, and found all the bait gone and the traps empty.

He was upset that something or someone was stealing the bait from his traps. He could see the tracks in the snow; long and slender like no creature he had ever seen before.

Morning after morning he would rise earlier and earlier, hoping to catch the thief in the act, but always arriving at the traps too late. Determined to catch this beast, Rabbit built a special snare and waited behind some rocks, waiting to spring the trap on this strange robber.

He waited all day. When night came, the moon was full and casting its cold white fire across the cold white Earth.

As Rabbit watched his trap, suddenly the sky became very dark, as if the moon had been swallowed up.

Rabbit was more puzzled than frightened, but he continued to watch the place where his trap lay, straining his eyes to see through the darkness.

It was a long time before Rabbit noticed a strange pale light coming towards him and his trap. This must be the thief, Rabbit thought to himself. The light became brighter and brighter until the entire clearing was illuminated by a familiar glow.

Rabbit had to keep his eyes almost shut so he would not be blinded, but now he could see his trap.

After a moment, the light stopped moving and rested in the center of Rabbit's snare. He immediately tugged on the rope, capturing the creature in a tight loop. He heard some odd sounds from the trap, but he was already running back home. "Grandmother!" Rabbit shouted as he entered the lodge. "Grandmother! Come quick! I have caught the creature that has been robbing my traps!"

Rabbit led his grandmother back to the spot where the trap lay. The walk was slow because it was still so dark, but the light remained where Rabbit had left it, still in the center of the snare.

If anything, the light seemed even brighter, and now Rabbit was growing frightened. Shielding his eyes with an arm, he reached down and lifted a great handful of snow. With one hand, he worked the snow into a ball and threw it at the creature, hoping to extinguish the brilliant light.

There was a loud grunt and then the sound of water being boiled into the air. Growing more frightened every moment, Rabbit reached through the snow and pulled out a large stick.

He threw the stick at the creature, hoping to stun it. There was a louder grunt, followed by the sound of the stick crackling as if on fire.

"Why have you trapped me?" it shouted. "Why do you keep me here? I am the Man in the Moon, and I must return to the sky before morning. Let me free!" "Go and let it free," his grandmother said. "Nothing good can come from keeping it bound here."

Trembling and more scared than he had ever been before, Rabbit walked slowly to where the Man in the Moon stood bound. "If I release you, you must swear to not steal from my traps again," Rabbit said, his voice struggling to sound strong. "I swear not to steal from your traps," answered the prisoner. "And you must swear never to return to Earth again." "I swear never to return to Earth again."

Content, Rabbit chewed through the tough rope and released the Man in the Moon who immediately returned to his place in the night sky. Because of Rabbit's success in catching the Man in the Moon, all rabbits since that time have had their eyes made sensitive to light, forcing them to blink if a bright light is too near.

The Man in the Moon has kept his word and never returned to Earth. The moon still shows the bruises where Rabbit's weapons struck him.

Every so often the moon will vanish, trying to make those marks go away. But, when the moon returns, the marks always remain on his pale and glowing face!