chapter IX 



|ERE is a tale Little Mose 

 told Joe by way of account- 

 ing for Brer Rabbit's hare- 

 lip. Brer Rabbit was the 

 very first thing created, 

 when the Lord up in 

 Heaven decided to make 

 a world. That of course accounts for the 

 fact that Brer Rabbit is not so well-propor- 

 tioned as he might be — he is really to be 

 regarded in the light of an experiment. Still 

 when he was dry and running around, he 

 was set to keep watch over other animals as 

 they were created. Brer Coon, Brer Possum, 

 and Sis Cow, Brer Rabbit shooed away all 

 right, but when Brer Fox got lively on his 

 legs, he was inclined to argue the question. 

 Still Brer Rabbit minded his work, and kept 

 Brer Fox in check until Brer Fox somehow 

 persuaded him to eat a piece of puccoon root, 

 . which at once made Brer Rabbit so sleepy he 



