WHY THE CLAY IS RED
One evening just at sunset she sent the boys to the spring with a sifter to get water for the night. They stayed very long because every time they dipped the water it ran out.
They soon heard their mother calling, "You Jimbore! You John! Come here."
They replied, "Oh, Mother! Every time we dip the water it runs out."
She became very much vexed with them and ran to the spring with a long switch to whip them. At the first stroke the boys jumped into the well and turned into little ducks.
She threw at them until they flew out and lit on a tree, but she soon cut the tree down and they flew into the river.
She continued to follow them and when she came to the river, she said, "Look out, river, I will swallow you," and jumped into it with great speed.
In the meantime the little ducks flew out and hid themselves in a thick cluster of briars. The mother did not drown, but she came out quite slowly and went to the cluster of briars and said, "Look out briars, I will eat you up," and she jumped in with great speed, but reached her fate. She burst and the red clay that you see was stained by her blood.
Story Title: Why the Clay Is Red
Storyteller: C. H. Herbert
Book Title: Strange ways and sweet dreams: Afro-American folklore from the Hampton Institute
Author: Waters, Donald J.
Published: 1983
Rights: CC0 Public Domain
Online Source: Hathi Trust
Prior Source: Southern Workman 27, no. 2 (February 1898)
Process: Light editing for paragraphing and punctuation.
