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Story of the Day: Why Turkey Buzzard Has a Red Head

Here is today's story: The Rabbit and the Buzzard, i.e. the turkey bzzard, also known as the turkey vulture. You can read more about the turkey buzzard at Wikipedia. The story also explains rabbit's short tail! Here are some more stories from the Hampton's Southern Workman folklore project, including more rabbit stories.



WHY TURKEY BUZZARD HAS A RED HEAD

One time Brer Buzzard hadn't anything to eat and he was very hungry. He saw Brer Rabbit.

And Brer Rabbit said, "What do you want?"

"I bet you can't go in this house cut-a-step like I can." Brer Buzzard ran in the house cut-a-step and run out.

Brer Rabbit said, "I can, too."

"I bet you can't," said Brer Buzzard.

And Brer Rabbit run in Brer Buzzard house.

Brer Buzzard shut the door and went off and stayed three whole days and came back and said, "Lay you lay, I will pick your bones tomorrow."

"I lay you won't," said Brer Rabbit.

Brer Buzzard went off and stayed three whole days and came back and said, "Lay you lay, I will pick your bones tomorrow."

Brer Rabbit wouldn't say anything, lied beside the door.

Brer Buzzard open the door and Brer Rabbit jump out, and just as he jump out Brer Buzzard slammed the door on Brer Rabbit's tail, and slammed on his head too and mashed all the skin off his head and cut Brer Rabbit tail off.



Story Title: The Rabbit and the Buzzard
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 26, no. 12 (December 1897)
Process: Eye-dialect removed, plus editing for capitalization, paragraphing, and punctuation.
Additional Notes: The "Folklore and Ethnology" section has this prefatory note: The stories given this month were received as a school exercise by one of our graduates who is engaged in teaching at Calhoun, Alabama. We print them without change or correction, as being of greater value on account of the absolute simplicity with which they are told; a simplicity that seems to smack of the cabin fire-side.