- Good evening. I'm Laura Clavio from the Bloomington Storytellers Guild and thanks so much for coming
- out to see our performance tonight. 250 years of American folklore. It's hard to actually comprehend
- that. It's like a giant tapestry made of millions of strands from all over the world that have come
- together and
- Choosing material from all that is a bit challenging. But tonight you're going to hear some of the favorite
- stories that we've come up with from the animals of American folklore. We hope you enjoy those. Just
- a couple of things to talk about before we get started. First, if you brought a device with you that
- makes noise, please silence it. And some thank yous, first to the
- Monroe County Public Library for their support and the use of their facilities, to the Friends of the
- Library who support us, and to CATS, the Community Access Television Services that records our programs,
- and if you miss part of this tonight or you have friends that want to see it, it will be available on
- CATS, usually within
- two to three weeks, so you can look for it there. Our tellers tonight are all ready to go, so we'll
- get started, and thank you again for coming. Hi, folks. My name is Kellen Everett, and I will be telling
- a story that I found in a collection of folk stories from around here.
- from Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, close by. Now, my family's lived in Indiana for a couple years now. And
- I got to say, it's a pretty great place to be. In fact, some people say that Indiana is God's own country.
- A big part of the reason for that is because the devil keeps out of Indiana. And the reason for that
- goes way back. It's an old story, back from when
- Indiana was still mostly frontier country. And back then, there were a couple of lumber men,
- tough as nails. John Travers and Ben Barker. When I say you guys were tough as nails, I mean it. They
- would go to bed every night sleeping on grindstones for pillows. And they'd wake up every morning for
- breakfast. They'd have a nice bowl of razor soup. John was about as tall as a tree. Ben was about a
- big around as a barrel. And when it came to cussing and swearing,
- Well, these two fellas could give a whole team of Ohio boatmen a run for their money. They could cuss
- the hide off a mule. They could cuss the scales off a fish. They could cuss the bark off a tree. Awfully
- handy for a pair of lumbermen. Now, all this cussing and swearing and foul language wasn't a good habit.
- Wasn't a polite habit. But what could folks do? It's a free country. They could talk however they want.
- But every time they open their mouths, well, the devil's always looking out for candidates for his domain
- way down in the great below. So every time they open up their mouths, he just smiled and waited. So
- one fine spring day in Wabash County, Ben and John got together and they bought themselves a fine plot
- of timberland that they were hoping to turn into an even finer profit. They bought it and they went
- straight to work cutting and chopping and sawing and they were hard at work and as they were working,
- The woodchips and the sawdust was flying thick as snowflakes in a blizzard, and the nasty filthy toad
- words flying out of their mouths were coming even thicker. They were working and sweating and hollering,
- and on about the fifth day of them working, they were about halfway through sawing through an oak tree
- that was about as thick as a bear is long. About halfway through, John said to Ben, say, we ought to
- let this one fall down along the path when it goes down. And Ben said,
- No, you idiot, we gotta let it fall the other way. And just like that, two of them launched into another
- one of their famous rip-roaring, swearing arguments. And they were swearing and cussing, and the language
- they were using was just so foul that the trees around them were shaking with indignation. Their beautiful
- green leaves were turning pale and yellow and shriveling up like it was the wintertime. All the other
- lumbermen around them
- No saints themselves, mind you. Well, they just about had to run off with their ears scorched because
- this language was so hot. The devil was not there that day to hear this argument, but he did catch a
- year of it where he was all the way over in Boston on business. And as soon as he heard, he smiled and
- laughed and started rubbing his hand so fast sparks flew. He knew that he was going to get these two.
- And well, wouldn't you know it, he was right.
- John Travers, soon after this, up and died. And when John died, the devil zipped right over,
- grabbed him, pulled him straight down, down below Wabash County where he lived, to where there's a special
- place reserved for Hoosiers that don't behave like they oughta. So the devil took him straight down,
- but a while before John had died, after a different other one of his famous swearing quarrels with Ben,
- Well, he'd figured out a mean, mean way to get back at his partner. Now, John got together with a lawyer
- who was so crooked, his lawyer's grave had to be dug with a corkscrew. John and this lawyer got together,
- and he worked his legal sorcery, and they had it worked out so that Ben would have to pay out a whole
- barrel full of money to John's heirs when John finally kicked the bucket. When Ben found out about this, oh, boy.
- Right there at John's funeral he found out and he was mad, mad, mad. He started swearing and cussing
- and spitting and yelling right there at the graveside. His language was so bad that the tombstone started
- to crack. He was just getting madder and madder by the second. He was screaming and hollering and using
- just about every bad word that he knew and just getting madder and madder. He was about to start making
- up new bad words when finally his body just couldn't handle all that anger and Ben Barker up and died.
- just like John. And of course, when Ben died, well, the devil zipped right over and grabbed him, pulled
- him straight down to where John was. Which means, of course, that the very first thing that Ben Barker
- saw down in the great down below amidst the flames was John. Now, there's three things in this world
- that you just can't make over no matter how hard you try. A stubborn mule, an old miser,
- and a swearing foul-mouthed lumberman. And when these two saw each other down in the devil's domain,
- well, they just lit into each other like a couple of roosters at daybreak. They were hollering and swearing
- and cussing up a storm right there at each other, just getting louder and louder by the second. All
- those cuss words were coming out fast as grease lightning and about twice as hot.
- They were roaring about as loud as all the roaring flames all around him. And the devil was just laughing
- and laughing, because he'd got exactly what he had wanted. Or so we thought. Because you see, he looked
- around, and he saw that he had all his little helper devils. You know, the devils that he keeps down
- there to help him torment folks. Well, they had stopped tormenting folks. They were just watching Ben
- and John. They'd never heard language like this before. They were learning all kinds of new words. And
- the devil?
- He was getting worried. What kind of effect was this kind of language going to have on these impressionable
- young devils just staring eyes like saucers? And so, well, the devil couldn't take much more of that.
- So he got all the little devils together and told them to scat, get out of there. They didn't need to
- torment Ben and John. They got each other, just sweared at each other for all eternity. That's enough
- torment right there. And the devil, well,
- being honest, he couldn't take much more of it either. His ears were starting to smoke. So he got out
- of there, too. He just left the field to Ben and John to just stand and swear and cuss and argue with
- each other for all eternity. Now, whether they're still there doing that to this day, I couldn't tell
- you. It would explain some of the heat that we feel in the summers of Indiana. What I can tell you
- is that that is why the devil knows better than to come back to Indiana. I'm Connie Chicalis, and I'm
- going to... Wait. I believe I hear a message from the devil coming from Illinois. Yes, I will sing the
- deaf woman's courtship. Old woman,
- Old woman, are you fond of weaving? Speak a little louder, sir. My hearing is deceiving. Old woman,
- old woman, are you fond of shearing? Pray speak a little louder, sir. I'm rather thick of hearing.
- Old woman, old woman, would you go a-walking? Pray speak a little louder, sir. Or what's the use of talking?
- Are you fond of spinning? Please speak a little louder, sir. I only see a grinning. Old woman, old woman,
- are you fond of knitting? Please speak a little louder, sir. Come nearer where I'm sitting. Old woman,
- old woman, might I kiss you dearly? Oh, Lord, have mercy on my soul, sir.
- Introduction for an old woman. Hi, my name is Patty Callison. The story that I have to tell tonight
- is a Native American story, a Cherokee story. I originally found this story in the library. And it was
- sort of, it was from an oral history that a researcher had collected.
- And I'm happy. It became part of my storytelling life, and I hope you enjoyed it. And if you've heard
- me tell this before, it's always different. Now, you all know what a possum looks like, don't you? Of
- course you do. They got in your garden, and they're rubbing around. And if you meet somebody, they might
- say that it's
- Oh, Possum. But did you know that at one time, the possum had a long, beautiful tail. It was just covered
- in long, silky, silvery fur. And Possum was very proud of that tail, and he loved
- to show it off to all the other animals. Now, he especially liked to show it off to Rabbit,
- because you see, Rabbit's tail had been pulled off by Bear many years ago, and so all he had was a little
- itty bitty fluff of a tail. Now, Rabbit is a trickster. He loves to play tricks
- pranks, jokes. But he gets a little mean when he's kind of envious, just as he was envious of Possum's
- tale. And so he had been thinking of some way that he could kind of get back and pull a prank on Possum
- for being so proud of that tale. But he'd never come up with anything.
- was just about this time of year. And the animals decided they would get together. Everybody would bring
- some food, a kind of a picnic-type thing. And so it was decided where and when it was going to be. It
- was also decided that rabbit, being the very quickest animal in the forest, should go around telling
- all the other animals about where and when this
- was going to take place. Now there was even going to be a dance that went along with this. And so Rabbit
- went from place to place and he was just getting ready to go over to Possum's place when
- So before he went over to Possum's place, he went to visit Cricket. Now, Cricket had a very interesting
- occupation. With those little hind legs of his, he could trim up and style the animal's fur. A barber,
- if you will. And so Rabbit went to visit Cricket
- Then he went to see Possum. And he told Possum all about the potluck and the dance and all the animals
- that were going to be there. And Possum said, well, if I come, I know that everyone will want to see
- my long and beautiful tail. Oh, I've been thinking about that, said Rabbit.
- to let you know that I am in charge of the dance, and you will be at the very front of the dance line.
- Oh, good, said Possum. But you know what, said Rabbit, before, before then,
- Why don't I send Cricket over, and he can style up your tail so that it's even more beautiful than it
- is right now? All right, said Possum. So the day of the dance and the picnic came, and here came Cricket
- over to Possum's place. And he combed all the dirt
- debris out of that tail. And he washed it and dried it. And then he put a little something on it so
- that that silvery fur just sparkled in the sunlight. And possum, oh, boy, look. Oh, that is magnificent.
- Yeah, but you know, said Cricket, it's a while until the dance. I brought this red string with me.
- I'm going to tie it around your tail if you want. And so it'll keep it from getting all dirty and messed
- up. And then I'll take it off when we have the dance." All right," said Possum. And so, Possum laid
- down on the ground. Hmm. He may have even gone to sleep.
- that long red string and he tied it to the base of Possum's tail and then he started to wrap that red
- string around Possum's tail. But what Possum didn't know was that just before he'd wrapped the string
- around the tail
- was taking his little hind legs and cutting the hair off of Possum's tail right next to the roots. And
- then he would wrap that red string around the bear place. Wrap that red string around the
- until he came to the very tip of Possum's tail and he tied a nice red bow. Well, that evening the animals
- all came to the gathering spot. Oh, there was a nice fire going there and a huge table just covered
- with all of the contributions that everybody had brought for the meal. And they ate.
- until they couldn't eat anymore. And then they ate some more anyway. But then it was time for the dance.
- So Rabbit got the dance line all lined up. And sure enough, Possum was at the very head of the dance
- line. Well, the animals had brought their instruments. And they started to dance.
- They started to sing. And they started to play. And Possum remembered that his tail was still wrapped
- up. So he motioned to cricket. And cricket came on over and unwrapped that red string from Possum's
- tail. But by that time, Possum was really into the music. And he started to sing. And he started to dance.
- See my beautiful tail. Well, the other animals on there goes Possum talking about his tail. And they
- all clapped. And Possum heard this and he said, oh, my tail must really look good. So he sang some more.
- See how fine the color is.
- could stop the the animals were were clapping and stomping and and hurrying and and positive and so
- he's saying some more see how fine the fur is well when he's saying that
- The animals started to laugh, and they laughed, and they laughed. Oh, Bear was over there, and he held
- up his big paw. Squirrel. Squirrel was laughing so hard that he was rolling around in the dirt, holding
- his stomach.
- laughing so hard that tears were streaming down his cheeks. And Possum turned around and he looked at
- the animals.
- just like a lizard's tail. And with that, Possum lay down on the ground, and he held up his little paws
- like this, and he grinned, which Possum's do to this very day whenever they are frightened or embarrassed.
- And that's the story of why when you see a possum today, it is very, very bare. My name is Ken Ogas.
- And I'm actually based in Indianapolis.
- I love coming down to Bloomington to tell with my storyteller brothers and sisters. So here we are.
- Have I ever told you the absolutely incredible story of great-grandpa Jack and his hunting trip? No?
- Well, lock the doors. You're going to hear it now. You see, my great-grandpa was born 100 years before me.
- He married my great grandma, and they settled down by the Wabash River, and they cleared trees. They
- were going to have such a fine life together. They had plenty of corn, but not a whole lot of meat.
- And after several weeks of no meat, great grandma said, Jack, you need to go hunting. But dear, I only
- have the one bullet for the rifle, says,
- Well, you need to figure something out. You take the bird net, you take the corn, you take the horse,
- get down to the lake. We need meat. Yes, ma'am. So he loaded up the stone boat, which was used for carrying
- all the stones that were taken out of the fields as they cleared them, took the stone boat, hooked it
- up to old Alex the horse, and he took his bird net and corn and a sharp hatchet. And bumpity, bumpity,
- bump, they went down to the lake.
- And he set up the bird net, put out the corn, began chopping on a hollow log, make a bucket. You never
- have enough buckets. Well, while he was doing that, he heard the sound of not just one goose,
- but many geese. And he looked over at the bird net, and there must have been a dozen under that net
- gobbling up that corn.
- Oh my! He went running and he grabbed the net so they couldn't get away. Well he held on tight and they
- stuck their wings through the net and they pulled him up over the lake until he was looking down at
- water and he didn't know how to swim. Oh and well they came back around over the land and he saw a tree
- with a nice big opening.
- Now, one thing I'll say about great-grandpa Jack is that he had a great sense of timing, so he let go
- just at the right time. He fell into that hollow tree and he went down, down, down, and instead of hitting
- something hard with a bump, he hit something soft and sticky and sweet. Oh, sour wood honey, a whole
- tree full of it. Well, things are finally looking my way, but how am I going to get out of this tree trunk?
- had his arms squeezed together, he didn't have to wait long. Because something blocked the top of the
- tree now, got dark, and they could hear a growling and a snarling and a snoozing. And that bear was
- going to lower himself down into the honey and pull himself out again and lick himself off. Doesn't
- get any better than that for bears.
- Well, great-grandpa Jack, he waited and he waited until that wagon tail of the bear got just within
- reach and he bit onto that bear tail and the bear pulled him up to the top of the tree. Now, I told
- you about Jack's good timing. Well, before that bear could swat him with one of his bear paws, Jack
- just gave him a little like that. And he hit the
- rocks at the base of the tree and broke his neck. Safe. So Jack slowly climbed down out of that tree
- with all that honey on him. And he went over to the lake and went up into his neck. And he was letting
- all that honey dissolve off. And then something got under his shirt. What is that? You're not going
- to believe this. He caught a trout without even trying.
- and it was under his shirt and it was flapping around so hard why finally it snapped the top button
- of his long underwear, which it didn't really take off that many times. Anyway, that button shot off
- like a bullet, hit a duck, killed it. Well, my day is really shaping up. I've got a duck, I've got a
- trout, I've got a tree full of honey, not to mention a bear.
- So he came out of the lake and he took that sharp hatchet. He began to slice through that bare skin
- and get them all carved up, put them on the stone boat. And then he cut a hole in that hollow honey
- tree and let that honey dribble out into the bucket he had made. And he thought, oh, just wait till
- great grandma sees this. Well, you know, it had gotten a little bit late.
- with all this going on, all the cutting and preparing. And the wild turkeys were beginning to roost.
- And he could hear them. And they were collecting onto one long branch on a tree nearby. And he got up
- real quiet like, and he walks over with his rifle, with the one bullet. And he points his rifle up,
- and he says, I've got to hit at least one of them. Oh, please, please. Kapow!
- And that bullet shot up. Did it hit one wild turkey? No. Did it hit two? No. It hit that branch and
- it split open and trapped all their feet in between the two halves. Oh my. So he got his sharp hatchet.
- He climbed up that tree, cut that limb down. Kaboom. Put it in the stone boat. And he was getting all
- set now to head home.
- And he heard something he'd never hear again. He never thought it. Geese. All of the geese that had
- flown him up into the air in the first place, they were still under that net. They were trapped in a
- tall, tall tree. And he says, I'm not climbing up to get them. He took that hatchet. It was very sharp.
- And he cut that tree, and it came crashing down.
- Now, the local deer were very curious creatures. And the deer that he actually hit with a tree had not
- seen it coming. And I told you it was incredible. Well, so he's got a deer, a bear. He's got the trout,
- a duck, wild honey. Oh, she's going to be so happy. Well, he loaded everything up on that stone boat.
- There was no room for him, so he had to walk up with the horse, old Alex. And as soon as they pulled
- forward, just a couple of feet, there was a loud snapping sound on either side. The harness broke. Well,
- he had all kinds of fresh leather to work with, so he cut strips of deer hide, thinking, that's probably
- going to work. Right, right. He took those strips. He repaired the harness.
- And then off they went, and it got darker, and it began to rain. Now, you might think this is the end
- of the story, but that warm rain did its trick. And when he got back to the cabin, he went running up
- to the door, banged on it, said, dear, come on out. Take a look. You won't believe it. And she didn't.
- Says, I don't believe you've got a thing. Where is it all? But, but, but, but, but, but.
- Well, deer hide stretches when it gets warm and wet like that, doesn't it? Yeah. And he could feel the
- strands were going all the way back down to the lake. And it was too dark to go there. He says,
- all right, I don't want to hear about it. He took care of old Alex. He hung the harness on a stump in
- front of the cabin. And he had cold corn for dinner.
- And the bed was kind of cold that night, too. Well, in the morning, things tend to look better when
- the sun comes up. Well, in Indiana, it's no different. In fact, it might even be more so, because they
- looked out their front window, which was the only window that they had. They looked out that front window,
- and there was the stone boat. The leather in that warm sunshine had gone back to its original size and shape.
- And well, there were all the animals, there was the honey, everything was there. And he said, well,
- what do you think? She says, I don't believe it, but I'm seeing it, and we're gonna have plenty of food
- all year. Well, you know, my great grandpa Jack, they raised nine children. His timing was impeccable.
- And they loved to hear stories at night,
- And you know what story they asked for most of all and you've just heard it. Now I'm going to tell you
- something that's absolutely true and that is we pass stories along in the oral tradition and stories
- are written down in collections so they stay alive. What I've told you tonight is two different stories
- brought together in marriage.
- So the first one is from Richard Chase's grandfather tales, right? Jack's hunting trips. And the second
- source that I've woven into this is great grandfather in the honey tree. And that's by Sam and Zoe Swain.
- Richard Chase was the editor of the first book. And you see, you can find these books on the internet
- archive and some fine public libraries.
- You can read them. You can tell them. And remember, when you're telling a story like this and you look
- at the person you're talking to, they're probably not going to believe you. Thank you. Thank you, Ken.
- a nice segue, I think, to the story I have to share tonight. My name is Lisa Ciampelli, and the story
- that I'm sharing is called Parley Garfield and the Frogs. And this story is adapted from the tale told
- by professional storyteller Margaret Reed McDonald, who grew up in southern Indiana and attended Indiana
- University right here in Bloomington. Now, I got to thinking about this story after a trip
- recent trip to the Pacific Northwest, where I enjoyed the same gorgeous landscapes that were the reward
- of the explorers Lewis and Clark when they journeyed from Missouri in May of 1804, and finally,
- after a year, reached their destination of the Pacific Ocean. Now, in our era,
- of jet planes and GPS navigation tools, I was just struck by the courage and the fortitude that it took
- these explorers to make their way over forested mountains and wade through raging rivers when they were
- hungry and cold and just motivated by their desire to discover what was out there, what was on the other
- side, and to document their way as they went.
- And although they were incredibly brave and savvy individuals, I think their success in reaching their
- destination was due in part, in great part, critical part, to the help that they received from the indigenous
- people who guided them through their native lands. So how do Lewis and Clark relate to Parley Garfield? Well,
- Maybe a bit of a stretch, but you might be able to call Parley an explorer in his own right. I'll let
- you decide. I first read this story in one of Margaret Reed McDonald's books called 20 Tellable Tales.
- But Margaret Reed McDonald says that she first learned this story from her grandfather, Parley Garfield Reed.
- So I tell this story tonight in honor of all the explorers who have come before us and in honor of the
- granddads and grammies and memes and papas who have shared their stories with their children
- and grandchildren so that we have them to enjoy today. Now, when Parley Garfield was a young man, he
- had a girlfriend who lived across the wide creek that ran behind Parley Garfield's farmhouse.
- And Parley Garfield liked to visit his girlfriend frequently. And fortunately, the creek bed was often
- dry. And it was no problem for Parley to walk across that dry creek bed on the flat rocks that lined
- the bed. But there were some parts of the year during the spring and stormy summers when that creek
- bed would fill up with rushing water, swirling with mud and sticks.
- And at that time, Parley would have to figure out if he would be able to get across that wide creek
- safely or whether he would have to find another way around. Now, fortunately, there were some frogs
- that lived near and in this creek. And Parley would call out to the frogs for help. He would call out
- to them, how deep is it? How deep is it?
- How deep is it? And the little frogs that live right at the creek's edge, those peeper frogs, they would
- answer back, ankle deep, ankle deep, ankle deep, ankle deep, ankle deep. And so this day, Parley,
- he figured, oh, well, that's no problem at all. And he took off his shoes, and he started to wade into
- that creek water.
- When it got up above his ankles, he paused. And he called again to the frogs that lived a little bit
- further into the creek. They were a little bit bigger. And he called to them, how deep is it?
- How deep is it? How deep is it? And these little bit bigger frogs, they answered back, knee deep,
- knee deep, knee deep, knee deep, knee deep.
- That's entirely manageable, thought Parley. And he just rolled up his pant legs a little bit higher,
- and he continued on wading into that creek water. But when that creek water crept up above his knees,
- he stopped again, and he called out to the frogs that he could see sitting on a log just about halfway
- through the creek. Now, you can join me, because we don't often get a chance to be loud in the library.
- So join me in calling out, as Parley did,
- How deep is it? How deep is it? How deep is it? And these little bit bigger frogs sitting on the log,
- they answered back, belly deep, belly deep, belly deep, belly deep. Well, Parley was really eager to
- see his girlfriend, and he figured he was already wet. So he continued
- crossing over that creek, trying to find his way on the flat rocks that he knew were on the bottom somewhere.
- But when that water got up above his belly, he stopped again. And he called out to the big old bullfrog
- that he could see sitting on a rock nearby. How deep is it? How deep is it? How deep is it? And that
- big old bullfrog answered back,
- Better go round, round, round. Better go round, round, round. Well, Parley was really determined to
- see his girlfriend. And he was already wet. But he did not want to get into that water and be pulled
- under. And he wasn't a very good swimmer. So he turned around.
- And he clomped back up the creek about a mile or so until there was a bridge that he could cross over
- to the other side. And he was able to arrive at his girlfriend's house, soggy but safe and sound, due
- to his persistence and the sage advice of the frogs. Thank you for your help.
- Mary Elizabeth, Mary Beth Simpson. Here I sit on buttermilk hill Who could blame me, crime I feel Every
- tear could turn a mill
- to see him go. Only time will heal my woe. Johnny has gone for a soldier. I'll sell my flax, I'll sell
- my wheel to buy my love a sword of steel that he may wield upon
- storyteller. My name is David Matlack. Now, some of you might associate the surname Matlack with a rather
- important document that's garnered a lot of attention this month, as it should. My great-great-great-great-great-uncle
- was Timothy Matlack, the scribe of the Declaration of Independence. It was Jefferson's words, but ol'
- Uncle Tim just had really good handwriting.
- and he was the clerk of the Continental Congress. My sister Anne is here all the way from Whidbey Island,
- Washington, and we're very proud of old Uncle Tim, but to do his story justice would take all night,
- so instead I want to switch to my father's maternal side of the family and tell you about an interesting
- character, and I can scarcely do her justice, so I'll just give you some tidbits from her fascinating
- life, my great-great-great-great-great-grandmother.
- And this is the way the story is passed down in my family. Elizabeth Griscombe was born New Year's Day,
- 1752, with flaming auburn hair, lily-white skin, and flashing blue eyes. Red, white, and blue. She was
- born in Gloucester City, New Jersey. It's on the eastern shore of the Delaware, directly across from
- Philadelphia.
- She was about the middle of a very large Quaker family. Her father, Samuel Griscombe, was a carpenter.
- And her mother, Rebecca James Griscombe, as far as we know, worked in the home. And I assume she worked
- quite busily. She would raise or bury 17 children in all. Elizabeth and eight of her siblings would
- live into adulthood.
- Now, when Elizabeth was still a toddler, Samuel packed up his big family and moved across the river
- into Philadelphia. And here he prospered as a carpenter. Philadelphia was already the largest city in
- the colonies, and it was growing exponentially in the 1750s. And when Elizabeth and her sisters came
- of a certain age, they attended a public girls' school led by two Quaker women. They were taught reading,
- writing, ciphering, and vocational skills. And Elizabeth's favorite part of the day was when the school
- mistress would announce, now is that time for thee to pursue that skill in which thee most delights.
- And for young Elizabeth, that was sewing and embroidery. Embroidery without embellishment. Plain and
- simple was, still is, the Quakerly advice for all matters, particularly of dress and in the home.
- And then the story goes that towards the end of her primary school career, one day she was trotting
- down Arch Street to visit an older sister who was working in John Webster's upholstery shop. And in
- the shop that day, one of the other girls was having difficulty with a specific task and Elizabeth offered
- her help. And when John Webster saw the perfection of Elizabeth's stitches, he took her on as an apprentice
- on the spot.
- Now, upholstery in those days, it was certainly the cushions and fabrics on furniture, heavy draperies,
- but a really big part of it was making mattresses. And this was really hard work. It was really thick
- canvas, and young Elizabeth would have to stuff and overstuff it with horsehair and feathers, and then
- with a giant needle, and certainly with help from the other girls, she would sew the lid on. It was
- very difficult work.
- Well, sometime around the late 1760s, there came to the shop another young apprentice, John. And this
- hardworking lad caught Elizabeth's eye. And well, Elizabeth caught his eye. And what began as shy, furtive
- glances over the period of five years blossomed into longing looks of love. But there was a problem.
- And Elizabeth knew that she would have to speak to her father.
- So one Sunday morning after meeting on the way home, walking down Arch Street, she broached the subject,
- Father, in meeting this morning, these shared how we must love that of God in everyone, the savage Indian,
- the Negro slave, everyone. Why then, why then, Father, is it so wrong that I should love an Anglican? My child,
- This is not the type of love of which I speak. Thee knows that. That is an entirely different matter
- altogether. But I don't see that it is. But she could tell from the throbbing veins in his neck and
- the redness rising up his cheeks towards the broad rim of his Quaker hat that she would get no further
- with this argument. But she was a strong-willed young woman, and she knew what she wanted. So she and
- John made and carried out plans for elopement.
- They met at the wharf on Arch Street. They hired a boatman to row them across the Delaware to the town
- of her birth, Gloucester City, where a justice of the peace married them in Hug's Tavern. The marriage
- certificate is dated November 4, 1774. And it is signed, probably with auto pen, by the colonial governor
- of the colony of New Jersey, William Franklin.
- And just as William would become estranged from his father, Benjamin Franklin, for William's lifelong
- loyalist sympathies, so too now Elizabeth would become estranged from her father and family for marrying
- outside of the Quaker faith. Now John's was a family of prominence in the Church of England community
- there in Philadelphia.
- His father was a minister, and at the time of their wedding, he had just received his own parish just
- downstream in Wilmington, Delaware. Prior to that, he was rector at Christ Church, the preeminent Church
- of England parish in Philadelphia. If you weren't Quaker, everybody that was anybody attended Christ
- Church, including prominent figures from all over the colonies when they were in town.
- and they were coming to town more and more frequently for important and clandestine state business.
- Now, Elizabeth never found a spiritual home at Christ Church, but evidently, it was really good for
- networking. And they had a sound system, but it seemed to go out. It's okay. I'll just project.
- As soon as the newlyweds hung out a shingle for their own upholstery shop on Chestnut Street, they received
- a huge commission from the right honorable Benjamin Chu, Chief Justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.
- And he was building a stately home as a wedding gift for one of his daughters and commissioned John
- and Elizabeth to furnish the home. It was a huge commission.
- And the family story goes that through Christchurch, she received a much smaller commission, but perhaps
- of more importance for the trajectory of her life. And that was to embroider the initials on the long
- flowing sleeves in the European style of the wealthy planter from Virginia who would sit in John's family's
- pew at Christchurch. G.W. George Washington. Yeah.
- So the newlyweds were working, but these were such tumultuous and uncertain times in Philadelphia and
- all of the colonies. There had already been bloodshed in New England. Her uncle, Abel James, one of
- the wealthiest of the wealthy Quaker merchants, was right in the middle of a lesser-known but equally
- subversive and significant Philadelphia Tea Party. Daily, the young couple would have to check the bulletins
- for what goods
- were being embargoed or sent back or that patriots were encouraged to boycott, there was so much uncertainty.
- Now John, as an Anglican, did not have to grapple with matters of conscientious objection in the Quaker
- peace testimony. He became a patriot. And he became radicalized when he joined the Masons. And he joined
- Ben Franklin's Philadelphia militia.
- to protect the city from British invasion. And what happened next is shrouded in mystery, but one version
- of the story holds that one night, in the middle of the night, he was guarding a cache of patriot munitions
- down near the wharf when he heard the scuffle of feet. And before he realized what was happening, there
- was a massive explosion. And he would later die from his injuries.
- He was buried January 26, 1776 at Christ Church. She's scarcely married for two years. She's 24 years
- old, a sole proprietor. She's a war widow. But later in life, she would say that she never wanted for
- work. And some very important work was waiting for her.
- Later that year, one morning, she was preparing to open her shop when there was a knock at the door.
- She opened the door, and there stood GW, George Washington. And with him was Robert Morris, the wealthiest
- man in all the colonies, financier of the American Revolution. And next to him was John's uncle,
- George Ross, who like Robert Morris,
- was a signator of the Declaration of Independence. We would consider all three of these men founding
- fathers. Across the pond, they were considered traders to the crown with a price on their head, as would
- be anyone who did business with them. So Elizabeth quickly ushered them in back to the parlor for privacy,
- and the men explained the reason for their visit. They explained
- that the troops needed a common symbol, a common banner, colors, a common flag around which to gather.
- It was so confusing. Every state and town militia had their own colors. Pennsylvania Navy had their
- own colors. Continental Army had none. They needed a common symbol. And they unrolled a scroll and they
- showed her their plan.
- And she studied it, and she said, would it not stand out better against any hue of sky if the red stripe
- were at the top? And the men agreed. Yes, it would. And then she studied the canton, the upper left
- corner, reflecting pool blue. It was supposed to be. And the new constellation,
- of 13 six-pointed stars in the European style and on the Washington crest. And she said, excuse me,
- but would not five-pointed stars stand out more crisply on the field of blue? And the men said, well,
- yes, but they're too difficult to make. We're going to need a lot of these. And she said, no, no, no,
- no. She took a piece of paper. She did a little origami, did a couple snips, and held up the perfect
- pattern of a five-pointed star. And so the men agreed.
- And then they asked her, they asked her earnestly, can you do this? And her humble answer, I think,
- speaks for so many patriots of whom so much was asked in that great American experiment. She simply
- said, I don't know, but I shall try.
- And that is my family story of our first flag and my great, great, great, great, great grandma,
- Betsy Ross. Yes. Now, if you're of a certain age, you might be thinking, well, wait a minute. Your family
- story is exactly how I learned it as a child and myriad children's books and
- Flag Day and Fourth of July pageants, the famous painting that hangs in the Betsy Ross house commemorated
- in 1952 U.S. Postal Service with a stamp. It's exactly the same story. Yes. That is because the family
- story, quite literally, began its trajectory to becoming the cherished American legend some 100 years
- later when
- her grandson, my great-great-grandfather, William Canby, presented a paper to the Pennsylvania Historical
- Society, complete with signed, notarized affidavits from other surviving grandchildren and one surviving
- daughter who lived into her 90s. Betsy herself lived to be 84, retiring only at 80 because of blindness.
- All right, well, all of these
- The paper and the signed letters all told the same story, how they would gather around Granny Betsy's
- skirts and she would tell them that story. And then it was picked up by the popular press in 1876, just
- in time for the American Centennial. And, um,
- Centennial Americans were eager to forget about the Civil War, and they were hungry to hearken back
- to those revolutionary days, as was fitting for Centennial, and pluck out the stories, the myths,
- the legends, the heroes, and the heroines. Now, if you're of a younger set, or a more cynical set, you
- might be thinking, wait a minute, hasn't the Betsy Ross story been
- debunked and dismissed as purely a legend, a myth? Well, recall, I introduced myself as a storyteller.
- It's a family tradition. Evidently, going all the way back to my great, great, great, great, great grandma,
- Betsy Ross. Thank you.
- Trisha, Linda, Joanne, Diane, Ellen, Simpson, Taylor. I have another very sad song for you. Loo, loo,
- skip to my loo. Loo, loo, skip to my loo. Loo, loo, skip to my loo. Skip to my loo, my darling. I got
- a girl who eats turnips raw, brushes her teeth with a handful of straw, combs her head with a cross-cut
- saw. Skip to my loo, my darling.
- Skip to my loo, loo, loo. Skip to my loo. Skip to my loo, my darling. Ants in the sugar bowl two by
- two. Mules in the barnyard kicking up through. Kittens in the haystack. Mew, mew, mew. Skip to my loo,
- my darling.
- His name is Farida Pawan. Do you know David Crockett? Born in the mountains of Tennessee, raised to
- know the name of every tree, killed a bear when he was three. He grew up to be a man with no fear.
- In fact, so brave, he fought single-handedly in the war in the New Frontier. Then later in life,
- He went to Washington D.C. and took over Washington D.C. for a spell and even during his free time fixed
- the crack in the Liberty Bell. And then, finally, he marched on west as a leading pioneer and made himself
- a legend to folks far and near. But do you know of his partner, Sally Ann?
- thunder and whirlwind, Crockett. Well, if you don't, you should read Stephen Keylock's book. But tell
- you what, I'll do you a favor. I'll tell you a little bit of the story so that you have an idea.
- Listen up. About 250 years ago, a remarkable baby was born.
- On the day that she was born, she said, hi, I'm Celianne Thunderen-Worldwind. How you doing?
- You can talk? Said her astonished parents. Well, I can talk. In fact, I can out-talk, I can out-grin,
- I can out-scream, I can out-grin-whirl, and I can out-run just about anyone. Amazing.
- Amazing, said her parents. But her nine brothers did not agree. Celian is a loudmouth liar. Everybody
- knows that babies can't do all of that. Everybody knows babies can't run, especially girl babies. Well,
- let's race up the mountain, Celian said, and I'll show you.
- I'll show you what I can do." And without missing a beat, she ran up the mountain, past racing rabbits,
- trotting turkeys and galloping horses. And when she got to the top of the mountain, she came right back
- down. And on the way down, she saw her brothers just huffing and fuffing at the beginning of the mountain,
- at the bottom of the mountain. And she looked at them. She said, I'll see you at the finish line, you
- tortoises.
- Well, when they got to the finish line, her brothers exhausted and defeated and they conceded, Sally
- Ann is amazing. Well, Sally Ann went on to do more amazing things. At age 18, she decided she was going
- to go out there and live out in the wilderness and got to get to know all the animals all by herself.
- Now everything was going just fine until one fierce winter's night when the frigid cold drove Salian
- into a cave where a bear was hibernating.
- the hair on Salian's head. The bear woke up and he growled and he opened his big mouth and before he
- could chomp down on Salian as a midnight snack, Salian flashed out the biggest, widest grin.
- It was so wide. It was so bright. It flashed like lightning, stunned
- rolled back onto the stalactites on the cave and rubbed against the stalactites, which ripped off all
- his fur that left him with almost nothing on. Embarrassed, he scampered off. Well, there was nothing
- else for Sally Ann to do except to take that fur and wrap it out around her to stay warm and to continue
- on with her journey.
- She saw a fella in a strange predicament. He had his head stuck between two tree trunks. And to make
- things more miserable, there were two eagles pecking on his head. And so Salianne began to chase away
- the eagles and she decided to scream.
- was so loud, it blasted off all the colors off the top of the bald eagle's head. Star spangled me banner.
- I just about created the first American bald eagles. How about that? Well, she wasn't done yet. She
- had to yank the man out of the tree trunks. And so she shook the bushes
- and found six rattler snakes that she knotted up into a lasso, and she used that to yank the man out
- of the tree trunks. The man was speechless in admiration. He said, my heart, my heart is pounding like
- a buffalo stampede. Will you, will you, will you marry me? Well, suddenly I thought about it.
- for a minute and thought, I guess that's a fine idea. Let's get married. And so Sally Ann Thunderen
- and David Crockett got married and they moved to a farmhouse right along the mighty Mississippi River.
- Not long after they moved into the farmhouse, David Crockett had to leave for Washington, D.C. to be
- a politician.
- A few nights after he was away, there was a gang of bull alligators that were floating up and down the
- Mississippi. When they saw the farmhouse, they thought the roof was just a perfect place for them to
- play king of the mountain whereby they would fight to say who could stay on top the longest. Now they
- began climbing up the rooftop and when Sally Ann heard them, she said, get off my roof.
- off my roof. But the alligators were too busy. They were too busy playing. They didn't pay any attention
- to her. So Sally Ann grabbed the tail of one of the alligators and she started whirling the alligator's
- tail and the alligator that went with it faster and faster and harder and harder until she kicked up
- a tornado that blew all the alligators up and down.
- Mississippi. And you know what? For three straight days, it was raining alligator all the way from Minnesota
- where the Mississippi started all the way to New Orleans where the river flowed into the Gulf. When
- Davy Crockett came home, he was so proud, so proud of Sally Ann Thunder and he said, Sally Ann,
- Sally Ann, let's have
- 30 children. Well, folks, the story didn't tell us how many children they eventually had. But knowing
- Sally Ann, Thunder Ann, Whirlwind Crockett, who could out-talk, out-grin, out-run, out-scream, out-whirl
- just about anything she wanted to, she could have had 30
- 60, 90, or more children if she wanted to. So there. Hello. My name is Jonathan, and we're going to
- go just a little bit further past the Mississippi
- to Kansas for this tale. This is the story What Gold? And it is from a collection called Sweet Land
- of Story by Pleasant de Spain. Now Charles H. Withington moved with his wife down to southern Kansas
- in 1853. And Charles opened up the very first dry goods store there.
- Now in those days, there wasn't a bank in Council Grove, and so the Withingtons had to keep their own
- accounts. Now since business was largely conducted in gold in those days, this means that after a few
- years, the Withingtons had quite a store of valuable gold coins. Now Mr. Withington, he trusted his
- wife's judgment more than he trusted his own. He was a wise man, wouldn't you say?
- And so it was Mrs. Withington's job to store the gold. Now, Mrs. Withington was as smart as she was
- strong, and so she was well up to the task. Now, one day, Charles had to leave town on business, but
- he was worried about leaving his wife at home all alone. You see, just the other day, the Anderson gang
- had been spotted in the next county over.
- Now the Anderson gang, they were a family of rough riders, three sons, and one father, and they had
- a terrible reputation for going around and taking from folks anything that they so happened to fancy.
- Oh, I don't know if I should go, dear. The Andersons are around and, oh, they've certainly heard about
- our gold at this point. What if they come and try to take it while I'm gone?
- What gold is that, darling?" said Mrs. Withington. There's no gold here. You go on along. I will be
- fine. Okay, whatever you say, but I will be back by nightfall at the latest. And so Charles got up on
- his horse and he rode off as fast as he could to do his business. Now it was wash day that day and so
- Mrs. Withington, she went out on the porch and she took out two saw horses
- and she set them up on the porch and she got down a great big wash tub and she set it right on those
- sawhorses and she filled it up with cold well water, put in a great big stack of very dirty clothes
- and a whole mountain of soap and she just started in washing. And now it wasn't long, you see, before
- she noticed a cloud of dust off in the distance.
- It was the Anderson gang, and they were coming right for her cabin. Now, Mrs. Withington, she knew the
- Anderson family from back years ago, before they went bad, when the boys were about knee-high
- to a jackrabbit. And so, she showed no fear when those four men rode into her yard. Well, howdy, Mr.
- Anderson. You and your boys look thirsty. There's a well just around the other side of the cabin. Go
- on and help yourself.
- Thank you kindly, Mrs. Withington," said Mr. Anderson. My boys and I certainly are thirsty and hungry,
- too. I seem to recall a few years ago you invited my family over for a Sunday supper, and the meal was
- mighty tasty. Go get us something to eat. Well, Mrs. Withington, well, she just stopped her washing
- coal. Nice of you to remember my cooking.
- But that was from some years ago before y'all started in robbing folks. And as I recall, you were invited
- to supper. You didn't just stroll up and order a meal. Why not? Even my husband does that. He shows
- me the proper respect, why he would ask me, all right, all right, I see where you're getting with this.
- So I'll ask you, would you please
- Get us something to eat. My boys and I are hungry. Well, that's better. Come on in. I'll see what I
- can do. And so Mrs. Withington brought the Anderson gang in, and she gave them a fine meal of cold ham
- and beans, fresh cornbread, and strong coffee. The man ate it with gusto and offered their compliments
- politely. Polishing off the last of his cornbread, Mr. Anderson said, mm, ah.
- All right now, Mrs. Withington, hand over the gold and we'll be on our way. Now what gold is that?
- The gold? From your husband's store? Everyone knows that you are the one in charge of it. Hand it over
- and there'll be no trouble. Well, I am sorry, Mr. Anderson, you must be mistaken. There's no gold here.
- Mr. Withington would never leave a thing around like that for you to just
- Steel? You'll excuse me if I don't believe you. Now hand it over. There is nothing to hand over. We
- will search this cabin, and I doubt that I could stop you. Anyway, I have got to finish my washing.
- And so, Mrs. Withington, she went back out to the porch to finish her washing, and the Andersons just
- tore that little cabin apart.
- They pulled out every drawer. They opened every cupboard and closet. They threw everything onto the
- floor. They ripped open the mattress and all of the pillows. There were feathers everywhere.
- But no gold. When they had moved every single little piece of furniture in that cabin, they started
- just banging on the walls and the floors, listening for a hollow spot. Nothing.
- And when the inside of the cabin had been thoroughly checked, they went outside and they looked all
- the walls over real close. And they climbed up to the roof and they looked around up there. And they
- went under the porch and they found a lot of dirt, but no gold. They even looked. They even looked in
- the outhouse. Yeah. Nothing. Finally, Mr. Anderson,
- Why, he walked right up to Mrs. Withington doing her washing, and he pulled his pistol out of his holster,
- and he pointed it directly at her and said, all right, lady, I have had it. You tell us where that gold
- is or else. Well, Mrs. Withington, well, she just looked him dead in the eye, and she said, you may
- as well pull the trigger, Mr. Anderson, because like I told you before, there is no gold here.
- Mr. Anderson stood. He knew when he'd been beat. And so he called his boys over, and all four of them
- just rode back the way they came. Mrs. Withington, she just finished up her washing like she intended
- to do, right about the time her husband got home. When he did, he got off his horse and ran over and
- gave her a great big hug. Oh, I heard the Andersons paid us a visit.
- Did they get the gold? Oh, you mean this gold? And Mrs. Withington, well, she reached her hand down
- into that wash tub and she pulled out that big sack of gold right from where it had laid hidden all
- day long under nothing but soapy water and soggy clothes.
- Good evening. I'm Patty Jackson Smith-Jonathan, and I'd like to sing you another song. Oh, Shenandoah,
- I long to hear
- to the
- I'm Ginny Ritchie, and we started this program, Kellyn started the program with a story from a book
- called Sand in the Bag. Sand in the Bag is stories, folk tales collected by M.A. Jagendorf in Ohio,
- Indiana, and Illinois. So I'm going to end with another story from Sand in the Bag. Oh, a little promo
- for the library.
- If you are interested in this sort of folktales, there's a copy of Sand in the Bag right upstairs in
- the Indiana Room. And you can see it when the library is open. Now, M. A. Jagendorf collected stories.
- He had a curious method of doing so.
- Once he'd identified someone that told good stories, he'd sit down and say, let me tell you a story.
- And you know, one story always leads to another. And sure enough, the person he was talking to would
- say, well, that reminds me of a tale or I know that one a little different. Let me tell you my version.
- And so, he would collect
- Oh, more stories than he could put in one book. And one of them, he was sitting down with Louis B. Richardson
- in Trafalgar. And I believe he might have told him a story from Ohio about how great Ohio was.
- Because Mr. Richardson said, well now, Indiana's a grand state. Why, Indiana?
- has some of the smartest people in the entire country living right here. Of course, it also has. Let
- me tell you a story about that. One fine day, there was two fellas sitting in an old corn crib,
- shelling corn. Now, the corn crib was dim and shady, it was full of
- dry corn, and they were sitting cross-legged on the half-rotten punching floor. You don't have to have
- light or pay much attention to shell corn. And so it's a fine time to talk. Now, the one sitting over
- there by the upturned barrel with the dark shadows beneath it, that was Lem. And he was the farmer.
- And the other one, that was little Jimmy Hodge.
- He was the farmhand. Lem said, Jimmy, what was you making such a ruckus about last night? Oh,
- I was scared, said Jimmy. I was scared of ghosts. What ghosts? Oh, them little tiny ones, them little
- bitty ones with the shooting lanterns. Them wasn't ghosts, Jimmy.
- them was lightning bugs. Well, maybe some was. But some wasn't. I know. Talking about being scared,
- said Lynn, did I ever tell you about the time I met a bear, a big one? No, said Jimmy. What'd you do?
- I run. The bear run after me. Did he catch you? No, I climbed up a corn stalk, got away from him. What?
- Oh yeah, we grew corn big in them days. Why, that corn stalk was taller than the barn, and it was as
- big around as an old swamp maple.
- to show how big that corn stalk had been. And from that dark hole under the upturned barrel, they came
- a something, a long slender something, and it struck his hand, and struck again, and struck once more.
- I've been bit, he scrambled to his feet. It was a copperhead, said Jimmy. You're going to die.
- top of their voices, copperhead, copperhead. Well, that got everybody's attention. All the kids stopped
- their playing and their chores and came running. And Lem went in and laid himself down on the bed, holding
- his hand up and moaning and groaning and saying, I've been bit by a copperhead. I'm going to die. Oh,
- no. Everybody started yelling.
- screaming and crying because everybody knows the bite of a copperhead is certain death. But the women,
- they had ideas, things they could do. Why, bile up a polstice and pull that poison out. Oh, tie your
- apron around his arm real tight so it'll keep the blood from flowing back into his heart. And corn liquor's
- real good for snake bites, said Jimmy. I get the corn liquor.
- Dan's wife called their oldest son Dan and said, Dan, saddle up the horse and go for the doctor, quick
- as you can. When the doctor walked into the room, it was pure pandemonium. He could hardly tell which
- one of them had been bit for the screaming and the yelling.
- and the dog barking and the baby bawling and the sobbing and the, oh my goodness, but finally they quieted
- down when he went to examine Lem's hand. Well, you've been bit, all right. Did you see the critter that
- bit you? I did, said Jimmy. I saw it. It was a copperhead.
- It was as thick as your arm and as long as law. Hmm, said the doctor. Hmm. Well, Jimmy, you and I better
- go down to that corn crib and take care of that critter before it bites somebody else. You see that
- iron poker there by the stove? You get that nice and hot, and we'll go burn it out. Jimmy was not enthusiastic.
- But the doctor said to do it. So he wrapped a rag around that poker. And they went down. They got it
- real hot. It was practically glowing red. They went in the corn crib, and he showed the doctor over
- there, under that barrel. What are you waiting for, said the doctor. Give it a poke.
- in all of Indiana. She was squawking, she was flopping, feathers were flying. Hmm, said the doctor,
- hmm, she must have eggs under there. Reckoned she didn't like old Lin getting too close. The doctor
- looked at Jimmy. Jimmy looked like a sheep out in the rain.
- I guess he isn't going to die. You'd be right," said the doctor. Let's go tell him. Now, when they went
- back in the room, it was subdued. Oh, yeah, there were sobs, little sobs and sniffles, but mostly people
- were resigned. But then the doctor said,
- Well, Lem, you are not going to die. Lem sat up. He sat on the edge of the bed. And then the doctor
- told him why. There was silence while this information was processed.
- by one. It occurred to them what had really happened. The baby did the laugh. They couldn't help it.
- The kids were giggling. And even the doctor had a big grin on his face. Everybody in the room was laughing
- and smiling, except Lam. He looked kind of dour.
- He was card turning red. He knew. He knew all right. For the rest of his natural born days, every time
- somebody saw him, there'd be that smile. There'd be that snicker. And he'd know they were thinking or
- saying, oh, look, there goes that fool. There's a man that was so foolish
- that he couldn't tell the difference between being snake bit and being hand picked. So it was. We're
- so glad you came out tonight. Thank you so much for coming. And I want to repeat what Laura said.
- Thanks to the Monroe County Public Library for its strong support of storytelling and of the Bloomington
- Storytellers Guild. And also, our deepest appreciation for the crew that has recorded this performance
- and many of our other performances. And you know, you can go on the library's website and you can request
- any of those performances, which is a great service. We really appreciate it.
- Now, if you're thinking of a story, because as MA Jagendorff discovered, if you tell a story, it gets
- other people thinking about stories. And if you're thinking that you've got a story you'd like to share,
- well, you watch the library's announcements for our meeting in September, or check our Facebook page,
- or our Instagram, or one of those things, and we
- be right glad to hear your tale. I'll leave you with a bit of old Hoosier wisdom. You ready? M. A. Jagendorf
- wrote this in the book at the end of the story I just told, Copperhead in the Bin. So, genuine folk wisdom
- from 1953, that's when the book came out, maybe 52. Remember well and keep in mind an old cow's tail
- falls down behind. See you next time.