How the Snake Got Poison
Zora Neale Hurston
Well, when God made de snake he
put him in de bushes to ornament de ground. But things didn't suit de snake so
one day he got on de ladder and went up to see God.
"Good mawnin', God."
"How
do you do, Snake?"
"Ah ain't so many, God, you put
me down there on my belly in de dust and everything trods upon me and kills off
my generations. Ah ain't got no kind of protection at all."
God looked towards immensity
and thought about de subject for awhile, then he said, "Ah didn't mean for
nothin' to be stompin you snakes lak dat. You got to have some kind of
protection. Here, take dis poison and put it in yo' mouf and when they tromps on
you, protect yo' self."
So de snake took de poison in
his mouf and went on back.
So after awhile all de other
varmints went up to God.
"Good evenin', God."
“How you makin' it, varmints?"
"God, please do somethin' 'bout
dat snake. He's layin' in de bushes there wid poison in his mouf and he's
striking everything dat skakes de bush. He's killin' up our generation. Wese
skeered to walk de earth."
So God sent for de snake and
tole him:
"Snake, when Ah give you dat
poison, Ah didn't mean for you to be hittin' and killin' everything dat shake de
bush. I give you dat poison and tole you to protect yo'self when they tromples
on you. But you killin' everything dat moves. Ah didn't mean for you to do dat."
De snake say, "Lawd, you know
Ah'm down here in de dust. Ah ain't got no claws to fight wid, and Ah ain't go
no feets to git me out de way. All Ah kin see is feets comin' to tromple me. Ah
can't tell who my enemy is and who is my friend. You gimme dis protection in my
mouf and Ah uses it."
God thought it over for a while
then he says:
"Well,
snake, I don't want yo' generations all stompled out and I don't want you killin'
everything else dat moves. Here take dis bell and tie it to yo' tail. When you
hear feets comin' you ring yo' bell and if it's yo' friend, he'll be keerful. If
it's yo' enemy, it's you and him."
So dat's how de snake got his
poison and dat's how come he got rattles.