The fox failed to catch the white rabbit, and he never will. But once, the rabbit's situation was truly perilous. Here's how it happened:
One day, the fox decided to use a trick he had once employed against a rattlesnake on the white rabbit. He gathered some tar, worked carefully, and soon fashioned a dummy figure. This dummy looked like a child, so the fox named it "Tar Baby."
Then the fox took the Tar Baby and placed it by the roadside, hiding himself in the nearby bushes. Not long after, the white rabbit came along and saw the Tar Baby. The little figure sat alone by the path, wearing a hat. The rabbit wanted to speak to this shiny, comical little fellow.
"Good morning!" the rabbit greeted first. "Lovely weather today, isn't it?"
The Tar Baby said nothing, and the rabbit waited quietly.
"How are you feeling today?" the rabbit asked.
He waited a while longer, but the Tar Baby remained silent.
"How are you, really? Are you deaf?!" the rabbit asked. "If you're deaf, I can speak louder."
The Tar Baby still didn't answer, and the fox watched carefully from his hiding place.
"You're terribly rude," said the rabbit. "If you don't take off your hat and say 'hello,' I'll give you a good punch as a lesson."
The fox chuckled silently, but the Tar Baby stayed mute.
The rabbit said "hello," repeating it three or four times, but the Tar Baby remained silent.
Angry, the rabbit punched it. This was the dangerous beginning. As soon as he hit it, his hand stuck fast. The Tar Baby was too heavy, and the rabbit couldn't free himself, panicking. The Tar Baby neither moved nor spoke. The fox was delighted and continued waiting.
"Let me go!" the rabbit roared. "Otherwise, I'll head-butt you, and you won't like that!"
In his panic, the rabbit head-butted the Tar Baby, and his head got stuck too.
Then the fox crawled out of the bushes and approached, asking:
"Well, little brother rabbit, what are you doing here?"
The fox laughed and laughed, rolling on the ground.
"I think you'll be joining me for lunch today. This time I've even prepared beets! I'm sure you'll enjoy them." The fox laughed again. "Ha ha, I'll go gather some firewood now, build a big fire. Today I'll have roast rabbit—no need for a frying pan!"
The rabbit was in great danger, but he wasn't afraid. He pretended to be frightened and pleaded:
"Big brother fox, you can do whatever you want with me, but please don't throw me into the thicket. You can roast me, but whatever you do, don't throw me into the thicket."
The fox wanted to punish the rabbit severely, to really hurt him. But hearing the rabbit's words, he abandoned his first plan and said:
"Building a big fire is too much trouble. I think I'll hang you instead."
"You can hang me or drown me," said the rabbit, "but you absolutely must not throw me into the thicket."
Remembering that Judge Bear had failed to drown the rabbit, the fox said:
"I don't have rope to hang you, and there's no water nearby. I think I'll just skin you!"
"Skin me if you like, big brother fox," said the rabbit, "or chop off my legs, but please don't throw me into the thicket."
Hearing this, the fox grabbed the rabbit's hind legs, pulled him away from the Tar Baby, and threw him forcefully into the thicket. There was a sound from the thicket, and the fox stood there, staring, waiting to see what would happen. He thought, "What will happen now?"
Later, he heard a voice calling him. Looking closely, he saw the rabbit had reached the other side of the thicket. The rabbit was sitting on a log, brushing tar from his fur! He looked up and called to the fox:
"Brother fox, brother fox, didn't you know I've played in thickets since I was a child? Throwing me into the thicket is like delivering me right to my doorstep!"
Now the fox realized he had been confused and tricked by the rabbit. "The rabbit is too clever. I can't handle him," he said to himself. He decided to leave the rabbit alone for now and wait for a better opportunity.
And so this strange tale ends: this was one of the last few lessons the rabbit received, but the lessons he gave the fox were only beginning.
The Rabbit's Steed
Mrs. Meddow was a good neighbor to the white rabbit. She was kind, and everyone enjoyed visiting her. She had three daughters who loved to dance, sing, and hear all kinds of stories. One day, someone told them the story of the Tar Baby. Shortly after the storyteller left, the white rabbit came to visit Mrs. Meddow. After Mrs. Meddow clarified the details of the Tar Baby story with the rabbit, the girls laughed, but the rabbit sat there expressionless. He wanted them to laugh their fill. Finally, the rabbit crossed his legs, smiled slightly, and said:
"Ladies, ladies, the fox served as my father's steed for thirty years—possibly longer, but I only know of those thirty years. Later, because the fox grew old and his legs were no longer agile, unable to be a good mount, my father sent him away."
The next day, the fox came to visit Mrs. Meddow. When he again mocked the rabbit, Mrs. Meddow and the girls repeated what the rabbit had said. The fox bared his teeth, clearly angry. As he left, he said:
"Ladies, I won't argue now, but I'll bring the rabbit here and make him take back his words in front of everyone."
Furious, the fox left Mrs. Meddow and went straight to the rabbit's house. The rabbit was waiting for him, but the door was closed. The fox knocked, but no one answered. He knocked again: bang! bang!
Now the rabbit pretended to speak in a weak, low voice:
"Is that you, big brother fox? I'm home alone, and I'm sick. Please go get a doctor for me, big brother fox, hurry!"
"Little brother rabbit," said the fox, "Mrs. Meddow is holding a banquet, and all the girls are there. I promised to bring you. Without you, the girls won't be happy, so they sent me to invite you."
"I'm too sick," replied the rabbit.
"Oh, it can't be that bad," said the fox.
"I can't walk," said the rabbit.
"I'll carry you," the fox replied.
"How will you carry me?"
"In my arms."
"But you might drop me."
"No, I won't drop you. I'll be very careful."
"No, no," said the rabbit. "If you're willing to take me, you must carry me on your back."
"Alright, I'll carry you on my back."
"But without a saddle, I can't ride properly."
"I have a saddle at home; I can bring it."
"I still can't ride without a bridle. If I don't hold the bridle, I'll fall off the saddle."
"I have a bridle too."
"Alright, even though I'm very ill, if you put on the saddle and bridle and carry me to Mrs. Meddow's, I can attend the banquet."
"I can't carry you all the way to Mrs. Meddow's. I'll carry you, and when we're close, you can deign to walk the last few steps!"
"Alright, that's not too much to ask," said the rabbit.
After the rabbit agreed, the fox went home to fetch the saddle and bridle.
"He wants to trick me," thought the rabbit, "but I know how to deal with him." Then he got up, combed his hair, and prepared for the banquet. The fox returned quickly, wearing the saddle and bridle, looking just like a circus pony. He stood at the door, waiting like a real horse for the rabbit. The rabbit opened the door, jumped onto the saddle, and they set off.
Because the fox's head was tied with the bridle, he couldn't see what the rabbit on his back was doing. But when the rabbit lifted one foot, the fox noticed the movement.
"What are you doing, little brother rabbit?" asked the fox.
"I'm pulling down my left trouser leg, big brother fox."
Later, the rabbit lifted the other foot.
"What are you doing now, little brother rabbit?"
"I'm pulling down my right trouser leg, big brother fox."
But in fact, the rabbit was putting on spurs. When they were near Mrs. Meddow's house, the rabbit drove the spurs deep into the fox's sides. The fox, in pain, couldn't bear it and started running as fast as he could. He had never run so fast in his life! When they arrived, Mrs. Meddow and the girls were sitting on the porch, but the rabbit didn't dismount at the gate. He rode a bit further in before jumping down and tying the fox to the fence. Then he went over, shook hands with Mrs. Meddow and the girls, went inside, sat down, lit his pipe, and announced loudly:
"Ladies, didn't I tell you about the fox serving as my family's steed? He's not very fast now. But if I ride him every day, within a month he'll improve dramatically."
Here, the rabbit grinned, and the girls laughed heartily. Mrs. Meddow said:
"Well then, little brother rabbit, with such a fine horse, of course you should ride him every day!"
They chatted, sang songs, and the girls played the piano. Meanwhile, the fox remained tied to the fence, unable to escape.
Finally, the rabbit bid everyone farewell, untied his "horse," jumped onto the saddle, and rode off with a crack of the whip.
The fox walked silently down the road, saying nothing. But the rabbit well understood what his "steed" was thinking now, so he felt a bit worried. The fox walked slowly along the road. Once far from Mrs. Meddow's house, where the girls could no longer see him, he began bucking and jumping wildly like a wild horse, trying to throw the rabbit off the saddle. But each time he jumped, the rabbit pricked him with the spurs, forcing him to keep running.
As the fox walked, he came up with another idea. He stopped, lay down, and rolled on the ground, hoping this would force the rabbit to jump off the saddle and flee.
The Fish in the Well
One day, the white rabbit, the fox, the raccoon, the bear, and many other animals were working together. To plant more corn, they were clearing a piece of wasteland. The sun was blazing, and the rabbit was tired. But he didn't show his fatigue, continuing to move the brushwood others had cut.
"Ouch! I've got a splinter in my hand!" he cried, then slipped away. He wanted to find a cool spot to rest. So he came to a large well. There were two buckets on the well, and the owner had designed a clever water-lifting mechanism: when one bucket descended, the other automatically rose. But the rabbit didn't know this.
"Marvelous," he thought, looking at the big wooden bucket hanging on the well frame. "It must be cool inside that bucket. I should jump in and rest."
As soon as he jumped into the bucket, it began to descend. The rabbit was terrified, not knowing where he would end up. Finally, the bucket hit the water and stopped. The rabbit was too scared to move. With no other options, he sat in the bucket, waiting for a chance.
The fox always kept an eye on the rabbit's movements. After the rabbit claimed he had a splinter and slipped away, the fox had been following him.
"The rabbit's full of tricks," thought the fox. "I need to see what new scheme he's up to this time."
The fox saw the rabbit go to the well and jump into the large bucket, disappearing into the well. The fox couldn't figure out what was happening. He sat in the bushes, thought for a moment, then muttered to himself:
"I know what the rabbit's doing. He must be hiding his money in the well. I need to see exactly what he's up to."
He crept closer, listened, but heard nothing; crept closer still, still no sound. Finally, he crawled to the well's edge and looked down. It was dark inside, and the fox saw and heard nothing. So he called down:
"Hey, little brother rabbit, who are you visiting down there?"
"Who? Me? Oh, I'm catching fish!" the rabbit replied. "I want to take lots of fish back for dinner and surprise them!"
"Are there many fish down there?"
"Plenty, big brother fox. The well is full of fish. Come down and help me, big brother fox!"
"How do I get down, little brother rabbit?"
"Jump into the bucket, and you'll descend safely."
The rabbit spoke cheerfully and confidently, convincing the fox, who jumped into the wooden bucket. He descended as the rabbit ascended. When they passed each other, the rabbit sang:
Farewell, fox,
Mind your clothes well.
The logic of the world is thus:
One rises, one falls.
Goodbye, fox,
You're about to plummet.
The rabbit emerged from the well and dashed off to find the well owner.
"The fox is causing trouble in your well!" he shouted.
Then he sprinted back to the well and called down to the fox:
"Someone's coming this way with a big gun! Listen, as soon as he pulls you out of the well, you must jump out of the bucket and run for your life!"
It's not hard to imagine the well owner's fury upon seeing the fox and the fox's panicked, disheveled escape as he jumped from the bucket.
About half an hour later, the rabbit and the fox were both back in the field. They worked silently side by side, as if neither knew what had happened at the well. But the rabbit occasionally smiled, while the fox seemed somewhat displeased.