Richard Morgan, Santa Cruz Mountains.
Der is Old Witch. One boy larnin’ old witch, too. De man want a
book-clerk. De boy go to him and said, “You want a book-clerk, sir?”
An’ say, “Yes, but you cannot read?” Boy say no, an’ say, “All right,
you shall be my clerk.” He never trouble de boy on de book for a long
time. When he going tek up de book, ’e say, “Oh-h-h-h! you expect to be
my master!” an’ de man say, “Go home!”
Him mudder an’ fader was poor. He said, “Ma, I gwine to turn a fat pig
tomorrow; kyar’ me go sell, don’ lef’ de rope on me.” He ma get two
pound. Nex’ day he say, “Ma, I gwine to turn a pretty mare; kyar’ me
sell me, don’ lef’ de rope.” When de fader get part of de way, he meet
a man. De man say, “Ho-o-o, what a pretty mare! How much you
want?”—“One hundred.” De ol’ man go to tek off de rope. De man said,
“What a damn fool is you! I buy de mare an’ you want de rope!” De Old
Witch tek de mare. At de same time de Old Witch know dat de mare is de
boy an’ de boy know dat is de Old Witch. So he hitch him in de market
an’ gwine in de shop to tek a drink. Some school-children gwine past.
De mare said, “Do, you kyan’ slip off dis rope off me head?” De
chil’ren said, “’top! you ever hear a horse talk?” De mare said, “Never
mind! you slip it off.” As dey slip off de rope, de mare gallop away.
De chil’ren call out, “You’ mare get away!”
De Old Witch come out. He turn a stallion, an’ two race fo’ it. An’ de
mare up again a pigeon-hawk an’ she fly. De Old Witch turn a big
fowl-hawk an’ dey sail in de air. De mare turn a dove an’ sail till she
’py a house wid glass windeh. De dove sail right t’ru de windeh, drop
into a woman lap; de dove turn a ring, get on de woman finger. De
fowl-hawk fly exactly to de door. When de hawk fly away, de ring come
off de finger an’ turn de boy an’ tell de woman a man will come here in
de mo’ning; he will have her marry fo’ dis ring, but don’ receive it.
Nex’ day de boy turn de ring, get on de finger. De man dribe up an’
said, “You have a ring here?” De woman said yes. He said, “I give you
one husband,” an’ de woman said yes and slipped off de ring to give to
de man. De ring drop on de floor an’ turn a corn-grain. De man come out
of de buggy, turn a rooster to pick up de corn-grain. De corn-grain
jump up, turn a puss an’ wipe off de cock head. So dat de boy get up
and tek de buggy an’ go to de Old Witch yard and tek all what he get.
So de boy learn one mark more dan de Old Witch.