The Rabbit was a great runner, and everybody knew it. No one thought
the Terrapin anything but a slow traveler, but he was a great warrior
and very boastful, and the two were always disputing about their
speed. At last they agreed to decide the matter by a race. They fixed
the day and the starting place and arranged to run across four mountain
ridges, and the one who came in first at the end was to be the winner.
The Rabbit felt so sure of it that he said to the Terrapin, "You know
you can't run. You can never win the race, so I'll give you the first
ridge and then you'll have only three to cross while I go over four."
The Terrapin said that would be all right, but that night when he went
home to his family he sent for his Terrapin friends and told them he
wanted their help. He said he knew he could not outrun the Rabbit,
but he wanted to stop the Rabbit's boasting. He explained his plan
to his friends and they agreed to help him.
When the day came all the animals were there to see the race. The
Rabbit was with them, but the Terrapin was gone ahead toward the
first ridge, as they had arranged, and they could hardly see him on
account of the long grass. The word was given and the Rabbit started
off with long jumps up the mountain, expecting to win the race before
the Terrapin could get down the other side. But before he got up the
mountain he saw the Terrapin go over the ridge ahead of him. He ran on,
and when he reached the top he looked all around, but could not see
the Terrapin on account of the long grass. He kept on down the mountain
and began to climb the second ridge, but when he looked up again there
was the Terrapin just going over the top. Now he was surprised and
made his longest jumps to catch up, but when he got to the top there
was the Terrapin away in front going over the third ridge. The Rabbit
was getting tired now and nearly out of breath, but he kept on down
the mountain and up the other ridge until he got to the top just in
time to see the Terrapin cross the fourth ridge and thus win the race.
The Rabbit could not make another jump, but fell over on the ground,
crying mi, mi, mi, mi, as the Rabbit does ever since when he is too
tired to run any more. The race was given to the Terrapin and all the
animals wondered how he could win against the Rabbit, but he kept still
and never told. It was easy enough, however, because all the Terrapin's
friends looked just alike, and he had simply posted one near the top
of each ridge to wait until the Rabbit came in sight and then climb
over and hide in the long grass. When the Rabbit came on he could not
find the Terrapin and so thought the Terrapin was ahead, and if he
had met one of the other terrapins he would have thought it the same
one because they looked so much alike. The real Terrapin had posted
himself on the fourth ridge, so as to come in at the end of the race
and be ready to answer questions if the animals suspected anything.
Because the Rabbit had to lie down and lose the race the conjurer now,
when preparing his young men for the ball play, boils a lot of rabbit
hamstrings into a soup, and sends some one at night to pour it across
the path along which the other players are to come in the morning,
so that they may become tired in the same way and lose the game. It
is not always easy to do this, because the other party is expecting
it and has watchers ahead to prevent it.