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春天的一天，郊狼和狐狸外出散步。当他们走到一块光滑的大石头旁时，郊狼把毯子铺在上面，他们一起坐在毯子上休息。过了一会儿，太阳晒得非常热，郊狼认为自己不再需要毯子了。“喂，兄弟，"他对石头说，"你一无所有，而且让我坐在你身上休息，所以我把毯子送给你吧，你要好好保存着。"说罢，郊狼和狐狸继续往前走，他们还没走多远，一大片乌云笼罩了天空，紧接着电闪雷鸣，下起雨来。他们唯一可以躲雨的地方是一处深谷。郊狼对狐狸说，“你去把毯子拿回来吧。 "不行，”石头回答说，“他已经送给我作礼物了，我要留着，告诉他我是不会还给他的。”狐狸回到郊狼身边，把石头的话告诉了他。"咳！”郊狼说，“真是一块忘恩负义的石头。我只想拿回毯子用一小会儿，雨停了就给他。’’郊狼很生气，回到石头那里一把拽走了毯子。“我想用毯子挡挡雨，”他说，"你根本不需要毯子。你一辈子都在外面风吹雨淋的，还不是一直都活得好好的。” 郊狼和狐狸躲在毯子下面一点儿没被雨淋着，一直躲到雨停了，太阳出来了，他们才离开山谷，继续往河边走去。过了一会儿，他们听到身后山的另一边传来一阵巨响。“狐狸小兄弟，"郊狼说，“你回去看看，那是什么声音。” 狐狸爬上山顶，然后急匆匆地以最快的速度跑了回来。“快跑！快跑！”他喊道，“那块石头来了！”郊狼回头一看，发现石头滚过了山顶，正朝他们冲过来。狐狸跳进一个獾洞，但是石头还是压碎了他的尾巴尖。这就是为什么直到今天狐狸的尾巴还是白色的。 与此同时，郊狼冲下山来，跳进河里。他游到河的对岸，确信自己安全了，因为他认为石头会沉到水底的。但是当石头滚到河里时，它竟然游起泳来。郊狼慌忙向最近的树林逃去。一跑进树林深处，他就躺下来休息，但还没等他伸展开身子，就听到了树木被撞碎的声音。郊狼知道是石头还在追赶他，就从地上一跃而起，向幵阔的大草原跑去。 几头熊正从苴原上走过，郊狼大喊着向他们求助。"我们会救你的"熊叫道。但是石头从熊的身上滚了过去，把他们压得粉身碎骨。这时郊狼看到几头野牛。“噢，弟兄们，”他向他们喊道，"快救我啊，救救我。挡住那块石头！”野牛低下头，冲向石头，但是石头撞砗了他们的头颅，继续向前滚去。接着一群响尾蛇缠成一根绳索来帮助郊狼，但当他们想要拦住石头时，绳索头上的蛇被压成了一段一段的碎片。 郊狼沿着一条小路继续狂奔，石头已离他非常近，都碰到他的脚后跟了。他正要放弃，看到两个女巫站在路的两边，手里拿着石斧。‘‘我们会救你的！”她们喊道。郊狼跑到两个女巫中间，石头紧跟在他后面。郊狼听到女巫用石斧劈石头的声音，回头看时，发现石头已经躺在地上碎成了片。 这时郊狼注意到小路已把他带到了一大片露营地里。他坐下来喘气歇息时，无意中听到其中一个女巫对另一个说：“他看起来肥美无比，我们晚餐有好吃的啦，让我们马上吃掉他吧。” 郊狼假装什么也没听到，一只眼睛半闭着观察女巫，直到她们进屋，开始叮叮当当地准备炊具。这时他跳起来，把她们水桶里的水全部倒光了。 女巫一出来，郊狼就说，“我很渴，希望你们可以让我痛痛快快地喝点水。" ‘‘这儿有许多水，”一个女巫回答道，“你喝哪个桶里的水都可以。”她往水桶里一看，却发现每个水桶都空空如也。 “那边的小河里有水，"郊狼说，“我去给你们打点儿水来吧。” 郊狼提着水桶打水去了，他一离开女巫的视线，就以最快的速度拼命逃走了。后来他听说，女巫们发现自己被骗之后，就开始互相埋怨起对方让郊狼逃走了。她们吵啊吵啊，打啊打啊，直到最后自相残杀，一命呜呼。 One spring day Coyote and Fox were out for a walk, and when they came to a big smooth rock, Coyote threw his blanket over it and they sat down to rest. After a while the Sun became very hot, and Coyote decided he no longer needed the blanket. “Here，brother,” he said to the rock. “I give you my blanket because you are poor and have let me rest on you. Always keep it.” Then Coyote and Fox went on their way. They had not gone far when a heavy cloud covered the sky. Lightning flashed and thunder rumbled and rain began to fall. The only shelter they could find was in a coulee1, and Coyote said to Fox, “Run back to that rock, and ask him to lend us the blanket I gave him. We can cover ourselves with it and keep dry.” So Fox ran back to the rock, and said, “Coyote wants his blanket.” ‘Wo， replied the rock. “He gave it to me as a present. I shall keep it. Tell him he cannot have it.” Fox returned to Coyote and told him what the rock had said. “Well,” said Coyote，“that certainly is an ungrateful rock. I only wanted the use of the blanket for a little while until the rain stops.” He grew very angry and went back to the rock and snatched the blanket off. “I need this to keep me dry，，，he said. “You don’t need a blanket. You have been out in the rain and snow all your life, and it won't hurt you to live so always.” Coyote and Fox kept dry under the blanket until the rain stopped and the sun came out again. Then they left the coulee and resumed their walk toward the river. After a while they heard a loud noise behind them coining from the other side of the hill. “Fox，little brother，” said Coyote, “go back and see what is making that noise.” Fox went to the top of the hill, and then came hurrying back as fast as he could. “Run! Run!” he shouted, “that big rock is coming.” Coyote looked back and saw the rock roll over the top of the hill and start rushing down upon them. Fox jumped into a badger hole, but the rock mashed the tip of his tail, and that is why Fox’s tail is white to this day. Meanwhile Coyote had raced down the hill and jumped into the river. He swam across to the other side where he was sure that he was safe because he knew that rocks sink in water. But when the rock splashed into the river it began swimming, and Coyote fled toward the nearest woods. As soon as he was deep in the timber, he lay down to rest, but he had scarcely stretched himself out when he heard trees crashing. Knowing that the rock was still pursuing him, Coyote jumped up and ran out on the open prairie. Some bears were crossing there, and Coyote called upon them for help. “We’ll save you.” the bears shouted, but the rock came rolling upon them and crushed the bears. About this time Coyote saw several bull buffalo. “Oh，my brothers，，，he called to them, “help me, help me. Stop that rock.” The buffalo put their heads down and rushed upon the rock, but it broke their skulls and kept rolling. Then a nest of rattlesnakes came to help Coyote by forming themselves into a lariat2，but when they tried to catch the rock, the rattlesnakes at the noose3 end were all cut to pieces. Coyote kept running along a pathway, but the rock was now very close to him, so close that it began to knock against his heels. Just as he was about to give up, he saw two witches standing on opposite sides of the path. They had stone hatchets in their hands. “We’ll save you.” they called out. He ran between them, with the rock following close behind. Coyote heard the witches strike the rock with their hatchets, and when he turned to look, he saw it lying on the ground all shattered into tiny pieces. Then Coyote noticed that the path had led him into a large camp. When he sat down to catch his breath, he overheard one of the witches say to the other: “He looks nice and fat. We’ll have something good for dinner now. Let’s eat him right away.” Coyote pretended he had heard nothing, but he watched the witches through one of his half-closed eyes until they went into their lodge and began rattling their cooking utensils. Then he jumped up and emptied all their water pails. As soon as they came outside again, he said, “I am very thirsty. I wish you would give me a good drink of water.” “There is plenty of water here，，’ one of the witches replied. “You may have a drink from one of these pails.” But when she looked in the pails she found that every one was empty. “That creek down there has water in it,” Coyote said. “I，ll go and get some water for you.” He took the pails and started off, but as soon as he was out of sight he ran away as fast as his legs could carry him. Afterwards he heard that when the old witches discovered that he had tricked them, they began blaming each other for letting him escape. They quarrelled and quarrelled, and fought and fought, until finally they killed each other. |
