Ou' Wolf lays a Trap

’

“‘I tink dis stone stop up all de air,’ ses Ou’ Jackalse. ‘You might yust pull it a little way back; not de hool way out, else Ou’ Wolf might try to get in agen.’

“So de leopard pull out de stone a bit; not too far, but yust far enough for Ou’ Jackalse to squeeze out if he want to. ‘Look ahter dat sick ’un,’ ses de leopard, an’ off she go.

“Den Ou’ Jackalse scoff de last cub. ‘Allah man!’ ses he, ‘ain’t it a pity dey’s all done. An’ now I’ll ha’ to slant for home ’fore de leopard come an’ want to feed her cubses agen.’

“Den he squeeze hisse’f outside ready to go, an’ he hadn’t strid de fust stride ’fore he sees de leopard comin’ back. Dere he was, an’ dere’s de leopard comin’ for her cubses; but darie ou’ skellum he ain’t done yet. He let a yell outen him, an’ run an put his shoulder to de rock. ‘Make hurry! make haste,’ he shout ‘De rock’s a-fallin’ on your house. Come an’ he’p me hol’ it up! make hurry!’

“De leopard don’t stop to look, an’ de leopard don’t stop to tink. It hear Ou’ Jackalse yellin’, an’ it see him plank his shoulder to de rock, an’ strain an’ puff till his eyes stick out to hol’ up dat rock; an’ in yust about one tick dat leopard was dere too, wid his shoulder to de rock, scratchin’ an’ yammin’ to hol’ it up too.

“‘Hol’ it now till I run an’ get a prop,’ shouts Ou’ Jackalse, an’ de leopard he yust double hol’s while Ou’ Jackalse dive into de trees to look for de prop.

“But,” concluded the old Hottentot, with an impressive pause, “he ain’t got back wid dat prop yet.”