CHEROKEE LEGEND
LEGEND OF OPOSSUMS BARE TAIL
In the beginning all living things, men, animals, plants and trees
spoke the same language and behaved in much the same way.
Animals, like people, were organized into tribes. They had chiefs,
lived in houses, held councils and ceremonies.
Many animals had characteristics which
we would not recognize
today. The rabbit, for example, was fierce, bold and cunning, and a
great mischief maker. It was through Rabbit's tricks that the deer
lost his sharp wolf-like teeth, the buzzard his handsome topknot of
feathers and the opossum his long, bushy tail.
Opossum was very proud of his tail
which, in those days, was
covered with thick black fur. He spent long hours cleaning and
brushing it and composing songs about its beauty and vigor.
Sometimes, when he walked through the village, he carried his tail
erect, like a banner rippling in the breeze. At other times, he swept
it low behind him, like a train. It was useful as well as beautiful,
for when Opossum lay down to sleep, he tucked it under him to
make a soft bed, and in cold weather he folded it over his body to
keep himself warm.
Rabbit was very jealous of Opossum's
tail. He, too, had once had a
long bushy tail but, during the course of a a fight with Bear, he had
lost most of it and now had only a short fluffy tuft. The sight of
Opossum strutting before the other animals and swirling his tail
ostentatiously, filled Rabbit with rage and he made up his mind to
play a trick on him at the first opportunity.
At this time, when the animals still
lived harmoniously together,
each had his appointed station and duty. Thus, Frog was leader in
the council and Rabbit, because of his speed, was employed to
carry messages and announcements to the others.
As was their custom from time to time,
the animals decided to hold
a great council to discuss important matters and Rabbit, as usual,
was given the task of arranging the gathering and delivering the
invitations. Councils were also occasions for feasting and dancing
and Rabbit saw a way of bringing about Opossum's downfall.
When Rabbit arrived with the news of
the meeting, Opossum was
sitting by the door of his lodge engaged in his favorite
occupation
- grooming his tail.
'I come to call you to the great
council tomorrow, brother
Opossum,' said Rabbit. 'Will you attend and join in the dance ?'
'Only if I am given a special seat,'
replied the conceited Opossum,
carefully smoothing some untidy hairs at the tip of his tail. 'After
all,' he went on, grinning maliciously at Rabbit, 'I have such a
beautiful long tail that I ought to sit where everyone can see and
admire it.'
Rabbit was almost beside himself with
fury, but he pretended not
to notice the jibe and said, 'But of course, brother Opossum! I will
personally see to it that you have the best seat in the council lodge,
and I will also send someone to dress your tail specially for the
dance.'
Opossum was delighted by this
suggestion and Rabbit left him
singing the praises of his tail even more loudly than usual.
Next, Rabbit called on the cricket,
whom Indians call the barber,
because of his fame as an expert hair-cutter. Cricket listened with
growing amazement as Rabbit recounted his conversation with
Opossum. Like all the other animals, he found Opossum's vanity
and arrogance very tiresome.
He began to protest, but Rabbit held
up a paw and said, 'Wait a
moment. I have a plan and I need your help. Listen...', and he
dropped his voice as he told Cricket what he wanted him to do.
Early next morning Cricket presented
himself at Opossum's door
and said that he had been sent by Rabbit to prepare the famous tail
for the council that evening. Opossum made himself comfortable
on the floor and stretched out his tail. Cricket began to comb it
gently.
'I will wrap this red cord round your
tail as I comb it,' he
explained, 'so that it will remain smooth and neat for the dance
tonight.'
Opossum found Cricket's ministrations
so soothing that he fell
asleep, awakening just as Cricket was tying the final knot in the
red cord which now completely swathed his tail.
'I will keep it bound up until the
very last moment,' thought
Opossum gleefully. 'How envious the others will be when I finally
reveal it in all its beauty!'
That evening, his tail still tightly
wrapped in the red cord, Opossum
marched into the council lodge and was led to his special seat by a
strangely obsequious Rabbit.
Soon it was time for the dancing to
take place. The drums and
rattles began to sound. Opossum stood up, loosened the cord from
his tail and stepped proudly into the center
of the dance floor. He
began to sing.
'Look at my beautiful tail!' he sang
as he circled the floor. 'See how
it sweeps the ground!'
There was a great shout from the
audience and some of the
animals began to applaud. 'How they admire me!' though Opossum
and he continued dancing and singing loudly. 'See how my tail
gleams in the firelight!'
Again everyone shouted and cheered.
Opossum began to have just
the merest suspicion that all was not quite as it should be. Was
there possibly a hint of mockery in their voices ? He dismissed
such an absurd idea and continued dancing.
'My tail is stronger than the eagle's,
more lustrous than the
raven's!'
At this the animals shrieked so loudly
that Opossum stopped in his
tracks and looked at them. To his astonishment and chagrin they
were all convulsed with laughter, some leaning weakly on their
neighbor's shoulders, others rolling on the ground in their mirth.
Several were pointing at his tail.
Bewildered, Opossum looked down and
saw to his horror that his
tail, his beautiful, thick, glossy tail, was now balk and scaly like
that of a lizard. Nothing remained of its former glory. While
pretending to comb it, the wily Cricket had snipped off every single
lair.
Opossum was so overcome with shame and
confusion that he could
not utter a sound. Instead he rolled over helplessly on his back,
grimacing with embarrassment, just as opossums still do today,
when taken by surprise.