an’ he went whar he hyeard de soun’, an’ dar wuz de po’ bird layin’
down all tied ter de bush.
“‘Umph!’ says Pigunawaya, sezee, ‘ain’t dis Nancy Jane O, de
swif’es’-flyin’ bird dey is?’ sezee; ‘wat ail ’long yer, chile? wat yer
cryin’ ’bout?’ An’ atter Nancy Jane O she up an’ tol’ ’im, den de frog
sez:
“‘Now look er yer; I wuz er gwine myse’f ter see ef’n I could’n git dat
gol’-stone; hit’s true I don’t stan’ much showin’ ’long o’ birds, but
den ef’n eber I gits dar, wy I kin jes jump right in an’ fotch up de
stone wile de birds is er waitin’ fur de crick ter run down. An’ now,
s’posin’ I wuz ter ontie yer, Nancy Jane O, could yer tuck me on yer
back an’ cyar me ter de crick? an’ den we’d hab de sho’ thing on de
gol’-stone, caze soon’s eber we git dar, I’ll git it, an’ we’ll cyar it
bof tergedder ter de king, an’ den we’ll bof git de deares’ wush uv our
hearts. Now wat yer say? speak yer min’. Ef’n yer able an’ willin’ ter
tote me fum hyear ter de crick, I’ll ontie yer; ef’n yer ain’t, den far
yer well, caze I mus’ be er gittin’ erlong.’
“Well, Nancy Jane O, she stedded an’ stedded in her min’, an’ by’mby
she sez, ‘Brer Frog,’ sez she, ‘I b’lieve I’ll try yer; ontie me,’ sez
she, ‘an’ git on, an’ I’ll tuck yer ter de crick.’ Den de frog he clum
on her back an’ ontied her, an’ she flopped her wings an’ started off.
Hit wuz mighty hard flyin’ wid dat big frog on her back; but Nancy Jane
O wuz er flyer, mun, yer hyeard me! an’ she jes lit right out, an’ she
flew an’ she flew, an’ atter er wile she got in sight er de birds, an’
dey looked, an’ dey see her comin’, an’ den dey ’gun ter holler,
“‘Who on-tied, who on-tied Po’ Nancy Jane O?’
An’ de frog he holler back,
“‘O Pig-un-a-wa-ya, Pig-un-a-wa-ya, hooo-hooo!’
“Den, gemmun, yer oughten seed dat race; dem birds dey done dey leb’l
bes’, but Nancy Jane O, spite er all dey could do, she gaint on ’em,
an’ ole Pigunawaya he sot up dar, an’ he kep’ er urg’n an’ er urg’n
Nancy Jane O.
“‘Dat’s you!’ sezee; ‘git erhead!’ sezee. ‘Now we’re gwine it!’ sezee;
an’ pres’nly Nancy Jane O shot erhead clean befo’ all de res’, an’ wen
de birds dey seed dat de race wuz los’, den dey all ’gun ter holler,
“‘Who on-tied, who on-tied Po’ Nancy Jane O?’
An’ de frog, he turnt roun,’ he did, an’ he wave his han’ roun’ his
head, an’ he holler back,
“‘Pig-un-a-wa-ya, Pig-un-a-wa-ya, hooo-hooo!’
“Atter Nancy Jane O got erhead er de birds, den de hardes’ flyin’ wuz
thu wid; so she jes went ’long, an’ went ’long, kin’ er easy like, tell
she got ter de stone; an’ she lit on er’ simmon-bush close ter de
crick, an’ Pigunawaya he slipt off, he did, an’ he hist up his feet,
an’ he gin er jump, kerchug he went down inter de water; an’ by’mby
hyear he come wid de stone in his mouf. Den he mount on Nancy Jane O,
he did; an’, mun, she wuz so proud, she an’ de frog bof, tell dey flew
all roun’ an’ roun’, an’ Nancy Jane O, she ’gun ter sing,
“‘Who on-tied, who on-tied Po’ Nancy Jane O?’
An’ de frog he ans’er back,
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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