by Harper & Brothers Publishers. The Stratagem of Joshua WHEN de Lawd swaged de Jurdin so de Hebrew chilluns could cross, Joshua lined ’em up and de Lawd stepped out f ’m behind his cloud and made a speech. “ Chillun,” he say, “ I been leadin’ y’all fawty years f ’m Egypt to the Promise’ Land. Now yar is y’all, and yar is de Promise’ Land. I promise’ old Abraham I’d bring y’all yar, and so yar you is.” “ Looks mighty good,” say Joshua. Page 149. “ Hit is good,” say de Lawd, “and all y’all got to do is farm hit. So I’m gonter turn hit over to you yar and now, and I’m goin’ on back and 'tend to my angels awhile. Joshua is my haid man and he kin go to de cou’t So de Lawd stepped back in his cloud and rid off, and about dat time yar come a gal, wawkin’ down de road, sellin’ fish and singin’: “ Better buy my fish, I got a little bit left— Better buy my fish, I got a little bit left— Better buy my fish, I got a little bit left— Efn you don’t buy ’em, gonter eat ’em myse’f.” So she wawked up to Joshua. “ Hy “ I ain’t lame,” say Joshua. “Do I wants some I kin go fishin’.” “ You’s hard, ain’t you, Country Boy,” say de gal. “Come yar givin’ a lady like me dat kind of sass. Better mind out. I’ll git my man to come out yar and he’ll beat you ha’f to death.” “ Yo’ man and who else? ” say Joshua. “ Listen at dat man tawk! ” say de gal. “ You sho tawks mean, don’t you? Page 150. Me, I’m a nice gal, and you ain’t did a thing but shawt-tawk me ev’y since I wawked up. Cou’se I ain’t so purty, like some gals, but I’s a nice lady.” “ You ain’t so hard to look at, lady,” say Joshua. What’s yo’ name? ” “ Rahab,” say de gal. What’s yo’n? ” “ Dat’s a purty name, Miss Rahab,” say Joshua. “ My name is Joshua. And de reason I tawked so hard at you is ’cause I’s de Lawd’s haid man over de Hebrew chilluns and I got to ack hard. I can’t he’p hit.” “ Who de Lawd? ” say Rahab. And who de Hebrew chilluns? ” “ Who de Lawd, did you say? ” say Joshua. My goodness! gal, ain’t you never yared tell of de Lawd? Whar was you brang up at? ” “ Nawp,” say Rahab. I ain’t never yared tell of de Lawd, nor neither de Hebrew chilluns.” “ Well,” say Joshua, de Lawd ain’t only de man which owns all de yearth, but he’s de man which made de yearth. And heaven, too. And mighty nigh ev’ything else you kin think about.” “ Sounds big, don’t hit,” say Rahab. Who de Hebrew chuluns? ” “ They’s de chillun which de Lawd gived all disyar land to ’em,” say Joshua. Page 151. “ Dat’s funny,” say Rahab. de Phiistines yonder at Jericho ain’t yared de news about de Hebrew chilluns ownin’ dis land. They’s tellin’ hit about dat they owns de land theyse’f.” “ They gonter yar de news mighty soon,” say Joshua. “ ’Cause next to de Lawd, I’m de head man, and I’m gonter tell ’em de news. And when I spreads news, hit’s ’most gen’ally sad news.” “ I bet hit is, you good “ I ain’t skeered of de Philistines,” say Joshua. “ Listen at me, man,” say Rahab. You might ain’t skeered of de Philistines. But jest as sho as you stick yo’ haid over dat wall, one of ’em is gonter hit you wid a rock and you ain’t gonter know is hit now or next week. Now jest listen at me and I’m gonter tell you some news.” “ Tell hit, sister,” say Joshua. “ Well,” say Rahab. f ’m de looks of things, y’all looks like you kin march right good.” Page 152. “ Us had a heap of practice de last fawty years,” say Joshua. “ We ain’t been doin nothin’ else but marchin’.” “ But you ain’t been doin’ no wall “ Nawp,” say Joshua, “us ain’t.” “ Well,” say Rahab. “whyn’t you jest march dat city down? ” “ Gal,” say Joshua, “ I ’m “ Do jest like I tell you,” say Rahab. “You line up yo’ men and give ’em a ram hawn and a swowd. And ev’y mawnin’, at de crack of day, march up mighty nigh to de walls like you comin’ right over, but jest before you gits dar, turn and march round de town, and den go back to camp and stay in camp to de next mawnin’. Do jest like dat for six days, and on de seventh day start out de same way, only don’t go back to camp, but jest keep on marchin’ round de city.” “ Ain’t no sense in dat,” say Joshua. “ And hit won’t be no sense in yo’ haid do a Philistine bust you wid a rock, too,” say Rahab. Page 153. “ Well,” say Joshua, “anything to please de womenfolks.” Rahab grins. “ I knowed you was a smart man,” she say. “ Now do jest like I tells you, but don’t let on to nobody I told you. You jest march, and efn ev’ything goes all O.K. I’ll make a sign at you f ’m my window.” So de next mawnin’ Joshua lined up his army and passed out de ram hawns and de swowds and marched round de town, blowin’ and carryin’ on to you jest oughter yar de noise! So ’bout de time he got round he seed somebody wavin’ de handkercher out de window and he looked, and sho nuff hit was Rahab. “ See you tomorrow mawnin’, Good “ Same back at you, Big Boy,” she say. “ So de next day de same thing happen. And de next. To finally they’d marched six days. So on de seventh day Joshua marched round jest like he been, but instid of goin’ back to camp, he jest kept right on marchin’, round and round. To he marched round seven times. Den de yearth moaned and groaned and de walls shivered and shuck, and ker-blam! they fell down. Page 154. “ When de walls tumbled, de Hebrew army th’owed down de ram hawns and got they swowds and waded in on dat sinful city. Some folks say they sp’iled hit. But de ones which was present and seen what happened say they jest natchally ruint hit. “ Well, I be doggone,” say Joshua. “ Dat’s quar. Dem walls went down jest like hit was dinny “ Hello, Big Boy! ” she say. “ Hello, Sweetenin’! ” say Joshua. “ Tell me somethin’. How come deseyar walls fall down when I didn’t yar no dinny Rahab th’owed back her haid and laughed. “ Hit’s a heap of things you don’t know,” she say, “and did I tell you what I know, den you’d know as much as me.” “ Aw, come on, gal,” say Joshua. “ Tell me.” “ Well,” say Rahab, “ hit might of been like dis. Onderstand? I say hit might. Hit might of been dat all de boys in de city seed y’all comin’ de fust day, and got ready for a fight. But naw. Y’all didn’t come to fight. Y’all jest marched around and went on home. So dat looked like a trick and hit onsettled ’em. Page 155. So de next day de same thing happened, and dat worried ’em some mo’. And hit kept on to finally they was expectin’ ev’ything and gittin’ nothin’. So on de last day, when you marched round seven times, hit was jest mo’n they could stand. So they jest pushed down de walls f ’m de inside.” “ Yeah,” say Joshua, “dat’s jest about de way I had hit figgered out, all de time.” “ Yeah, you did,” say Rahab. Den her voice got deep, like a man’s. “ Yeah you did—not.” So Joshua looked at her, and while he was lookin’ she faded out and dar stood de Lawd. “ Yeah, you had hit figgered out like dat, Joshua, say de Lawd. “ Now listen at me and let me tell you somethin’.” So Joshua listened. “ I pushed dem walls down,” say de Lawd, “ jest like I pushed back de Red Sea and de Jurdin.” “ But, Lawd,” say Joshua, I was standin’ yar, tawkin’ to a lady friend, and I looks and she’s gone and yar you stands.” “ De Lawd kind of laughed. “ Yeah,” he say. “ Dat woman you was tawkin’ to wa’n’t nobody but me. I comed to you by a woman, dat’s all. Hit’s one of my tricks.” “ But how come, Lawd? ” say Joshua. Page 156. “ Well,” say de Lawd, “efn you had been old man Moses, I’d jest ’a’ wawked up to you and told you to march round dis town seven times, to de walls fell, and Moses’d ’a’ marched, rain or shine. But you’s a young man, Joshua, and I had to trick you. Efn I had told you to march, you’d ’a’ marched about twice, and de fust good So Joshua laughed. “ Lawd,” he say, dat was a good trick on me. And you sho was a good “ Yeah,” say de Lawd, “ but no mind dat. You jest watch out, ’cause de next dress you start runnin’ after is liable to be on a sho Chapter I: Eve and That Snake Chapter III: Sin Chapter XX: The Sun Trick Chapter XXII: Battling With Baal Martian Visitor ( Home ) The Pagan origins of Easter |