The Last Laugh

Image Gallery

Article Tools

Image Gallery

Print

E-mail

Comments

RSS

"A good storyteller is a person who has a good memory and hopes other people haven't."

Irvin S. Cobb

Well sir (and ma'am), it seems only fittin' to me thet, seein' as how we got some vision' storytellers gracin' the pages of MOTHER this time (you might wants take a gander at the article clear back on page 82 ), I oughta set back a spell an' let our guests entertain you ...with a pair of funny-bone-ticklin' tales thet jist plain beg to be related out loud.

The followin' story, from David Holt's tale-tellin' repytoire, is called "The First Motorcycle in Black Mountain" (what were copyrighted in 1981 by David Holt and Grove Norwood). Ol' David says it's a good example of creatin' a full-blown yarn from a single humorous anecdote. (Mr. Holt recites the tale hisself on his storytellin' record, The Hairyman and Other Wild Tales.)

Now after the war, most folks in Black Mountain, North Carolina had heard of motorcycles, but they'd never seen one. So when old Leroy Teats arrived home from the Navy with his brand-new, blue and chrome Hart-ly Davison motorcycle, folks come a-rennin' out of their homes and out of their stores to see what was making all that racket.

Why, it was a sight to behold. Had a headlight big as a dinner plate and a seat wide as a buckboard's, and—in the very back—it had a big old ruby—studded mud flap. It had a windshield that came almost as high as his head, and some folks said that thing was even air-conditioned. They could tell Leroy was happy and Leroy was proud ...all they had to do was count the bugs on his teeth.

Wasn't long though, before some of those mountain boys came up and started teasin' and tauntin' him.

"What is that big old thing, Leroy? Why, you can't take it out on these mountain roads. It's too shiny, just a play-pretty. It looks like a pregnant bicycle."

Leroy said, "I can take this motorcycle anywhere in the county, and I mean anywhere."

About that time, Geter Ledford walked up, leading his mule. He said, "Leroy, I bet you can't take that thing where my mule can go."

"I can, too," says Leroy. "I can take this motorcycle anywhere your old mule can go. "

"All right," says Geter, "let me see you take it up to the top of High Windy, 'cause I have rid my mule straight up to the top, and there's no road. It is just trees and rocks and leaves all the way."

RSS | Comments | E-mail | Print