This is the story of Bear's tail, told in Germany and by the Iroquois Indians of North America.
Long ago, Bear had a beautiful, long, furry tail. He was very proud of it and often asked others, "Don't you think my tail is the most beautiful you've ever seen?" People thought he was vain, but they feared his claws and told him his tail looked magnificent.
One cold winter day, Bear went lumbering down to a lake. Fox was sitting on the frozen ice, surrounded by fish. Knowing Bear was hungry, Fox decided to play a trick.
"Hello, Brother Fox," said Bear, his mouth watering. "Where did you get all those fish?"
"I caught them," replied Fox, pointing to a hole in the ice.
"But you have nothing to fish with," said Bear.
"I used my tail," said Fox. Bear was amazed. "It's the best thing for catching fish. Shall I show you? Then you can have all the fish you want."
"Yes, please!" said Bear eagerly.
Fox pointed to the hole. "There are no more fish here. Let's go to another spot." Trying not to laugh, he led Bear to a shallow part of the lake. Bear dug a new hole with his claws.
"Now," instructed Fox, "sit with your back to the hole and lower your beautiful tail into the water. You'll feel when a fish bites, then pull your tail out with the fish on it."
Bear wanted fish desperately. He put his tail into the icy water.
"This is important," said Fox. "You must sit very still and only think of fish. Count the fish you catch in your mind. The more you count, the more you'll catch."
Bear was pleased. "My tail will catch more than any other."
"Sit still," said Fox. "I'll watch from the trees so I don't scare the fish."
Bear sat still, thinking of fish jumping onto his tail and counting each one. It was tiring, and he fell asleep. It grew colder and began to snow. Fox went home with his fish.
Hours later, Fox returned. Bear was still asleep, his black fur white with snow. Fox laughed so hard he fell over. Gasping, he said, "This is such a cool trick!" Then he quietly sneaked up and shouted, "Bear! Bear! I see a fish on your tail! Can you feel it?"
Bear woke with a start and felt a sharp pain in his frozen tail. "I can feel it!" he shouted. He leaped up, and his frozen tail snapped off.