Desert Hawk Books

 

Mexican Folk Tales

Anthony John Campos

 

 

Paperback
136 pages
5.5" x 8.5"

Quantity: $10.95 & S/H

 

Intriguing collection of authentic stories preserves a colorful part of the Mexican heritage. Tales center around Legends of the Devil, The strange Doings of the Saints, and The Mysteries of Human Life.

Excerpt from book.....

The Devil Does A Good Deed

THERE was an old lady who lived all alone on a small ranch. The ranch was in the middle of a large desert and, because of its remoteness, very few people traveled there. Pethaps, once or twice a year, a muleteer would take a wrong turn and come across the ranch by accident. That was the only time the old lady received news from the outside world.

She had been living in this manner since the death of her husband, who had belonged to a gang of bandits. The leader of this band was a notoriously infamous rascal who was feared throughout the territory. After one dangerous raid, in which they had encountered federal troops, the leader had given her husband a painting of a devil, as a token of gratitude for saving his life during the encounter. When the husband saw what it was, he did not want to accept it. However, he could not refuse a gift from a friend.

When he had arrived home, the husband had placed the picture behind a door, and there it had stayed. As the old lady went about her daily chores, she would come to the door where the painting was hanging and say, "Poor you, who never sees the face of God." She would then take her broom and swat the dust off. This daily ritual went on for many years.

There came a time when the old lady became very ill. She tried to take care of herself as best she could and prepared all the remedies she knew, but to no avail. She grew weaker and weaker day by day. Finally, she just lay in bed and was unable to move.

When the devil saw the condition she was in, he went up to her bed. The old lady knew that death was near. "Good-bye, old friend," she said to the devil. When the devil heard this, he rushed out of the house as fast as he could and started running down the street toward the nearest town.

When he came to the town, he went inside the first church he could find. When the priest saw the devil, he recoiled away. "What do you want here?" asked the priest.

"I want you to come with me and administer the last sacrament to someone who is dying," said the devil.

When the priest heard this, he understood. They hitched the horses to the priest's carriage and rode off in the direction of the old lady's ranch.

When they finally came to the ranch, they found the old lady smiling. "I saw a beautiful lady dressed in white," she whispered. "She was coming down a long tunnel and little boys with wings were flying all around."

The priest confessed the old lady, and she died peacefully. The priest then told the devil to leave, and he himself started back toward his church.

And so, I suppose the devil was gone before the gravediggers came to put the old lady under the ground.

Copyright © 1977