Jack and the Varmints

folktale · United States · North American

Jack is tasked with spending a night alone in a haunted cabin in the woods as a test of courage. The cabin is supposedly infested with 'varmints'—supernatural creatures that have driven away everyone who came before. Jack, being too lazy and stubborn to be properly scared, settles into the cabin for the night. As midnight approaches, he hears scratching at the door, howling from the chimney, and strange shapes moving in the shadows. Rather than fleeing, Jack bangs pots, shouts insults, and throws things at the darkness. His sheer orneriness and refusal to be intimidated somehow drives the varm

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