NATCHEZ — Standing in front of a backdrop of deer hides and Indian artifacts, Sam Jones relayed the tale of how the animals captured fire.

Jones’ presentation and several others like it were all part of the 11th Moon Storytelling at the Grand Village of the Natchez Indians that took place Saturday afternoon.

The event featured old Indian tales about nature and the animals that once ruled the world.

Jones’ story told of how the Earth’s animals first discovered fire.

“Only the thunder had the fire,” Jones said.

Since the animals on Earth were cold, thunder sent lighting to deliver fire to a hollow tree on an island.

But none of the animals could successfully retrieve the fire from the tree.

The crow tried, and it’s feathers were singed; the snake tried and its body was bent.

Finally the lowly spider, which none of the animals believed could get the fire, got the fire.

“And to this day we still have the fire,” Jones said.

But Saturday’s story circle included more than just tales of the harnessing of fire.

There was also a year-old alligator and a flying squirrel.

After the stories were done, the children were presented with the tiny gator and given a brief lesson on the toothy critter before they got a chance to hold it.

Gabriel Schofield, 7, said he loved holding the alligator.

“It’s kind of slimy,” he said. “But it was the first time I held one.”

While Schofield and the other kids liked handling the gator, Rebecca Anderson, a historian at Grand Village, said Saturday’s event has a more important message to convey.

Anderson said she hopes children and their parents will come away from the event with an appreciation for the need for storytelling and its importance in our history.

“Storytelling is common in cultures all over the world,” she said. “It keeps us all together.”