Where Animals Talk: West African Folk Lore TalesNassau, Robert Hamill
Philosophy
Where Animals Talk: West African Folk Lore Tales
Nassau, Robert Hamill
Animals -- Folklore; Tales -- Africa, West
While this was going on, as soon as Tortoise inside the body knew that
the Goat was dying, he began to seek for a hiding-place. He said,
"I am for the stomach!" Leopard said, "No! that is the hiding-place
of the elder one" (himself). Then Tortoise said, "I will go and hide
in the bowels." Leopard said, "That also is the hiding place of the
elder." Then Tortoise said, "Well! I'm going to hide in the fountain
of the water of the belly" (the urinary bladder). Leopard said,
"Yes! that is the share of the younger." Tortoise thrust himself in
there. Leopard jumped into the stomach.
When the people came, they discovered the Goat lying flat, and
they said, "Tie ye it!" (to carry it away). Others said, "No! let
it be butchered here." They all said, "Yes!" And they cut it in
pieces. They took out the entire stomach, and laid it aside. They
took that fountain, and flung it out in the bushes.
Concealed by the bushes, Tortoise crawled out of the sac, and,
pretending to be displeased, called out, "Who dashed that dirty water
in my face, as I was coming here, seeking for my fungi here in the
forest?" They apologized, saying. "Chum! we did not know you were
in those bushes. But, come, and join us." So, he went there; and
he, in pretence, exclaimed, "What thing can so suddenly have killed
Friend-Creator his Mbodi there? Alas! But, Ime! what a large stomach
that is! Would you say that it was not it that killed Mbodi? Let us
send some children to pierce that stomach. But ye! when ye shall go
to pierce it, first bring spears, then jab the spears through it. I
have not seen such a stomach as that!"
They finished the cutting in pieces; and they gave Tortoise his
share of the animal. He left, bidding them await his return. He went
hastily with the meat to his town, and sat down to rest for only
a little while. Then he rapidly went back again to see what would
happen to Leopard.
The family of Njambe had taken that stomach and laid it in the water
of a stream. Then they took spears, and they stabbed it. Leopard,
being wounded, struggled up and down as he tried to emerge from
inside the stomach. The people, when they saw this, shouted,
"Aw! lâ! lâ! lâ!" And there was Leopard lying dead! For, in stabbing
that stomach, the spears had reached Leopard.
Tortoise said to them, "Give me the skin of Leopard!" So they handed
it to him. He went off with it to his house. When it was dried, he
took it into his inner room, and hung it up. He said to his children,
"Let no person bring any of the children of Njâ into this room."
Before that time, the children of Tortoise and of Leopard always
hunted small animals; and they were accustomed daily to kill rats in
their houses.
On another day, the children of Leopard having no meat, and not knowing
that their father was dead said, "A hunt for Betoli tomorrow!" The
children of Tortoise replied, "Yes!"
Early in the next day then, the children of Leopard made ready and
called for those of Tortoise; and they all started together.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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