Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 3, 1892.djvu/103

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Folk-lore Tales of Central Africa.
95

he cried with a great cry, "Come ye to my help. My bullock has entered the ground."

All the people gathered together, and they pulled upon the tail, and it broke.

The deceiver then said, "Ye have pulled off my bullock's tail. Make ye haste and bring your hoes, and dig down and recover my bullock."

They did so, and digged down, but came not upon the beast.

The deceiver then said, "Just so! Give me my bullock, because ye have pulled off its tail,"

They gave him forty cattle.

The story is ended.


The Story of a Tshewa Hunter.

A certain Tshewa had a musical bow. It came to pass on a certain day that he went to hunt the reed-buck. He came upon reed-buck and struck at one with his arrow. He went home with it.

He then roasted it and ate it, and was filled.

Another day he went to hunt on the mountain, and while hunting he came upon a lioness with a young cub in a cavern on the mountain. He went and called the people, saying, "Let us go, ye people, that ye may seize it."

They went and got their shields and spears, but some went and took guns. Then they went all of them to the mountain to take the cub.

They arrived at the mountain, and said, "Show us where thou sawest the lioness and cub."

He replied, "Climb ye also the mountain, and ye will see the great cave where they are."

They climbed the mountain and saw a very large cavern, whereupon they all made a great noise, firing guns and beating shields, at which the lioness was affrighted and fled away.

They then took the cub and carried it home with them,