Where Animals Talk; West African Folk Lore Tales/Part 2/Tale 12
The Lies of Tortoise
Persons
| Njâ (Leopard) | Embonda (Prairie Antelope) |
| Kudu (Tortoise) | Ihĕli (Gazelle) |
| Etoli (Rat) | Ngando (Crocodile) |
| Ngomba (Porcupine) | |
NOTE
African natives climb the palm-tree, cut out a cavity in the heart at the leafy top, and fasten a vessel below the cavity, to catch the sweet, milky juice that exudes. This is unintoxicating. But, like cider, it becomes intoxicating if kept a few days. The cutting destroys the tree in two or three months.
The beginning of this tale is that Leopard went to the forest, to cut an itutu tree (bamboo-palm) for palm-wine. After he had fastened the bowl at the cavity he had cut at the top in the heart of the tree, then he came back to town.
Tortoise came along to that palm-wine tree; and he climbed to the top. There he found that the sap had already collected in the bowl. And he drank three tumblerfuls. Excited by his success, he shouted out aloud, "I'm drunk! I'm drunk!"
Off in the forest, Wild Rat heard his voice, and, following the sound, came to the place. To Tortoise, Rat said, "Whose wine-tree is this?" Tortoise replied, "My own!" So, Rat begged of him, "Give me a glassful!" Tortoise told him "Climb up! Of what are you afraid?" So, Rat climbed up the tree. He also drank two glassfuls.
Presently, Tortoise heard Leopard coming, and he said to Rat. "Await me here, I'm just going down to the ground." When he reached the ground, Tortoise hid his body in a hole at the base of the tree.
In a very little while, Leopard arrived at the tree. He lifted up his eyes to the top and saw Rat there. To him Leopard said, "Who owns this palm-tree?" Rat replied, "My Chum, Kudu." But, Leopard asked, "This Kudu, where is he?" Then Leopard flung one of his claws at Rat. It stuck in him, and Rat fell dead.
Leopard took Rat's body and went away with it to his town. And he said to his wife, "Cook this; this is our meat."
Soon after Leopard had gone from the tree, Tortoise came out of his hiding, and climbed the tree a second time. Then, having drank again, he shouted, as before, "I'm drunk! I'm drunk!"
In his hole off among the rocks. Porcupine heard Tortoise shouting; and he came to the tree, and asked for a drink. Tortoise told him to climb; adding, "What are you afraid of?" So, Porcupine followed Tortoise up the tree, and drank two glassfuls of the wine.
Again Tortoise heard Leopard coming, recognizing the thud of his steps as he leaped on the way. So, Tortoise cried out, as if in pain, "O! my stomach hurts me! I'm going down!" At the base, he hid himself again in the cavity of the tree.
In a little while. Leopard appeared standing at the foot of the tree. Looking up, he saw Porcupine there. And he inquired, "Ngomba! who owns this tree?" Porcupine answered, "Chum Kudu!" Leopard asked, "This Kudu, who is he? I want to see him." Porcupine replied, "Kudu has gone off, his stomach paining him." Then Leopard exclaimed, "So! indeed! you are the ones who use up all my wine here!" And he added, "What day I shall meet Kudu I do not know. But, that day we will meet in fight." While he was saying all this, Tortoise, in the hole at the tree, heard.
Then Leopard threw a claw at Porcupine. Porcupine fell down to the ground a corpse. Leopard taking it, went away with it to his town, and said to his wife, "Cook this meat, and let us eat it."
After Leopard had left the tree, Tortoise emerged from his hiding-place. He climbed the tree a third time, and took a cup, and drank two glassfuls. Again he shouted, "I, Kudu, I'm drunk! I, Kudu, I'm drunk!"
Out on a prairie, Antelope heard the shouting; and he came to the tree. Seeing Tortoise, he said, "Chum, give me a glass of wine!" Tortoise directed him, "Climb up! Of what are you afraid?" So, Antelope went up the tree, and drank.
Soon Tortoise heard Leopard coming, bounding through the forest. And Tortoise said to Antelope, "Chum! my bowels pain me; I'll soon return." He descended, and hid his body as before. Leopard arrived as before. And he spoke to Antelope; and then killed it with another of his claws. He took its carcass to his town, and bade his wife cook it, as had been done with the others.
After Leopard had gone from the tree. Tortoise climbed the tree a fourth time, again he drank; and again he shouted, changing his words slightly, "I've drank! I've drank!"
In the jungle, Gazelle heard, and came to the base of the tree, but said nothing. Tortoise spoke first, "O! my nephew! the wine is finished!" Gazelle asked, "Who owns this tree?" Tortoise answered, "It's my own, and not another's."
When he came from the jungle. Gazelle had brought with him a bag. As Gazelle still stood at the foot of the tree. Tortoise said to him, "Come up here! What do you fear?" So, Gazelle climbed; but went up only half-way.
While the two were thus apart, and before Gazelle had drunk any of the wine, Tortoise heard Leopard coming, leaping through the bushes. Then Tortoise said to Gazelle, "Ah! nephew! let me pass! My stomach hurts me!" But Gazelle said, "No! uncle, let us stay and drink." Tortoise heard Leopard nearing the tree; and he said to Gazelle, "Ah! Hurry! Let me pass! How my stomach hurts!" Gazelle said, "No! uncle, we'll go down together."
While they were thus talking. Leopard reached the foot of the tree. Then Gazelle took Tortoise and hid him in the bag. Leopard exclaimed, "Ihĕli! who owns this tree?" Gazelle replied, "This is the palm-wine tree of my uncle." Leopard asked, "Who is your uncle?" Gazelle answered, "Kudu."
So, Leopard began to prepare to climb the tree, in order to fight with Gazelle. Then Gazelle put his hand into the bag, and drew out Tortoise, tightly grasped in his hand. And he flung Tortoise violently into Leopard's face. Leopard fell to the ground, dazed with the blow, while Gazelle leaped to the ground, and fled off in the forest.
When Leopard rose from the earth, he found Tortoise sprawling helpless on its back. Leopard tied a string to him, and went away with him to town. And he said to his wife, "My wife! this is the person who drinks at my wine-tree!" So he suspended him by the string, waiting to kill him next day.
The day began to darken towards night; and they went to their sleep.
Then came the daylight of next morning.
Leopard said to his wife, "I'm going to a palaver (council) at a place three miles distant. Take Kudu and cook him with udika (gravy of kernels of wild mango). When I come back, let me find the food all ready to be eaten at once."
So, Leopard went on his journey. And his wife remained to do her work. But, she exclaimed, "Ah! I forget what my husband told me!" Tortoise, overhearing her said, "Your husband said, 'Take the dried Etoli from the shelf, and cook it with udika; give it to Kudu, and let him eat it; and then take Kudu and wash him in the water of the brook.'" The woman gladly listened, and said, "Eh! Kudu! you remember well what my husband said to me!"
So, she did about the food as Tortoise had reported, and gave it to him to eat. When Tortoise had finished eating, the woman went with him to wash him in the water at the edge of the brook. While she was doing this. Tortoise asked, "Throw me off into the water where it is deep." The woman did so. And Tortoise shouted, "So! you will die this day by your husband's hands!" The woman began to see her mistake, and she begged Tortoise, "Come! let us go back to town." But Tortoise said, "I shan't come! I'm here safe in my place down in the bottom of the stream."
Then the woman went back to her town; and as she went, she went crying.
Late in the day, Leopard returned from the discussions of the Council. And he said to his wife, "O! my wife! I'm just dying of hunger!" She told him, "Ah! my husband! Kudu has run away!" Leopard, in his anger, flung a claw at her; and she died on the spot.
Tortoise, in the meanwhile, went as fast as he could under the water of the stream. And he came to the house of Crocodile, and crept into the doorway. Crocodile, in tears, met him with the words, "Ah! Kudu! I'm just dying here with grief and crying." Tortoise asked her, "What is the matter?" She told him, "I've laid a hundred eggs, but none of them had children in them." Tortoise replied, "That's my work, the causing of eggs to have children. Shall I do it?" Crocodile consented, "Yes, I've here three hundred other eggs; you may make them have children." Tortoise told her, "I'm the only one to do that thing." So, Crocodile said, "Go into this room, and do it."
Tortoise went into the room, found the eggs there; and said to Crocodile, "Give me here a kettle, also firewood and water. Give me my food here. For, I will not go out of this house; I will go out only at the time when I shall have caused the eggs to have children." Crocodile agreed, saying, "Yes, I am willing. It is well." And she gave direction to her people, "Give Kudu all the things he has asked for there."
Then Tortoise locked all the doors, and stayed inside the room. He began to arrange the fire-wood, and set the kettle and put water in it. In the afternoon, he took twenty eggs, and cooked, and ate them with his food.
At night, all went to sleep.
At daybreak, he cooked twenty more eggs, and ate them; at noon he cooked and ate more; and at evening supper, he cooked and ate some more. So, he spent about seven days in eating all the eggs. Then he called out to Crocodile "Do you want to hear the little crocodiles talk?" Crocodile replied, "Yes! I want to hear!" Tortoise took two pieces of broken plates, and scraped one across the other, making a rasping sound. Crocodile and the people of the town heard the squeaking sounds, and they exclaimed in joy. "So! So, So!" They replied to Tortoise, "We hear the little ones talking!" Tortoise also told them, "Tomorrow, then, I will make a Medicine to cause them to talk loudly." But Crocodile began to have some doubts. And day darkened to night.
Very early in the next morning, Crocodile's doubts having increased, she rose up without calling her people. And she went slowly alone to peep through a crack into the room of Tortoise. She saw only the piles of egg-shells; and she wondered, "Where are the little ones?" Then she went softly back to her own room; and she told the townspeople, "Get up! Let us open the room of Kudu!"
They all got up, and they went to the house. They broke the room door by force; and they found Tortoise sitting among the scattered shells of the eggs. The Crocodile exclaimed, "Kudu! have you deceived me? Your life too ends today!"
They tied Tortoise, and put him in the kettle; and they killed him there. They divided his flesh onto their plates. And Crocodile and her people ate Tortoise.
This is the end of the lies of Tortoise.