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Black Folk Tales - Erick Berry · Robin Hood

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Speaker 1: Section zero of Black Folk Tales. This is a LibriVox recording.
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Speaker 1: All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more
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Speaker 1: information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox dot org. Black
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Speaker 1: Folk Tales by Eric Berry forward on the west coast
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Speaker 1: of Africa, only a few degrees north of the equator,
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Speaker 1: just where the coastline curves eastward and inn if you remember,
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Speaker 1: and where the Niger River, slow and sullen and yellow
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Speaker 1: with mud, slides into the Atlantic lies Nigeria, hot steaming jungles,
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Speaker 1: broad burnt savannah lands that with the rains blossom into
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Speaker 1: glorious green again. And mountains that rocky and tree covered
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Speaker 1: lean over tiny red, mud walled and straw thatched villages.
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Speaker 1: Here live the house of people, some thirteen millions of
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Speaker 1: them traders, tillers of the soil, cattle owners, and the
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Speaker 1: savage tribes of still older Africa black people, all of
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Speaker 1: them summer nature worshipers. Many and these are the houses
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Speaker 1: are Mohammedans, and in their folk tales mingle the older
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Speaker 1: nature worship and the fabled people of the Qur'an. There is,
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Speaker 1: for instance, Solomon Suliman, now a black man like themselves,
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Speaker 1: and as they are living in a mud house with
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Speaker 1: a mud floor, as they have. Great traders are the
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Speaker 1: house of people. They cross the wide desert fearlessly with
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Speaker 1: camel laden caravans, bringing spices and embroideries and tails from
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Speaker 1: out of the east. The robes are stiff with embroidery,
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Speaker 1: their turbans and their manners intricate. There are other black tribes, simple,
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Speaker 1: trusting in strange gods, worshiping animals and thunder and rain
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Speaker 1: and the sun. But to all these peoples, the village
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Speaker 1: story teller is a great man. And in the tiny
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Speaker 1: village market, or in the town thronging with life and
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Speaker 1: busts movement. When evening falls and the fires burn high,
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Speaker 1: and the tropic night hot and still presses closely down,
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Speaker 1: and the stars are very near, then can be heard
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Speaker 1: the drums of the native dancers, and the village storyteller
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Speaker 1: beats also on his drum. Then the men and the
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Speaker 1: children and the women gather round him, crouching on their
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Speaker 1: heels in a circle, with eager faces all turned one way,
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Speaker 1: and his drumming ceases, and his tales commence. Here begin
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Speaker 1: the stories of the Black folk of West Africa. Eric Barry.
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Speaker 1: End of section zero read by Laura Gibbs. Section one
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Speaker 1: of Black Folk Tales by Eric Berry. This LibriVox recording
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Speaker 1: is in the public domain. The Story of Solomon and
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Speaker 1: the Birds a story, a story. Let it be told.
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Speaker 1: Let it be told here? Then the story. Now Solomon
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Speaker 1: had taken unto himself a new and young and beautiful
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Speaker 1: wife named Fatilla. One day, Fetila went to visit another
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Speaker 1: house and saw that the housewife had made for herself
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Speaker 1: a very fine floor, which made her house look splendid.
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Speaker 1: And Fetila considered the floor, envying it, for no such
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Speaker 1: floor was in her own house. So she said, the
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Speaker 1: floor is indeed wonderful. What did you mix with the
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Speaker 1: earth of the floor to make it thus so fine?
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Speaker 1: My husband is a hunter, said the other woman. The
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Speaker 1: blood of the beasts he shoots he brings home. I
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Speaker 1: save this and mix it with the mud of the floor.
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Speaker 1: It is the blood that makes the floor. Thus. And
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Speaker 1: Fetila returned home and kept silence until evening Solomon spoke
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Speaker 1: to her. She remained silent. Then Solomon asked her, what
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Speaker 1: has happened that you are angry? And Fetila spoke. Then
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Speaker 1: I went to call upon a friend and saw that
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Speaker 1: her floor was black, of a smooth blackness, contenting the
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Speaker 1: heart far better than the floor of the house. You
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Speaker 1: have given me for the blood of the beasts killed
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Speaker 1: by her husband, the hunter, she mixes with the mud
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Speaker 1: of the floor. Your desire, o wife, asked Solomon. Every
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Speaker 1: morning the birds come to you and hover above your
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Speaker 1: head to shield you from the sun. Kill for me
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Speaker 1: these birds and give me their blood for the floor.
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Speaker 1: But this Solomon refused to do, and Fetila withdrew into silence.
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Speaker 1: For several days, she neither smiled nor spoke. Finally, the
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Speaker 1: great King said, and the name of Allah, your wish
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Speaker 1: is yours. Tomorrow, when the birds come, some shall be
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Speaker 1: taken and given to you good. She replied, may Allah
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Speaker 1: bring us tomorrow. The next morning, when the sun had
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Speaker 1: risen and Solomon waited outside his door beneath the shade
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Speaker 1: of a big baobab tree, there was heard no sound
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Speaker 1: of wings, and not a single bird appeared. But later
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Speaker 1: the eagle came, d lifting down, flapped his wings, and
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Speaker 1: came to the cock, who said to him, did you
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Speaker 1: hear what the prophet Solomon said to his wife yesterday? No,
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Speaker 1: said the eagle, But I took notice of the birds
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Speaker 1: that none came this day to shade the prophet, So
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Speaker 1: I too have stayed away. Then the cock said, Solomon
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Speaker 1: has promised his new wife that he will kill some
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Speaker 1: of us and give us to her, that she may
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Speaker 1: mix our blood with her floor. Then the floor will
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Speaker 1: be black and shining. Oh ho, replied the eagle. The
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Speaker 1: matter is thus well, we shall see to that. And
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Speaker 1: so about ten o'clock in the morning, the eagle flew
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Speaker 1: to the prophet Solomon. His wife Fetila was waiting behind
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Speaker 1: the curtain of the door, and Solomon said, have you
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Speaker 1: been delayed in the town that you have not been
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Speaker 1: here since dawn? The eagle replied, we've been arguing on
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Speaker 1: two subjects at home. And Solomon asked what were those
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Speaker 1: subjects and what had the answers been. The fir said
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Speaker 1: the eagle was which is longer the night or the day?
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Speaker 1: And what did you answer to that? Asked the prophet Solomon,
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Speaker 1: I said that from the morning, since the first call
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Speaker 1: to prayers, until it is almost time to go to sleep,
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Speaker 1: all this is daytime. Surely the day is longer than
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Speaker 1: the night? Am I not right, o, prophet? And the
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Speaker 1: prophet said that the eagle was right. What was the
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Speaker 1: second question, he asked the eagle. The second was which
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Speaker 1: are the more numerous men or women? And what did
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Speaker 1: you reply to that? Asked Solomon, for he was surprised
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Speaker 1: at the wisdom of the eagle, I said, women, For
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Speaker 1: a man who is led by his wife is no
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Speaker 1: better than a woman. Am I not right, o Prophet?
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Speaker 1: And Solomon stopped smiling and was no longer astonished, and replied,
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Speaker 1: you are right. You may go home and tell the
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Speaker 1: other birds to come tomorrow morning. And Fetila, who had
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Speaker 1: been hiding behind the curtain went without her beautiful floor.
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Speaker 1: End of Section one read by Lord Gibbs, Section two
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Speaker 1: of Black Folk Tales by Eric Berry. This librifox recording
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Speaker 1: is in the public domain. The town where no one
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Speaker 1: slept Once there was a woman who had two daughters.
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Speaker 1: One daughter was married to a man who lived in
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Speaker 1: a town where no one ever sneezed. The other daughter
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Speaker 1: was married to a man who lived in a town
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Speaker 1: where no one ever slept. One day, the mother cooked
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Speaker 1: a dish of sweetmeats to take to the daughter who
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Speaker 1: lived in the town where no one ever sneezed. As
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Speaker 1: soon as it was ready, She put the calabash of
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Speaker 1: sweetmeats on her head and started off to walk to
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Speaker 1: the town. When she arrived, all the household said to her, welcome. Welcome.
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Speaker 1: Food was prepared for her for the son in law said, see,
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Speaker 1: the mother of my wife has come to visit us.
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Speaker 1: But the daughter warned her mother, do not eat too
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Speaker 1: much of that dish with the pepper in it. You
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Speaker 1: know that no one has ever sneezed in this town,
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Speaker 1: and a sneeze must not overcome you. But the mother said,
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Speaker 1: I knew long before you were born that no one
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Speaker 1: ever sneezed here. Oh very well, then replied the daughter,
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Speaker 1: I'll say no more. And the mother ate every bit
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Speaker 1: of food that was brought to her. Now, when it
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Speaker 1: was time to go to bed, the mother wanted to
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Speaker 1: sneeze badly. She had been wanting to ever since the
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Speaker 1: food was eaten, but she did not dare. Finally, after
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Speaker 1: every one was asleep, she stole out of the house
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Speaker 1: and went away to a little wood, where she was
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Speaker 1: able to sneeze without being heard. But all the trees
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Speaker 1: in the little wood had never heard anyone sneeze before.
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Speaker 1: They were frightened and began to shiver and sing, un um,
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Speaker 1: we are not used to this. Un un we are
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Speaker 1: not used to this. The mother stole back into the house,
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Speaker 1: but the little tree in the wood continued to shiver
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Speaker 1: and sing. M N we are not used to this,
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Speaker 1: m n, we are not used to this. And in
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Speaker 1: the morning, when the women of the town went out
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Speaker 1: to draw water, they heard the little trees and said,
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Speaker 1: who is there? Who is sneezed in the town. So
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Speaker 1: all the people of the town were sent for, And
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Speaker 1: when the daughter came, she brought her mother with her.
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Speaker 1: She was frightened because she thought she would be discovered.
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Speaker 1: And indeed, when the little trees saw her again, they
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Speaker 1: stopped singing. Then the people of the town knew that
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Speaker 1: it was the mother who had sneezed, but as no
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Speaker 1: harm came of it, they too learned to sneeze. Now.
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Speaker 1: The mother returned her own home, but one day she
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Speaker 1: cooked more sweetmeats and decided to visit her other daughter,
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Speaker 1: the one who had married a man in the town
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Speaker 1: where no one ever slept. When she arrived, the household
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Speaker 1: said welcome, welcome, and her son in law said, my
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Speaker 1: mother in law has come. So he killed a fowl
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Speaker 1: and sent her a dish of rice and many sweetmeats.
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Speaker 1: But the daughter said to her mother, be careful, do
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Speaker 1: not eat too much lest you become sleepy. You know,
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Speaker 1: in this town no one is allowed to sleep. The
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Speaker 1: mother replied, thank you, indeed I knew that before ever
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Speaker 1: you were born. So the daughter said no more, and
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Speaker 1: the mother ate all she wished that night. Although she
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Speaker 1: lay down, she managed to keep awake, and in the
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Speaker 1: morning the daughter took up her jar to go to
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Speaker 1: the stream for water and said to her mother, see,
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Speaker 1: I have put the breakfast on to boil. Please keep
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Speaker 1: up the fire while I am away. But when the
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Speaker 1: daughter had gone, although her mother managed to replenish the
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Speaker 1: fire for a time, drowsiness overcame her in the end,
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Speaker 1: and she lay down and fell fast asleep. Just then
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Speaker 1: a neighbor came to borrow fire, and when she saw
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Speaker 1: the sleeping woman, she commenced to weep and wail and
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Speaker 1: cry alas the mother in law is dead. So the
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Speaker 1: drummers were sent for, and soon the whole town was
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Speaker 1: assembled at the house, and the drums were saying, Birim birim,
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Speaker 1: the mother in law is dead, Birim birim, the mother
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Speaker 1: in law is dead. But the daughter, who was at
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Speaker 1: the stream, heard the drumming and came running up. She cried,
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Speaker 1: we are accustomed to sleep, and shook her mother, crying,
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Speaker 1: wake up, wake up. Then the mother awoke with a start,
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Speaker 1: and the people were terrified. But they soon saw that
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Speaker 1: there was nothing to be afraid of, and from then
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Speaker 1: all the whole town began to learn to sleep and
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Speaker 1: to Section two read by lor Gibbs. Section three of
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Speaker 1: Black Folk Tales by Eric Berry. This LibriVox recording is
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Speaker 1: in the public domain. The Spider and the Two Chiefs.
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Speaker 1: This story is about the spider. Once upon a time
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Speaker 1: there was a famine on land, and in the water.
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Speaker 1: There was no food. The spider and all his children
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Speaker 1: had become thin from want of food. Things were in
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Speaker 1: this state when one day the spider went to the
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Speaker 1: elephant and said, Chief, may Allah prolong your life. The
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Speaker 1: chief of the water, the Hippopotamus, sends me to you.
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Speaker 1: He says, I am to tell you to give me
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Speaker 1: one hundred baskets of grain, and I am to take
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Speaker 1: them to him. When the harvestings and his come, he
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Speaker 1: will send you a great horse. Moreover, he says, these
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Speaker 1: words are only for the ears of the great ones,
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Speaker 1: and you are not to allow any one else to hear.
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Speaker 1: The elephant said, all right, let it be so, there
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Speaker 1: is no harm in that, and he gave orders that
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Speaker 1: one hundred baskets of grain were to be brought. Then
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Speaker 1: he sent one hundred us of the elephants with the baskets,
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Speaker 1: and they took them to The spider said, lay them
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Speaker 1: down here and go back home. I must go into
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Speaker 1: the river and tell the chief of the water that
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Speaker 1: he may send his young men to come for them.
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Speaker 1: For your part, you have finished the hardest of the work.
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Speaker 1: So the elephant's young men departed, and the spider went
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Speaker 1: to his home and called his wife and children. They
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Speaker 1: carried off all the grain and took it home. When
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Speaker 1: it was again day, the spider went to the river
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Speaker 1: bank and entered into the water. He went to the
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Speaker 1: court of the chief and asked for permission to speak.
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Speaker 1: It was granted him, and he said, may Allah lengthen
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Speaker 1: your days, o chief. And the chief said, amen, o spider,
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Speaker 1: whence come you? Then the spider said, behold me, I
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Speaker 1: was living just now as usual when the chief of
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Speaker 1: the land the elephant, called me to him, And when
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Speaker 1: I went, he sent me here to you. He told
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Speaker 1: me to tell you that although with the famine he
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Speaker 1: has grain foods, he has nothing for making soup. To
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Speaker 1: give him one hundred baskets of fish. When the harvest
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Speaker 1: season has come round, he will give you a great horse.
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Speaker 1: The hippo answered, well, that is all right, And the
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Speaker 1: spider made haste to add his words are only for
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Speaker 1: the ears of the great and you must not mention
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Speaker 1: this to any one until he comes and talks of
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Speaker 1: it with you. The hippo said, there is no harm
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Speaker 1: in that, and he gave orders that baskets should be
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Speaker 1: brought a fish, one hundred baskets, and sent his youths
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Speaker 1: to carry them to the bank of the river. Then
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Speaker 1: the spider said, it is all right. You go back now,
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Speaker 1: and the elephant's young men shall come and take them.
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Speaker 1: If you stay here when the other youths come, who
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Speaker 1: knows what might happen among you all. And the lads
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Speaker 1: agreed with him and departed. The spider went and called
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Speaker 1: his wife and children, and they removed all the fish
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Speaker 1: and went off home with them in the hundred baskets.
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Speaker 1: When the famine was over and the harvest season had come,
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Speaker 1: the elephant said, send for the spider. So the spider
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Speaker 1: was sought and brought. Then they said to him, what
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Speaker 1: about the promise we made with you with regard to
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Speaker 1: the hippo the chief of the water. And the spider said,
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Speaker 1: I shall go directly to the chief of the water
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Speaker 1: and tell him the day after tomorrow I shall return.
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Speaker 1: The spider went off for three days he was gone,
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Speaker 1: then he returned. Now what he had done was this.
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Speaker 1: He had gone to the river bank and searched out
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Speaker 1: a huge tree and tied to it a very long
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Speaker 1: and strong horse rope which he had made. He took
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Speaker 1: the end of the rope to where the elephant was
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Speaker 1: and said, behold the rope of the horse which the
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Speaker 1: hippo gives you. Tomorrow they are going to take this
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Speaker 1: horse from the water. And he says for you to
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Speaker 1: search out a huge tree to tie this rope to.
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Speaker 1: When it is dawn and you see this tree shaking,
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Speaker 1: seize this rope and pull it, for that is the
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Speaker 1: horse pulling the tree. And the elephant said, is it
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Speaker 1: really so, spider, And the spider replied yes. When the
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Speaker 1: dawn came, the elephant assembled the young men. Now of
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Speaker 1: a truth. The spider had gone to the hippo, saying,
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Speaker 1: the elephant has given me a horse to bring to you,
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Speaker 1: but it is so great that I am not able
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Speaker 1: to pull it. This rope is long. I have dragged
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Speaker 1: it thus far and brought the horse to the bank
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Speaker 1: of the river, where I've tied it to a tree.
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Speaker 1: When it is dawn, let the boys go and pull,
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Speaker 1: for the horse is very great. Indeed, the hippo agreed.
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Speaker 1: When it was dawn, the hippo's boys came up from
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Speaker 1: the water and found the tree from which the rope
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Speaker 1: was tied. It was swaying about as if it were
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Speaker 1: about to be uprooted. Then they seized hold and pulled.
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Speaker 1: The elephant's people also were pulling. When the elephant's youths
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Speaker 1: were pulling the hippo's ewes, then some more were added.
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Speaker 1: When the hippo's ewes were pulling too strongly for the
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Speaker 1: elephant's youths, then some more were added to them. And
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Speaker 1: so it went on until evening came, and they desisted
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Speaker 1: and down. When it was dawn very early, they rose up,
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Speaker 1: and they pulled again until noon. Then the hippo said,
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Speaker 1: let them cease and go and ask the elephant what
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Speaker 1: kind of a horse he has sent me? That none
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Speaker 1: of us is able to pull it, and all are
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Speaker 1: tired out. And the elephant also said, you leave off.
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Speaker 1: Let someone go and see what kind of a horse
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Speaker 1: this is that the chief of the water has sent me,
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Speaker 1: that none of us can bring it to land. So
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Speaker 1: the use went off and they met in the middle
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Speaker 1: of the jungle, and the use from the elephants asked
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Speaker 1: the Use from the hippo, where are you going? And
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Speaker 1: the Use from the hippo replied, We've been sent by
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Speaker 1: our chief to ask the elephant what kind of a
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Speaker 1: horse he has sent us. Since yesterday we've been pulling
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Speaker 1: at it and again all this morning. The elephant's use replied,
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Speaker 1: we two are on the same errand you go back,
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Speaker 1: and we will also say that it is a lie
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Speaker 1: that the spider told we have not seen any horse.
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Speaker 1: So they each turned back to their own place. The
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Speaker 1: hippo's young men went and told him what they had done,
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Speaker 1: so also did the use of the elephant, And the
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Speaker 1: elephant said, what's all this? I do not owe the
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Speaker 1: hippo any horse. The hippo owes me. When the affair
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Speaker 1: came to be discussed. It became clear that the spider
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Speaker 1: had lied. He it was that had received the food
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Speaker 1: and had eaten it. But as for the spider, he
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Speaker 1: had disappeared into the jungle with his wife and children,
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Speaker 1: and was not to be found. And of Section three
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Speaker 1: read by Lord Gibbs, Section four of Black Folk Tales
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Speaker 1: by Eric Barry, This LibriVox recording is in the public domain.
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Speaker 1: Why the heart a beast always has tears in his eyes? This, then,
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Speaker 1: is a tale of the old days, when animals were
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Speaker 1: his men. Let it be told. Let it be told.
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Speaker 1: Once there was a great emir who ruled over a
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Speaker 1: large town with many people. He had also a very
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Speaker 1: beautiful daughter, the like of whose beauty was not to
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Speaker 1: be seen in the whole town. All men who saw
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Speaker 1: her wished her for a wife. Now, when the time
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Speaker 1: came for his daughter to be married, the emir sent
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Speaker 1: forth a proclamation. He said, let all the people come
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Speaker 1: together for hoeing, And he who hoes on that day,
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Speaker 1: and whose area hoed in one day is the greatest,
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Speaker 1: shall have my daughter for wife. And on that day
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Speaker 1: all the suitors gathered together. Now of a truth, the
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Speaker 1: camellion had heard this, He had by himself been making
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Speaker 1: hoeing magic. When all the suitors came out, the camellion
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Speaker 1: stayed at home. He waited till all those who were
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Speaker 1: hoeing were hard at work and had hoed far away.
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Speaker 1: Then he came out. Then he struck one blow in
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Speaker 1: the ground with a hoe, and climbed on the handle
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Speaker 1: of the hoe and sat down there. The hoe started
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Speaker 1: to hoe. It hoed, and it hoed, and it fairly
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Speaker 1: flew until it had passed way beyond all the other hoers.
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Speaker 1: The chameleon got off the handle and sat down and rested.
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Speaker 1: After a while, a near sunset, the others came along.
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Speaker 1: They were almost up to where the chameleon sat. Then
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Speaker 1: the emir, seeing who had won the race, would not
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Speaker 1: consent that the chameleon should have his daughter. So he
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Speaker 1: said again that they should have a race all the suitors,
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Speaker 1: and that whoever should run fastest in the race might
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Speaker 1: have the girl. They started to race, and the chameleon
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Speaker 1: made magic and turned himself into a needle. He leaped
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Speaker 1: and stuck fast in the tail of the heart a beast.
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Speaker 1: The heartebeast ran very fast, very fast. In truth, he
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Speaker 1: passed all the other suitors and ran until he came
20:52
Speaker 1: to the door of the house of the Emir. He
20:54
Speaker 1: passed it, but the chameleon saw the maiden leaving the house,
20:58
Speaker 1: and slid from the heart abe beast tail and turning
21:01
Speaker 1: back into himself again embraced the maiden. When the heart
21:05
Speaker 1: abeast came along, he met the chameleon embracing the girl,
21:09
Speaker 1: and he knew that the chameleon would marry her, And
21:12
Speaker 1: the hearted beast wept. From that day to this he
21:16
Speaker 1: has always had tears in his eyes. That then is
21:20
Speaker 1: the tail and of section four read by Laura Gibbs,
21:31
Speaker 1: Section five of Black Folk Tales by Eric Berry. This
21:35
Speaker 1: LibriVox recording is in the public domain. Why the owl
21:39
Speaker 1: flies only at night? Here then is the story hark
21:44
Speaker 1: to it. Once the owl committed a theft, she took
21:47
Speaker 1: the thing into her hole and hid it there. Then
21:50
Speaker 1: the kite and the hawk collected together all the birds.
21:54
Speaker 1: Said the kite, let the owl be sought and brought
21:56
Speaker 1: before us. No bird shall return to his home until
21:59
Speaker 1: the owl is found. But the owl heard of this
22:03
Speaker 1: and hid herself in the hollow of a tree. She
22:05
Speaker 1: came out only at evening time. Then the kite and
22:09
Speaker 1: the hawk heard that the owl was with the ostrich
22:11
Speaker 1: and sought her there, but the ostrich replied that she
22:15
Speaker 1: had not seen the owl. Then they heard news that
22:18
Speaker 1: the owl was in the home of the crocodile, and
22:20
Speaker 1: they issued in order that the crocodile should be sought
22:23
Speaker 1: and questioned. But the crocodile refused to come out. He
22:27
Speaker 1: said that it was no concern of his, and he
22:29
Speaker 1: entered the water and hid himself. Rumor had it that
22:33
Speaker 1: the owl had taken refuge with the porcupine, but when
22:36
Speaker 1: she was asked if she had seen the owl, she
22:38
Speaker 1: shot off her quills and refused to answer. Then the
22:43
Speaker 1: king heard that the owl was being sought and sent
22:46
Speaker 1: for the hawk and the kite to appear before him,
22:48
Speaker 1: but they did not come. So he had traps set
22:51
Speaker 1: for them, and when they were caught, he had them
22:53
Speaker 1: brought before him. Why seek ye the owl, he asked them,
22:57
Speaker 1: and they replied, she has committed a theft. The king said,
23:02
Speaker 1: what did she steal? She has stolen an egg. They replied,
23:07
Speaker 1: Let it go, said the king, she shall go free,
23:10
Speaker 1: and he released the kite and the hawk, but they
23:13
Speaker 1: were angry, and ever since then the kite and the
23:16
Speaker 1: hawk have sought the owl that they may punish her,
23:20
Speaker 1: But she does not come out except at night. And
23:24
Speaker 1: of section five read by Lord Gibbs, Section six of
23:35
Speaker 1: Black Folk Tales by Eric Berry, This LibriVox recording is
23:38
Speaker 1: in the public domain the water of Ladi. This then
23:44
Speaker 1: is the tail of the water of Ladi. A certain
23:47
Speaker 1: hunter went into the forest to live and built a
23:50
Speaker 1: hut there. His wife gave him two children, a boy
23:53
Speaker 1: and a girl. And when the old couple died, the
23:56
Speaker 1: two were left alone, and they lived there. And always
24:00
Speaker 1: when the youth went away to hunt, he would shut
24:02
Speaker 1: his sister in the house for safety and close the
24:05
Speaker 1: door with thorns. And when he returned from the day's hunting,
24:08
Speaker 1: he would stand outside and call Fatismatah, Fatismatah, open the
24:13
Speaker 1: door for me to enter. And when she heard this,
24:16
Speaker 1: she would open the door that he might come in.
24:19
Speaker 1: Now of a truth, the hyaena overheard this, and one day,
24:23
Speaker 1: when the youth was hunting in the forest, the hyaena
24:26
Speaker 1: came to the door of the hut and called Fatif Mata,
24:29
Speaker 1: Fatif Matah, open the door that I may enter. But
24:34
Speaker 1: the girl said, no, I know who you are. You
24:37
Speaker 1: have a lisp, you are the Hyaena. Then the Hyaena
24:41
Speaker 1: went off and sought the lion. From the lion, he
24:44
Speaker 1: asked for medicine that would cure a lisp, and the
24:47
Speaker 1: lion gave it to him. He came back to the
24:49
Speaker 1: door of the hut and called fatiz Matah, fatizmatah, open
24:53
Speaker 1: the door that I may enter. So the maiden opened
24:57
Speaker 1: the door, and the Hyaena seized her and swam followed
25:00
Speaker 1: her and disappeared into the forest. And at evening the
25:04
Speaker 1: brother of the girl returned from hunting. But when he
25:07
Speaker 1: stood in front of the door of his hut and
25:09
Speaker 1: called Fatismatah, Fatismata, open the door that I may enter,
25:14
Speaker 1: there was only silence. He called again, but again no
25:18
Speaker 1: one answered him. He repeated his call three times, and
25:23
Speaker 1: then he pushed on the door. It swung open and
25:26
Speaker 1: he entered. The hut was empty and his sister was gone.
25:31
Speaker 1: Then he came out, lifted his calabash to his head,
25:34
Speaker 1: and traveled until he reached the mouth of the hyena's cave.
25:38
Speaker 1: He saw the girl's waste, beads and skirt cloth lying
25:41
Speaker 1: at the mouth of the hole, and he said, the
25:44
Speaker 1: Hyaena has done this thing, and he passed on. Now
25:48
Speaker 1: there was a certain pool where all the wild animals
25:51
Speaker 1: of the place came to drink water. There was no
25:54
Speaker 1: other water but this. The youth went there and he
25:57
Speaker 1: knelt down, and taking his at calabash, drew up all
26:02
Speaker 1: the water from the pool into it. Then he climbed
26:05
Speaker 1: into a tall tree and waited there. There was no
26:08
Speaker 1: water left in the pool. Then came a herd of
26:12
Speaker 1: elephants to the pool. They were about to drink when
26:14
Speaker 1: the youth called out, you there, elephant, where are you going?
26:18
Speaker 1: And the head elephant replied, we are going to the
26:21
Speaker 1: water of Ladi to drink. Then said the youth, there
26:25
Speaker 1: is no water in the pool of Ladi. When you
26:27
Speaker 1: have given up the one who has eaten my sister,
26:30
Speaker 1: then I will give you back the waters of Ladi.
26:33
Speaker 1: And the elephant replied, there is nothing in me but
26:36
Speaker 1: my stomach, and he went and lay down with the
26:39
Speaker 1: other elephants. A herd of bush cows came up, and
26:43
Speaker 1: the boy called to one of them, you, bush cow,
26:46
Speaker 1: where are you going? And the bush cow replied, we
26:49
Speaker 1: are going to drink at the water of Ladi. And
26:52
Speaker 1: the youth in the tree replied, the water of Lati
26:55
Speaker 1: has dried. When you give me the one who has
26:57
Speaker 1: eaten my sister, then I will give you back the water.
27:01
Speaker 1: But the bush cow replied that he had nothing inside
27:04
Speaker 1: him but his stomach, and like the elephant, he went
27:07
Speaker 1: and lay down and waited whatever herd of wild animals
27:11
Speaker 1: came up to drink. The boy asked for his sister.
27:14
Speaker 1: They two made answer so and passed on and lay down,
27:18
Speaker 1: panting for thirst. Until all the animals in the forest
27:21
Speaker 1: had passed. There remained only the hyaena and his family.
27:26
Speaker 1: They came up. The hyaena, who had eaten the maiden,
27:29
Speaker 1: was in front. He was very thirsty and in haste
27:33
Speaker 1: to drink, and the youth called down you Hyaena, where
27:36
Speaker 1: are you going? And the hyaena replied, I'm going to
27:39
Speaker 1: the water of Ladi whereat. The youth said, the water
27:43
Speaker 1: of Ladi is dried. If you will give me back
27:46
Speaker 1: my sister, I will give you back the water of Ladi.
27:49
Speaker 1: The hyaena was silent. What was there he could say?
27:53
Speaker 1: Then the youth said again, when you give me back
27:56
Speaker 1: my sister, I will give you back the water of Ladi.
28:00
Speaker 1: He said this three times, and the hyaena said nothing,
28:04
Speaker 1: but the lion, who was also thirsty and waiting for
28:07
Speaker 1: a drink, became angry and leaped up and caught the
28:10
Speaker 1: hyaena and tore him in two. And the maiden came out,
28:15
Speaker 1: and the lion said, behold your sister. So the youth
28:19
Speaker 1: poured out the water for them because he had found
28:21
Speaker 1: his sister alive. And the two went home again to
28:24
Speaker 1: their hut in the forest. And of section six read
28:30
Speaker 1: by Laura Gibbs, Section seven of Black Folk Tales by
28:39
Speaker 1: Eric Barry. This LibriVox recording is in the public domain.
28:44
Speaker 1: The goat and the Hyaena Once there was a goat
28:48
Speaker 1: who went for a walk in the evening with her kid.
28:50
Speaker 1: They walked, and they walked until very late, and could
28:53
Speaker 1: not find their way back. They had lost their road.
28:56
Speaker 1: At last they saw a house ahead of them. When
28:59
Speaker 1: they got to the house, they saw a hyaena sitting there.
29:02
Speaker 1: It was her house, and her children were with her. Welcome,
29:06
Speaker 1: said the hyaena. So they all entered the hut and
29:09
Speaker 1: sat down to talk. After a while, the hyaena got
29:12
Speaker 1: up and brought some grain and commenced to grind it.
29:15
Speaker 1: But the goat said, let me do that for you. Indeed, no,
29:19
Speaker 1: replied the hyaena does a guest grind, But the goat persisted,
29:24
Speaker 1: and finally the hyaena let her take the grinding stone.
29:27
Speaker 1: As for the hyaena, she watched the young kid till
29:31
Speaker 1: the kid became frightened for fear that the hyaena would
29:34
Speaker 1: eat him. He went and stood close to his mother,
29:36
Speaker 1: the goat. Then she said, now when I sing, you
29:40
Speaker 1: must take up the chorus, and the kids said very well.
29:44
Speaker 1: So the goat began her song, saying I have killed
29:48
Speaker 1: ten elephants. And the kid said, it is true, I
29:52
Speaker 1: have killed ten lions. And the kid said it is true,
29:56
Speaker 1: I have killed ten leopards. And the kid said it
30:00
Speaker 1: is true, I have killed ten hyaenas. And the kids said, hush, oh, mother,
30:07
Speaker 1: do not speak. Thus, if the hyaena here, she will
30:10
Speaker 1: run away and leave us without any food. But the
30:14
Speaker 1: hyena did hear and said what did you sing, goat?
30:19
Speaker 1: And the goat replied, singing I have eaten ten elephants.
30:23
Speaker 1: And the kids said it is true, I have eaten
30:27
Speaker 1: ten lions. And the kids said it is true, I
30:32
Speaker 1: have eaten ten leopards. And the kids said, it is true,
30:37
Speaker 1: I have eaten ten hyaenas. Then the hyaena said, oh,
30:42
Speaker 1: let me send my cubs to get water for us
30:44
Speaker 1: to drink. But when she got them out of the hut,
30:47
Speaker 1: she said to them, run off, escape and do not
30:50
Speaker 1: return till this dangerous creature has departed. This is too
30:54
Speaker 1: much for us. So they fled and disappeared into the forest.
30:58
Speaker 1: When they had gone, the hyena returned to her guests
31:01
Speaker 1: and sat down. But after she had waited a little
31:03
Speaker 1: while and the goat was still singing, the hyaena said, well,
31:08
Speaker 1: o guest, I sent my cups to get water, but
31:10
Speaker 1: they have not returned. Excuse me while I go and
31:14
Speaker 1: look for them. Then the hyaena went off on a run,
31:17
Speaker 1: and the goat and her kid bolted the door and
31:20
Speaker 1: ate up all the supper and spent a peaceful night
31:25
Speaker 1: and of Section seven read by Laura Gibbs Section eight
31:35
Speaker 1: of Black Folk Tales by Eric Barry. This LibriVox recording
31:39
Speaker 1: is in the public domain. The Magpies and the Greedy Spider.
31:44
Speaker 1: Once there was a spider who was very greedy. Indeed,
31:48
Speaker 1: one morning he came out of his house and saw
31:51
Speaker 1: some very large mango pits around his door. What wonderful
31:55
Speaker 1: mangoes those must have been, he thought, licking his lips hungrily.
31:59
Speaker 1: I wonder where they came from. A few mornings later
32:03
Speaker 1: he saw some more mango pits outside his door. He
32:06
Speaker 1: became more and more anxious to have some of those
32:08
Speaker 1: wonderful mangoes. They must be very large and juicy, indeed,
32:13
Speaker 1: in fact, quite delicious to have such large pits. So
32:17
Speaker 1: he determined to watch and see where they came from.
32:21
Speaker 1: For several mornings he got up very early, and then
32:24
Speaker 1: he saw some magpies flying past the house. They were
32:27
Speaker 1: dropping the pits of the mangoes they ate as they flew. Aha,
32:31
Speaker 1: thought the spider. Those magpies must go to a particular
32:35
Speaker 1: place for those mangoes. I will ask them. So he
32:39
Speaker 1: went to the house of the magpies and ask them
32:41
Speaker 1: about it. Where did you get such wonderful mangoes, he asked,
32:45
Speaker 1: and they replied over there on an island far away.
32:49
Speaker 1: So he asked, when you were going next time, will
32:52
Speaker 1: you not ask me to go also? And the magpies
32:56
Speaker 1: answered very well, and he went home. Few days later,
33:00
Speaker 1: the magpies came for him. We are going to the
33:03
Speaker 1: island of the mangoes, they said. Two of them took
33:06
Speaker 1: hold of the spider and they flew, thus holding him
33:09
Speaker 1: as they flew. They flew a long way until they
33:12
Speaker 1: reached the island. When they had arrived at the tree,
33:16
Speaker 1: every fruit that the spider saw was ripe. He claimed
33:19
Speaker 1: as part of his share, and the magpies let him
33:22
Speaker 1: have it, so that not one of them had any fruit.
33:26
Speaker 1: The spider ate it all now. When the spider had finished,
33:30
Speaker 1: they let him go to sleep in a tree. Then
33:33
Speaker 1: the magpies flew away home without him. He slept for
33:37
Speaker 1: quite a long time, for he had eaten much. And
33:40
Speaker 1: when he awoke he found that he was alone on
33:42
Speaker 1: the island. There was no way for him to get home,
33:46
Speaker 1: for he had no wings. Then he went down the
33:49
Speaker 1: tree and gazed at the water. Perhaps he might wade.
33:53
Speaker 1: He picked up a small stick and threw it into
33:55
Speaker 1: the water, saying, if the water is deep here, this
33:59
Speaker 1: stick will sink. But the stick rose to the surface,
34:02
Speaker 1: and the spider said, ah, the water is shallow, and
34:05
Speaker 1: jumped in. But the water was deep, and he sank
34:10
Speaker 1: and was drowned. And of Section eight read by Laura Gibbs,
34:21
Speaker 1: Section nine of Black Folk Tales by Eric Barry. This
34:25
Speaker 1: LibriVox recording is in the public domain. The maiden and
34:29
Speaker 1: the saracin pumpkin. This, then, is a story about a
34:33
Speaker 1: pumpkin and a maiden. There was a certain rich man
34:37
Speaker 1: named Alabarma. For many years he had no children, and
34:42
Speaker 1: then his favorite wife gave him a child, a girl
34:45
Speaker 1: whom they named Fetilla. Alabarma loved Fetilla exceedingly, and whatever
34:51
Speaker 1: she asked for that thing he gave her. One day,
34:55
Speaker 1: the mother took the little Fetilla on her back and
34:57
Speaker 1: they went for a walk into the bush the wild country,
35:01
Speaker 1: and Fetila saw a great pumpkin vine on It was
35:04
Speaker 1: one small pumpkin. That was all the vine had. There
35:08
Speaker 1: was not any other. And Fetila said to her mother, mother,
35:12
Speaker 1: pluck the baby pumpkin for me to play with. But
35:15
Speaker 1: the mother said, Fetila, how is this. The poor vine
35:18
Speaker 1: has only one solitary baby pumpkin. It will be sad
35:22
Speaker 1: if we pluck its only baby. Then Fetilla began to cry,
35:26
Speaker 1: and her mother said, if you are going to cry,
35:29
Speaker 1: you must just cry. But I am not going to
35:31
Speaker 1: pluck the solitary baby pumpkin to give you. They returned
35:35
Speaker 1: home and the little girl continued weeping. Her father, Alabama,
35:41
Speaker 1: asked the cause, and her mother told the tale from
35:43
Speaker 1: the beginning, and Alabama, being able to deny his daughter nothing,
35:48
Speaker 1: said go back and pluck the baby pumpkin and give
35:51
Speaker 1: it to her. So the mother went back and plucked
35:54
Speaker 1: the pumpkin and brought it. Then from that day the
35:58
Speaker 1: pumpkin commenced to follow the maiden. It kept saying, meat,
36:02
Speaker 1: I must eat, fetilla, meat I must eat. Alabama said,
36:07
Speaker 1: put it among the goats. So they took it and
36:09
Speaker 1: put it among the goats. It ate them all up.
36:13
Speaker 1: It was put among some others, It ate them all up,
36:16
Speaker 1: and so on until he had devoured three hundred and
36:20
Speaker 1: fifty flocks of goats. But the pumpkin always returned and said, meat,
36:25
Speaker 1: I must eat, fetilla, meat I must eat. They came
36:29
Speaker 1: and told her father, and he said, put it among
36:32
Speaker 1: the sheep. It was taken and ate up a flock
36:35
Speaker 1: of seven hundred and fifty sheep. It came back and
36:38
Speaker 1: kept following the maiden, saying meat I must eat, fetila,
36:42
Speaker 1: meat I must eat. And so it went on for
36:45
Speaker 1: a long time. Always it followed the maiden, and the
36:49
Speaker 1: pumpkin grew and grew and grew. It ate up the cattle,
36:53
Speaker 1: and it ate up the pigeons, and it ate up
36:56
Speaker 1: the camels, and it followed the maiden around always, and
37:00
Speaker 1: then finally one day Fetilla turned on it and cried, oh,
37:04
Speaker 1: I am tired of you pumpkin, always following me and
37:07
Speaker 1: always eating meat. And she seized a stick with which
37:10
Speaker 1: corn was pounded, and struck the pumpkin a great blow.
37:14
Speaker 1: And suddenly the pumpkin burst open, and out stepped a
37:18
Speaker 1: beautiful youth. He cried, Fetila, I am saracin pumpkin, a
37:23
Speaker 1: mirror of all the pumpkins. And he was very grateful
37:27
Speaker 1: that she had set him free. So Fetila became his
37:30
Speaker 1: favorite wife. That then is the story and of section
37:36
Speaker 1: nine read by Laura Gibbs, Section ten of Black Folk
37:46
Speaker 1: Tales by Eric Berry. This LibriVox recording is in the
37:49
Speaker 1: public domain. The Lion and the Squirrel. This is a
37:54
Speaker 1: tale about the beasts of the forest. The lion was
37:57
Speaker 1: killing them and eating them so fast that one day
38:00
Speaker 1: the beasts met together and said, look here, the lion
38:04
Speaker 1: will soon annihilate us. Let us take counsel to see
38:07
Speaker 1: what we can do to save ourselves. So they all
38:10
Speaker 1: assembled and went together to the lion. They said to him,
38:14
Speaker 1: O great one elder brother of the forest. We have
38:17
Speaker 1: something to ask you, and they continued, we will bring
38:21
Speaker 1: you one of our number to eat every morning if
38:23
Speaker 1: you will leave the rest of us alive. The lion
38:26
Speaker 1: thought awhile, but finally agreed to this, and they went off.
38:30
Speaker 1: Next morning, they drew lots, and the lot fell upon
38:33
Speaker 1: the gazelle. So the other seized the gazelle and took
38:36
Speaker 1: her to the lion. Then the lion killed her and
38:39
Speaker 1: ate her, and did not hurt any of the others.
38:43
Speaker 1: The following morning, the beast did the same thing. This
38:46
Speaker 1: time it was the roan antelope. They took him to
38:49
Speaker 1: the lion, who killed him and ate him, but let
38:52
Speaker 1: the others go. This went on every day until at
38:55
Speaker 1: last the lot fell to the squirrel. The other seized
38:58
Speaker 1: him and were about to take him to the lion,
39:00
Speaker 1: when he said, no, no, let me go. I will
39:03
Speaker 1: go to the lion of my own free will. Then
39:06
Speaker 1: they said very well, and released him. The squirrel went
39:10
Speaker 1: to his hole and fell asleep and did not go
39:12
Speaker 1: out before noon. But the lion in his den began
39:15
Speaker 1: to feel hungry, for nothing had been brought for him.
39:19
Speaker 1: He arose in anger and went with much roaring to
39:21
Speaker 1: look for the beasts of the forest. The squirrel came
39:24
Speaker 1: out of his hole and climbed a tree near a well.
39:27
Speaker 1: He watched the lion from far off, and when he
39:30
Speaker 1: had passed, the squirrel called out, what is making you roar?
39:33
Speaker 1: The lion replied, ever since daybreak I have been waiting
39:37
Speaker 1: for you, yet you have brought me nothing. Then the
39:40
Speaker 1: squirrel from the top of the tree said, well, look
39:42
Speaker 1: here we cast lots, and the lot fell upon me.
39:46
Speaker 1: And I was coming to you and bringing some honey
39:49
Speaker 1: when another lion in this well stopped me and stole
39:52
Speaker 1: the honey. Then the lion exclaimed, where is this lion?
39:57
Speaker 1: And the squirrel came down and said, he is in
39:59
Speaker 1: the well. But he says that he is stronger than you.
40:03
Speaker 1: Then the lion was furious and ran to the well.
40:06
Speaker 1: He stopped at the edge and looked in and saw
40:09
Speaker 1: another lion looking at him. In reality, it was only
40:13
Speaker 1: his own reflection. Then the lion abused him, and the
40:17
Speaker 1: echo and the well roared back at him. Again, he
40:20
Speaker 1: abused him, and again the lion in the well his
40:23
Speaker 1: own echo, roared back at him. Finally, in a rage,
40:27
Speaker 1: the lion sprang into the well and sank in the
40:30
Speaker 1: water and was drowned. Then the squirrel returned to where
40:34
Speaker 1: the beasts were and said, I have killed the lion,
40:37
Speaker 1: so you can feed in the forests in peace. As
40:40
Speaker 1: for me, I'm going to live in my hole. And
40:43
Speaker 1: he went home and of Section ten read by Lord Gibbs,
40:50
Speaker 1: Section eleven of Black Folk Tales by Eric Barry. This
40:54
Speaker 1: LibriVox recording is in the public domain. Another story of
40:58
Speaker 1: the spider. Once the crown bird said to the guinea fowl,
41:03
Speaker 1: will you go with me on a journey? But just
41:06
Speaker 1: then the spider came up and said, come with me.
41:08
Speaker 1: I am going to visit the home of my mother
41:10
Speaker 1: in law. Then the guinea fowl said, your journey is
41:13
Speaker 1: the more important. Let us go together, you and I.
41:17
Speaker 1: So they started to go to the town where the
41:19
Speaker 1: spider's parents lived. While they were still on the road,
41:22
Speaker 1: the spider said to the guinea fowl, see this grass.
41:26
Speaker 1: If when we arrived in the town they bring us
41:28
Speaker 1: some ground nuts, you come back here and get some
41:30
Speaker 1: of this grass so that we can roast them. It
41:33
Speaker 1: looks very good for that, very well, said the guinea fowl.
41:37
Speaker 1: They went farther along the road, and the spider said,
41:40
Speaker 1: there is a spoon. If when we have arrived at
41:42
Speaker 1: the town they bring us some porridge, you come back
41:45
Speaker 1: here and get the spoon so that we can eat it.
41:48
Speaker 1: The guinea fowl said very well, and they traveled on.
41:52
Speaker 1: Soon they arrived at the house. They were made welcome,
41:55
Speaker 1: and porridge was made and brought to them. So the
41:57
Speaker 1: spider said to the guinea fowl, go get the spoon
42:00
Speaker 1: and bring it. As soon as she had gone to
42:02
Speaker 1: get the spoon, the spider ate up all the porridge
42:05
Speaker 1: except a little bit, And when she had returned, he said, oh,
42:08
Speaker 1: you lazy one, you've been a long time going. People
42:12
Speaker 1: have since come and taken away the porridge. Then he said,
42:15
Speaker 1: but see they have brought ground nuts. Get the good
42:18
Speaker 1: grass that we passed and bring it here that we
42:20
Speaker 1: may roast them. So the guinea fowl went off for
42:23
Speaker 1: the grass, and when she returned, she found that the
42:25
Speaker 1: spider had eaten up all the ground nuts. He said,
42:29
Speaker 1: you have been so long that they have taken away
42:31
Speaker 1: all the ground nuts. Next morning, the spider said, now
42:35
Speaker 1: we must go home. So the spider's load was tied
42:38
Speaker 1: up and that of the guinea fowl also, and they
42:40
Speaker 1: started off on the road. Soon they came to the
42:43
Speaker 1: bank of a big river, and the spider lighted a
42:46
Speaker 1: fire and said, stop here, I'm going to see if
42:49
Speaker 1: the river is too high to cross. If you hear
42:51
Speaker 1: me fall into the water, you will know that I
42:53
Speaker 1: have drowned, for I cannot swim. So he went on
42:57
Speaker 1: and took a stone and threw it into the rivers
43:00
Speaker 1: so that it made a noise blomp. When the guinea
43:03
Speaker 1: fowl heard this, she cried alas the spider is dead,
43:07
Speaker 1: poor thing, and threw herself into the fire that she
43:10
Speaker 1: might also die. Then the spider came back and pulled
43:14
Speaker 1: the dead guinea fowl out of the fire and plucked
43:16
Speaker 1: her feathers and ate her. Then he took the guinea
43:19
Speaker 1: fowl's load and tied it on to his own and
43:22
Speaker 1: went off home. Some time afterward, he went to see
43:25
Speaker 1: the crown bird. He said to the crown bird, I'm
43:28
Speaker 1: going to take a journey to see my mother in law.
43:30
Speaker 1: Will you come with me on the journey. The crown
43:33
Speaker 1: bird agreed to that, so they started. As they were traveling,
43:37
Speaker 1: they came to some grass and the spider said, that
43:40
Speaker 1: is very nice grass. When we have arrived at the town,
43:43
Speaker 1: if they bring us some ground nuts, you come back
43:45
Speaker 1: here for the grass so that we may roast them.
43:48
Speaker 1: But the crown bird picked the grass on the sly
43:50
Speaker 1: and hid it. Then they traveled along a way and
43:54
Speaker 1: the spider saw a spoon, and he said to the
43:56
Speaker 1: crown bird, there is a good spoon. If when we
43:59
Speaker 1: get to the town they give us porridge, you come
44:02
Speaker 1: back for this spoon that we may eat it. Very well,
44:05
Speaker 1: said the crown bird, but she took the spoon and
44:08
Speaker 1: hid it. Soon they arrived at the town, porridge was
44:12
Speaker 1: brought them for supper, and the spider said, oh, you
44:15
Speaker 1: go back and get the spoon. I will wait here
44:17
Speaker 1: for you. But the crown bird said, I thought that
44:20
Speaker 1: a good idea, so I brought it along. But the
44:23
Speaker 1: spider was very angry. So they pushed the porridge toward
44:26
Speaker 1: the crown bird and said you eat it, and the
44:29
Speaker 1: crown bird ate all but a very little bit. Soon
44:32
Speaker 1: after this, ground nuts were brought them, and the spider said,
44:35
Speaker 1: remember the grass along the road, go and get that
44:38
Speaker 1: that we may roast the ground nuts. But the crown
44:40
Speaker 1: bird said, I thought that a good idea. So I
44:43
Speaker 1: brought some along. The spider was furious and cried, take
44:47
Speaker 1: the ground nuts and eat them. But when she had
44:50
Speaker 1: roasted them and eaten all but a few, the spider
44:53
Speaker 1: snatched the rest and ate them. Next morning they said
44:57
Speaker 1: we must be going home. So the spider this load
45:00
Speaker 1: was bound up for him, and the crown birds for her,
45:03
Speaker 1: and they took them and started off. Soon they arrived
45:06
Speaker 1: at the bank of the river, and the spider lighted
45:08
Speaker 1: a fire and said, stay here. I am going along
45:11
Speaker 1: to see if the river is too full to cross.
45:14
Speaker 1: If you hear me fall into the water, you will
45:16
Speaker 1: know I have drowned, for I cannot swim. So he
45:19
Speaker 1: went along and took a stone and threw it into
45:22
Speaker 1: the water, and had made a sound like plump. Then
45:25
Speaker 1: the crown bird went and got one of the spider's
45:28
Speaker 1: long boots and put it on the fire, while she
45:31
Speaker 1: herself crawled into the spider's load and hid. Soon the
45:34
Speaker 1: spider came and searched in the fire and found the
45:37
Speaker 1: boot and ate it. Well, said he. The guinea fowl
45:41
Speaker 1: was certainly more juicy than this crown bird. So he
45:44
Speaker 1: took the crown bird's load and tied it on his
45:46
Speaker 1: own and started off home. Then the crown bird, who
45:50
Speaker 1: was inside the load, cried, the spider is a fool.
45:54
Speaker 1: He has eaten his own boot. And the spider was
45:57
Speaker 1: so frightened that he threw off the load and ran
46:00
Speaker 1: away into the forest. The crown bird crawled out and
46:03
Speaker 1: went home with both loads. That then is the story
46:09
Speaker 1: and of Section eleven read by Lord Gibbs, Section twelve
46:19
Speaker 1: of Black Folk Tales by Eric Berry. This LibriVox recording
46:23
Speaker 1: is in the public domain. The Ram and the Youngest Son.
46:28
Speaker 1: There was once a certain man who was very rich.
46:31
Speaker 1: Among his possessions was an old ram. He had three
46:34
Speaker 1: sons also, the elder two he loved very much, but Auta,
46:38
Speaker 1: the youngest, he did not love. Now he was about
46:42
Speaker 1: to die, so he summoned his eldest son to the
46:45
Speaker 1: door of his hut and said, when I am dead,
46:47
Speaker 1: say that you do not want any of my possessions
46:51
Speaker 1: except the old Ram. But the son replied, what there
46:54
Speaker 1: are great riches here. What should I do with an
46:57
Speaker 1: old ram? So the father replied very well, and he
47:01
Speaker 1: summoned the second and said, when I am dead, say
47:04
Speaker 1: that you do not want any of my possessions. Save
47:07
Speaker 1: the old Ram. And the second son replied, even has
47:10
Speaker 1: had the first. I see that you are very rich.
47:13
Speaker 1: Why should I be content with an old ram? So
47:16
Speaker 1: the father replied very well, and summoned his youngest son, Alta,
47:21
Speaker 1: whom he did not love, and said to him, listen
47:24
Speaker 1: to me. When I am dead, say that you want
47:27
Speaker 1: none of my possessions, save the old Ram. And Auta replied, father,
47:32
Speaker 1: even now, when you are alive, riches are of no
47:35
Speaker 1: account to me. They will matter even less when you
47:37
Speaker 1: are here no more. And he continued, the ram will
47:41
Speaker 1: be enough for me. So the father said, good, and
47:45
Speaker 1: remember that whatever you have to eat, give some to
47:48
Speaker 1: the ram first. Then you may eat also. And the
47:51
Speaker 1: son answered, I will remember now. When the father had
47:55
Speaker 1: ceased speaking, he died, and there was wailing and whaling
47:59
Speaker 1: and whaling. Then Alta took the ram and departed, and
48:03
Speaker 1: people said, ah, there is one who made a foolish promise.
48:06
Speaker 1: There are riches, but he has given up his claim
48:09
Speaker 1: to them and has taken only the old Ram. So
48:13
Speaker 1: Alta traveled on and on and on, and when he
48:17
Speaker 1: got water to drink, he gave some to the old
48:20
Speaker 1: Ram that he might drink first at last they came
48:23
Speaker 1: to the hut of a weaver who was very poor,
48:25
Speaker 1: for he had nothing to eat. When Alta had saluted
48:28
Speaker 1: the house, the weaver said, O, stranger, do you wish
48:31
Speaker 1: to rest here? And Alta said, yes, very well, said
48:36
Speaker 1: the other, but I have no food for myself, much
48:39
Speaker 1: less any to give to you. Now, the weaver had
48:42
Speaker 1: a wife whom he loved, and she had a daughter.
48:45
Speaker 1: He also had a second wife, whom he did not love,
48:48
Speaker 1: and she also had a daughter. And the weaver said
48:51
Speaker 1: to his beloved wife, woman, draw some water for the
48:54
Speaker 1: stranger to drink. But she replied, puff, I have no
48:58
Speaker 1: water in my hut. I have nothing to give the stranger.
49:02
Speaker 1: Then the weaver said to his unloved wife, go draw
49:05
Speaker 1: some water for the stranger to drink. The unloved wife
49:08
Speaker 1: had a little corn in her bin, about a handful,
49:11
Speaker 1: and she ground it and put it in the water,
49:14
Speaker 1: and took it to Auta to drink. He gave it
49:16
Speaker 1: to the ram first, and they said, what drink then yourself.
49:20
Speaker 1: The Ram will get his own food. But Auta said, no, no,
49:25
Speaker 1: this will do for both of us. So he gave
49:27
Speaker 1: it first to the Ram, and he drank, and then
49:30
Speaker 1: Alta drank of it. In the evening, when the sun
49:33
Speaker 1: had set, the first wife said, good gracious, is this
49:36
Speaker 1: stranger going to sleep here? And the weaver said, yes,
49:39
Speaker 1: have you any corn with which to make him some supper?
49:42
Speaker 1: And she replied, I all the corn I have left
49:46
Speaker 1: is one handful, and I am going to make supper
49:48
Speaker 1: for my daughter. I shall not give it to a stranger.
49:52
Speaker 1: Then he said to his unloved wife, is there a
49:54
Speaker 1: little corn in your hut enough to make supper for
49:57
Speaker 1: the stranger? And she said, all I have is one handful,
50:01
Speaker 1: but I will make gruel and give it to him.
50:04
Speaker 1: So she made gruel of the handful of corn and
50:06
Speaker 1: gave it to the stranger, And when he had taken it,
50:09
Speaker 1: he gave it to the ram to eat first, and
50:12
Speaker 1: then he ate also. And they rested until daybreak. And
50:16
Speaker 1: in the morning the ram said to Alta, arise and
50:19
Speaker 1: let us go accompany me to the edge of the forest.
50:23
Speaker 1: So they started off, and the weaver said, are you
50:26
Speaker 1: going to leave us? And Alta replied, oh, no, we
50:29
Speaker 1: are going on a little way, but will return now.
50:32
Speaker 1: When they had reached the edge of the forest, the
50:34
Speaker 1: ram said stay here. And he went on further and
50:37
Speaker 1: passed to and Fro in the long grass, and then
50:40
Speaker 1: returned to the youth. And when he came up, he said,
50:43
Speaker 1: go and wherever you see that I have been through
50:46
Speaker 1: the long grass, go also. When he went, he came
50:50
Speaker 1: upon two hundred horses with their bridles and saddles, all
50:55
Speaker 1: most beautiful and royal caparisons. And he returned to the
50:59
Speaker 1: Ram and said, I have seen about two hundred horses
51:02
Speaker 1: with their bridles and saddles. And the Ram said, good,
51:06
Speaker 1: stay here. And he went again into the long grass
51:09
Speaker 1: and passed to and Fro, and returned to the youth
51:12
Speaker 1: and said, go and wherever you see I have been
51:15
Speaker 1: through the long grass, go also. And he went, and
51:19
Speaker 1: he saw about two hundred grooms, with each a rug
51:22
Speaker 1: upon his arm. And when he had returned and told
51:25
Speaker 1: the Ram, he said, good, let each groom hold a horse.
51:30
Speaker 1: And when they had done this, the Ram said, let
51:32
Speaker 1: us return to the hut of the weaver. When they arrived,
51:36
Speaker 1: the weaver and his wife stared at the horses surrounding
51:38
Speaker 1: his house and said, certainly that stranger has not gone
51:42
Speaker 1: for good. His horsemen have come. And as he stared.
51:46
Speaker 1: The Ram came up and said, yes, it is indeed
51:50
Speaker 1: the stranger. We have not left you. And then he continued,
51:53
Speaker 1: take all these horses to the second wife, the unloved one.
51:58
Speaker 1: So the horses and their trappings in the rooms belonging
52:01
Speaker 1: to them were given to the second wife, and the
52:04
Speaker 1: Ram said to Alta, come, let us return to the
52:07
Speaker 1: edge of the forest. When they reached there, the Ram
52:10
Speaker 1: again walked away through the long grass and again told
52:13
Speaker 1: Alta to follow where he had gone. And Alta did
52:16
Speaker 1: as he had been told, and along the path there
52:19
Speaker 1: were three hundred slaves, each with a load of household
52:22
Speaker 1: goods and grain and gold upon his head. Then again
52:26
Speaker 1: the Ram said, now let us return to the house
52:29
Speaker 1: where we lodged, And when they arrived there, the Ram
52:32
Speaker 1: ordered that all the slaves with their loads, should be
52:34
Speaker 1: given to the second wife. And when they were handed over,
52:38
Speaker 1: the weaver came to Alta. My first wife offers to
52:42
Speaker 1: you her only daughter, he said, but the Ram said no,
52:46
Speaker 1: this was not to be. The daughter of the second
52:49
Speaker 1: wife was the one to marry Alta. And it was indeed,
52:53
Speaker 1: as the Ram had directed, Alta married the daughter of
52:56
Speaker 1: the unloved wife. Who had been kind to him, and
52:59
Speaker 1: the ram had an honored place in their household until
53:03
Speaker 1: he died of very old age. This, then, is the
53:06
Speaker 1: story and of section twelve read by Laura Gibbs Section
53:20
Speaker 1: thirteen of Black Folk Tales by Eric Barry. This LibriVox
53:24
Speaker 1: recording is in the public domain. The Lazy Frog. Once
53:29
Speaker 1: there was a monkey who was tired of living alone.
53:32
Speaker 1: So he went to the frog. Come and live with me.
53:34
Speaker 1: He said to the frog, I think we will do
53:36
Speaker 1: very well together. The frog agreed to this, and they
53:40
Speaker 1: did indeed get on very well until the rainy season came.
53:44
Speaker 1: The first night it rained, the frog was cold and
53:47
Speaker 1: wet and miserable. He complained bitterly. Very well, said the monkey, Tomorrow,
53:52
Speaker 1: we will beat bark cloth and make ourselves some cloaks
53:55
Speaker 1: to keep us warm. In the morning, however, the sun
53:58
Speaker 1: was out, and when the monkey, remembering how cold the
54:01
Speaker 1: frog had been the night before, suggested that they beat
54:04
Speaker 1: bark cloth for cloaks, the frog said, oh, let it
54:07
Speaker 1: go to day. We are surely warm enough. But that
54:11
Speaker 1: night it rained again, and again the frog complained bitterly
54:14
Speaker 1: of the weather. We will beat bark cloth for cloaks. Tomorrow,
54:18
Speaker 1: said the monkey. But when the morning came, the sun
54:21
Speaker 1: shone and the frog was too lazy to work. This
54:25
Speaker 1: went on for some time. Each night the frog would
54:28
Speaker 1: complain of the cold and rain, and each morning the
54:31
Speaker 1: frog would forget and refuse to work. At last, the monkey, disgusted,
54:35
Speaker 1: went away and decided he would rather live alone. The
54:39
Speaker 1: frog still hoots and howls when the rain comes down,
54:43
Speaker 1: but remained silent in the sunshine. End of Section thirteen
54:48
Speaker 1: read by Laura Gibbs. End of Black Folk Tales by
54:53
Speaker 1: Eric Berry