Ajaiyi and His Inherited Poverty

by Amos Tutuola

  ISHOLA: “You see, my mother, three strange men came to me in the market today. When they priced the dead rat below the price which you have told me to sell it. I called them thieves. But when they became annoyed then they commanded the dead rat to become alive and as soon as it became alive they commanded it again to go back into the bush where it came from. But to my fear, it ran furiously into the bush. I chased it but I failed to catch it. And it was like that the rat was disappeared into the bush!” Ishola explained sadly to his mother.

  MOTHER: “So the dead rat has become alive and gone back into the bush?” the witch mother retorted after she had paused for a while with wonder.

  ISHOLA: “Certainly! It had gone back into the bush!” he replied sympathetically.

  MOTHER: “The dead rat?” she asked with great sorrow as she bent backward a little bit.

  ISHOLA: “Yes! I wonder!” he replied after he had kept quiet for a few minutes with wonder.

  MOTHER: “So you did not return with any money today?” she asked.

  ISHOLA: “Not at all!” he replied with sorrow.

  MOTHER: “By the way, Ishola, did you tell the three strange men or spirits that your mother is the ‘Most wicked witch of this country’? Did you tell them as well that I am the Chairwoman of all the witches of this country?” she asked as she became crazy. She stood up in wrath and walked slowly to a few yards and then walked back and then sat back on the chair as she was murmuring and beating her head: “Oh, what falls on me today!”

  ISHOLA: “Witch! Or what did you call yourself now? Witch?” he shouted greatly as he was startled suddenly.

  MOTHER: “I am the most powerful witch in this country!” she confirmed loudly.

  ISHOLA: “That means you are a witch?” he gave a sudden scream as his mother confirmed that she was a witch. And he stood up suddenly and walked backward to a short distance from his witch mother with fear.

  MOTHER: “Don’t you know before this time that I am a witch? After I change into a bird in the midnight, I fly to wherever I wish to go but before you wake I used to return and then I change back to a woman!” she told the secret of herself to him.

  ISHOLA: “That means you are killing people each night you fly out?” he asked with throbbing heart.

  MOTHER: “Certainly! Even I was the very one who had killed your sister a few months ago, because she offended me one day,” she leaked out another fearful secret to Ishola with a laughter.

  ISHOLA: “My senior sister who was only the daughter you ever got in your life? Oh, it is now I know that you were the one who had killed her! Oh, no wonder she died suddenly like that!” he wondered greatly and became more startled.

  MOTHER: “Yes! I killed her, because she offended me one day!” she confirmed with a smile.

  ISHOLA: “What offence?” he asked sadly.

  MOTHER: “One day, she refused to go for an errand and that pained me so much that I killed her without mercy!” she coughed and explained to him briefly.

  ISHOLA: “That means you will kill me as well very soon!” he said after he had kept seriously for a few minutes.

  MOTHER: But when the witch mother had seen that Ishola was then so feared that he stood up and wanted to run away from the house. She hastily stood up, she went to him and began to caress him as she was confronting and telling him more of her evil works which she had done: “My son, do not be afraid. I am not going to kill you as I had killed your senior sister. As you know, I have no any other son or daughter except you alone. Even I am preparing now to give up my cruel power to my witch members. Because one day, when I got no money to buy food and the other things which I required. I changed myself to one big fine ram with my supernatural powers. One of my witch members put one rope on my neck and then she pulled me like a ram to the market for sale. Having pulled me to the market she exposed me in the ram-stall for sale. A few minutes later, one old man bought me as a real ram and the money that he paid was taken to my house by that my member. But as soon as this old man had taken me to his house, he took his knife and started to cut my neck, for he wanted to kill me for his god. He cut my neck with that knife for several times, but I was so lucky that the knife he used was so dull that it could not cut my neck as quickly as he wanted to. Then he left me and he went to sharpen it. So he hardly went away when I hastily changed back to my former form or an old woman. But this old man was feared and confused when he returned with the sharpened knife and met me as an old woman instead of a ram. Then without hesitation, I was going away as he was following me along with eyes. (She bent down and said with a lower voice) My son, look at my neck, you will see the mark of the knife which the old man used to cut my neck that day. So don’t be afraid, I am not going to kill you. But don’t tell any of your friends and playmates that your mother is a witch!” this witch mother explained to her son, Ishola like that.

  ISHOLA: “But I am still afraid of you and there is nothing which can erase it from my heart that you are not a witch! You are a wicked witch, my mother!” Ishola breathed out heavily and shouted with grief.

  MOTHER: “Ishola, you should put away from your mind as from now that I am going to kill you as I had killed your senior sister! To give you more assurance, three substitutions are already in the house. They will be killed in place of you for my witch members when it is my turn to invite them for party. These three substitutions are these three fellows (she pointed hand to Ojo, Alabi and myself). The god of Iron had provided them for me! Therefore there is no fear for you at all, I am not going to kill you! Please take cold water, my son, it will expel your fear as soon as you drink it!” Then after this witch mother had convinced her only son, Ishola, in vain like that, she stood up and ran to the big water-pot which was at the right corner of this sitting room. She hastily poured some water into the calabash which was the cover for the water-pot and then she brought it to him. But as soon as he drank it he became very cheerful and had no more fear whatsoever.

  But great fear and sorrow filled up our minds immediately the three of us had heard from this mother that we were the three substitutions who would be sacrificed to her witch members instead of her son, Ishola. However we gave up ourselves to whatever might be happened to us in the captivity of this witch mother. So Ishola, his witch mother and the three of us went back to the unfinished basket. The mother continued to weave it while Ishola and the three of us continued to dress the rough palm-fronds for the mother.

  But since when we had failed in all of our attempts to escape from this wicked witch mother but she was still confining us for the day that she was going to kill us for her witch members. I started to pray to the Creator wholeheartedly every minute in both day and night not to let this witch mother be able to kill us as she was planning to do.

  In the evening, after the basket had been completed and it was hung on the usual rack in the sitting room. Ishola took one stick and so did his witch mother from the same rack near the basket. Then the three of us, without holding anything, followed them to the small bush which was behind the garden. The mother told the three of us to enter this small bush, she and Ishola stood in front of the bush. As both of them raised their sticks high up and got ready to beat the field rat which might run out to death. The mother gave us the sign to start to drive the rats towards them.

  It was not so long that we started to drive them when hundreds of them began to dash here and there in the bush. After a while some mistakenly ran out of this bush. Without hesitation both mother and son began to chase them about. At last, the mother tried all her efforts and she killed one. Then the whole of us went back to the sitting room. As Ishola was hanging it near the basket, the mother went to the kitchen, she cooked a nice food and brought it to the sitting room. After we ate, she and Ishola began to sing and dance. As the three of us were looking at them without taking part in their amusements because we were not happy at all. The mother forced us to join them and we reluctantly did so. After we reluctantly sang and danced with them for a few minutes. The mother told
us to stop, she went to the doors and closed all. After that she told us to go and sleep in the usual room and she went and slept in her own. That time was about nine o’clock in the night.

  As soon as she lay on the mat she shouted from her room to Ishola: “Good-night, my son!”

  ISHOLA: “Hope you will not change yourself into a bird and go out to kill people this night?” he asked loudly.

  MOTHER: “Not at all! The witches have no meeting this night!” she paused for a while before she replied. Then she stood up from her mat, she went to the light just to quench it.

  ISHOLA: “Please mother, don’t quench that light!” he shouted with fear.

  MOTHER: “Why, Ishola!” she asked as she was still standing before the light.

  ISHOLA: “Because as you are a witch you may change yourself into a bird this midnight and if you do so and come to kill me, I shall see you through the light!” he explained with fear to his mother.

  MOTHER: “All right. I leave the light unquenched!” she left the light unquenched but she returned to her room sadly.

  ISHOLA: Yet as the light was not quenched, Ishola was unable to sleep for fear perhaps his mother was coming in to kill him. After a few minutes, he stood up, he went to his mother cautiously. He whispered with great fear as he was looking at his sleeping mother: “Oh, I thought she has changed to the bird and gone out to kill the innocent people.” Then he went back to the room and slept when he was sure that his witch mother had slept.

  MOTHER: “Ishola, get up!” in the morning she first woke up and then entered the room in which we slept together with Ishola. She shouted greatly.

  ISHOLA: “Ah, you come in to kill me!” he woke and was startled as he sat up on the mat suddenly. Within that moment he stood up, he ran to the sitting room with great shout. Again, he hastily left the sitting room but he began to run about in the house with fear.

  MOTHER: “Oh, my son, I don’t want to kill you!” she chased him and caught him as he was just running to the outside. Then she began to caress him.

  ISHOLA: “No! I cannot believe you at all! You want to kill me because you are a witch and you had killed my sister, the only daughter you got in your life! Leave me alone!” he was shouting greatly as his witch mother held him in the sitting room.

  Ishola was still shouting greatly when the voices of his mother’s witch members were heard as they were knocking at the door heavily: “Good morning here!”

  MOTHER: She hastily left Ishola, she ran to the door and opened it. Then her members entered, all stood in the middle of the sitting room and Ishola was in the circle with sadness while Ojo, Alabi and myself stood in the left corner of the sitting room and were looking at them with fear. We were thinking in minds that moment that perhaps it was this morning they would kill and eat us. Then the mother greeted her members:

  “Good morning to you all, my members!”

  ODERE: “By the way why did you not attend to the meeting last night midnight, you as the Chairwoman of the witches?” Odere, the president of the witches asked with great annoyance.

  MOTHER (Chairwoman): “Well, it was not my fault as I could not attend to the meeting, but …” she replied as the other members were listening angrily.

  AYINKE (Secretary): “Whose fault it was? Tell us now, whose fault it was?” she interrupted angrily.

  MOTHER: “You see, once I have told my son, Ishola, that I am a witch, he is in great fear that I am going to kill him!” she explained to her members as she was pointing hand to Ishola.

  PRESIDENT (Odere): “Your son fears you not to kill him? Is it n’t?” she scowled at the mother and then asked loudly. Then all of the four members sat on the long seat which was nearby and after a while the mother sat with them on the same seat while Ishola was still standing sadly before them.

  MOTHER: “Yes, Ishola is fearing of not being killed by me!” she explained to the members.

  VICE-PRESIDENT (Awele): “Why did you not tell him frankly that all of my own sons and daughters had been killed and their bodies were cooked and eaten by my witch members!” she spoke to the mother sharply and without mercy.

  MOTHER: “I have not told him all about that!” she replied as Ojo, Alabi and myself were kept quiet with fear.

  VICE-PRESIDENT (turned eyes to Ishola and she explained to him): “Ishola, look at my eyes well. I have killed the whole of my own sons and daughters only on whom I relied and your mother, who is the chairwoman for us, ate from their flesh! So you should not be afraid if your mother is preparing to kill you soon for us! By the way, has your mother told you that she was the one who had killed your senior sister a few months ago and that all of us had enjoyed her body?” the Vice-President of the witches explained as Ojo, Alabi and myself lifted our heads up and fastened the eyes on her with fear.

  ABEKE (messenger for the witches): “Ishola, has your mother told you as well that she ate from my only son when I killed him recently for the party?” she scowled at Ishola and asked with a smile.

  ISHOLA: “She has not told me that,” he replied with a very weak voice as he was trembling with fear.

  MOTHER: “I ate from the dead body of her own son when she killed him for us. I even enjoyed it more than my own daughter that I killed last time!” the witch mother or the Chairwoman of the witches hastily stood up and told Ishola loudly.

  SECRETARY: “Ishola, let me tell you now that sooner or later it will be your mother’s turn again to prepare another special feast for her members and I believe, you are the next son to be killed for her members because she has no any other issue except you!” she interrupted with a sharp and humorous voice as she stared at Ishola.

  ISHOLA: “Fear upon fear! This is another fear, my mother!” he stared at his witch mother and said with a trembling voice.

  MOTHER: “Never mind and don’t be afraid! I am not going to kill you! But these three fellows (she pointed hand to us) will be killed instead!” she walked to him and caressed him.

  But when all the members stood up and were ready to leave, the President, who was very stern, stared at Ishola and shouted horribly: “Ishola, look at me well, I am the fear of fears!”

  ISHOLA: “So you and my mother are witches!” he asked as he stared at the whole members.

  But his witch mother hastily stopped her members as they were about to leave and she told them loudly: “My dear members, this is a good news for all of us! I have already got three fellows! The three fellows are standing in the corner over there!” she pointed hand to us and her members looked at us for a few minutes as she explained to them further that: “The three fellows were provided by the god of Iron. And I am keeping them ready to be killed for you when it is my turn again to invite all of you for feast!” But the President told her at the same time: “We cannot accept these three fellows from you if you kill them now because they are too lean. You have to be feeding them regularly with the nice food but when they have become very fat we can then accept them when you kill them for us. But it will take you a long time before you will be able to feed them fat!”

  Ojo, Alabi and myself were happy when the President of the witches told the mother who was their Chairwoman, that she must feed us fat first before killing us. We thought perhaps before we became fat we would be able to escape from her. Having told the mother to feed us fat first, the Vice-President of the witches said loudly: “Well, the Chairwoman (the witch mother), you are fined for failing

  to attend to the meeting last night! Good-bye!” the members then left.

  As soon as her members had left she told Ishola that he should not mind her members. She promised him that she would not kill him for them. After that she told him to let them sing a song that which would expel his fear. Ojo, Alabi and myself walked to them. We then joined them to sing one song. In fact, as soon as the whole of us sang this song of the witches, Ishola had no more fear again. He was then happy and cheerful to the three of us.

  In the following morning, Ishola and his witch mother took the dead rat and the b
asket from the rack. Ishola held both and then his mother followed him to the market. Both of them left the doors unclosed because the mother was sure that if Ojo, Alabi and myself attempted to escape the three terrible heavy lumps of the iron would not allow us to do so. The mother followed Ishola to the market this morning so that she might revenge on the three strange men or spirits who had commanded the dead rat to become alive and run back into the bush last market-day. But as soon as we saw that Ishola and his witch mother had left for market. The three of us cut a part of the roof of the house as quickly as possible. We then passed through the part that we cut to the outside. But to our fear again, as we were running away as fast as we could so that we might be far away from this country of the witches and wizards before the witch mother returned from the market.

  There we saw unexpectedly that these terrible heavy lumps of the iron were chasing us to catch with their usual fearful noises. As they were chasing us along to catch it was so we too were running along faster than ever. But within a few minutes they reached us and without hesitation they obstructed our way. They did not allow us to move. But as they wanted to crush us to death we returned to the house at the same time. That was our third attempt to escape but we failed entirely. Then the three of us were expecting the witch mother to return from the market whether she would punish us for a part of the roof of her house which we had cut.

  When she got to the market with Ishola, they put both basket and the dead rat on the table. Then Ishola began to shout repeatedly: “Here is the basket for sale! It is a nice basket! Here is the dead rat for sale! A very fat rat!” As Ishola was still shouting like that, the three spirits came again. They then began to price both basket and the dead rat:

  AJALA (the first spirit): “Yes, how much is your dead rat this morning?” he asked loudly as many people came nearer and surrounded them and were listening as the witch mother stared at the three spirits.