African Folktales

by Roger Abrahams

  When the bird had heard the story, it said, “I remember coming to your country and talking to the king’s daughter about her hair. It was I who told her that she would lose it because she refused to give me a little of it to make my nest.” The bird asked Muoma for another red bean, and he went on feeding it while he told it how the king’s daughter had had a dream about a tree that grew hair, and how the king had promised to give a big reward to the person who could find that tree. The bird said to him, “You will search for that tree for a long time. If the girl is waiting for that tree, I am sure she will wait for a much longer time still! She would have been wiser if she had been generous to me!” Then the bird gave him instructions for finding the tree.

  Muoma sailed on and on for many more days till he came to a new land. The trees that he saw there were moving around like human beings, but he found no people living there, nor any animals. As he walked in that strange country, he came across one flower that stretched forth its hands as if to seize him, and he got ready to shoot it with his bow and arrows, but the flower said to him, “Do not shoot me! I will not do you any harm!” Muoma stopped short. Then the flower continued, “Where do you come from? I have never seen human beings in this country before. You are the first one to visit this land.” Muoma replied, “I came in my little canoe looking for the tree that produces hair. My name is Muoma.” The flower said, “What do you want to do with that tree? Tell me, for since you have managed to get here alive, I will help you.” So Muoma told the flower about the king’s daughter and about his journey to this new country. The flower said, “The red beans that you were carrying from the small island are the ones that saved you. If you had not had them, the bird that alighted on your boat would have eaten you. Keep the ones that are left, for they will help you with the many more dangers to come.” Then the flower started to cry, and Muoma was amazed, and asked it, “What can I do to help you?” The flower replied, “Give me one of your red beans, for I am very hungry, but keep the rest, for they will save you from danger. Then go on, the same way, and you will find the tree that bears human hair.” Muoma gave the flower one of his red beans, and then went on.

  Now, as he traveled, the road began to get narrower; and the rocks that had hitherto seemed far away came nearer. He traveled on and on, until he reached an area with only barren rocks. The wind began to blow hard and to rage as if with great wrath, and there was a fearful loud noise all around him, as if it were coming from a waterfall. He went on until he came to a huge boulder that blocked his path. He stopped and looked carefully; he saw a little door, and on the door there this was written, in golden letters:

  Only he who knows can get in,

  Nobody else, save he who fears not.

  When he saw that writing, Muoma remembered the bird’s instructions concerning this rock and the door, so he whispered the words that the big bird taught him:

  I am he who knows, knows,

  That the wind blows, blows,

  That the water flows, flows;

  Here the tree of hair grows, grows,

  I am he who knows, knows.

  As soon as he finished saying those words, the little door opened by itself and he climbed into the rock. There, inside it, he saw the tree that bears human hair, and when he saw it, he felt great joy, for he knew that he had reached the end of his long journey. He went near and picked as much as he needed to take with him, and he took some of its fruits and seeds as well. Then he started the journey back to his country.

  When he arrived, he went straight to the king and gave him the hair for his daughter. They put it back on her head, and it grew there, and looked as beautiful as ever before. The king, his daughter, and all the people of the kingdom rejoiced for many days, and the king gave Muoma much gold, and also his daughter. She became his wife. So Muoma and the king’s daughter lived happily together for many days.

  That is the end of my story.

  —Akamba

  8

  Profitable Amends

  When people first came into the world, the king, Dada Segbo, had no wife. He called all the people together. He took out a cowry shell, for that is what they used for money in those days. He told his people to take that cowry and find a wife for him.

  The people said to themselves, “What does the king mean? Can one get a wife with only one cowry? It is impossible.” All agreed: “We cannot do it. A man can never find a wife for one cowry.”

  But one man, Yo, came forward, and said he could get a girl for one cowry. Dada Segbo said, “All right.”

  First Yo sent someone to buy flint and bamboo tinder with the cowry. Then he went and found dry straw and set it on fire with the flint and tinder. The grasshoppers hiding in the straw began to jump, and Yo took the sack he had ready, and collected them inside it.

  So Yo went on his way with this sack of grasshoppers, until he came to the house of an old woman. Now, this woman was trying to dry beans in front of her house, but the chickens would come and eat them all up before they were ready.

  Yo said, “Haven’t you corn to give your chickens?” But this was the time of famine, and there was nothing to eat. Yo then told the woman, “All right. I have grasshoppers here. If I throw these to your chickens, they will let your beans alone.” The woman agreed, and he gave the grasshoppers to the chickens, but when they had finished eating them, he took the beans.

  The old woman cried out, “But, Yo, why are you taking away my beans?”

  He said, “Didn’t you tell me to throw my grasshoppers to your chickens? I bought the beans with a cowry.”

  The grasshoppers came from the straw,

  The money for the straw came from Dada Segbo.

  So Yo went on. Now he came to a river where fishermen were fishing. He saw that the people from the village of Tofi were trying to fish, but that the fish had nothing to eat. So he said, “If you like, I will throw my beans in the river. The fish will come to eat and you will have a good catch.”

  The people said, “True, true,” and they told him to throw in the beans. Soon the fishermen caught many, many fish.

  Yo picked out the largest fish for himself. The fishermen cried out after him, “Yo, why are you taking away our fish?”

  Yo said, “Did you forget that you took my beans?”

  The beans came from the old woman,

  The old woman took my grasshoppers;

  The grasshoppers came from the straw,

  The money for the straw came from Dada Segbo.

  “I do nothing without getting my reward.”

  Yo continued on his way till he came to a place where blacksmiths were working. There were hoes all over the ground, but when he saw the blacksmiths, they were very tired.

  Yo said, “Why are you tired, blacksmiths? Have you had nothing to eat? You cannot even lift your hammers. If you like, I will leave you my fish, so you can eat.”

  The blacksmiths said, “True, true.”

  They took the fish, and ate. When they had finished eating the fish, Yo took hoes and bush knives, and filled up his sack with them.

  The blacksmiths cried out, “Where are you going, Yo? Where are you going with our hoes and bush knives?”

  But Yo said to the blacksmiths, “Didn’t you know, before you took my fish?”

  The fish came from the fishermen,

  The fishermen took my beans;

  The beans came from the old woman,

  The old woman took my grasshoppers;

  The grasshoppers came from the straw,

  The straw came from the money I got from Dada Segbo.

  Then Yo came to a field where men were working. Now, these men had neither knives nor hoes. They worked with their hands. He asked them, “Don’t you want bush knives and hoes to work with?”

  The men answered, “Yes,” so he gave them the tools, and with them they worked fast.

  Yo stood and watched. Now, the men had with them a dish of beans and cassava flour called abla. Yo went and gathered it all up.

  They crie
d out, “Yo, Yo, what are you doing with our food.”

  Yo said, “Don’t you know?”

  The hoes and knives came from the blacksmiths,

  The blacksmiths took my fish;

  The fish came from the river,

  The fishermen took my beans;

  The beans came from the old woman,

  The old woman took my grasshoppers;

  The grasshoppers came from the straw,

  The straw took my cowry;

  The cowry came from Dada Segbo.

  “I do nothing without getting my reward.”

  So again he went on his way. He walked for a long time, until he came to a house beside the road. In this house there was a dead girl. All the people were wailing. They had nothing to eat, and could not bury the body.

  Yo went inside and said, “I see you have nothing to eat. I have abla with me. Divide it among you and drink water with it. Then you will be refreshened, and you will find a way to bury your dead.”

  So they made Yo sit down next to the dead, even though he was a stranger. Then at night, while the others were digging the grave, he took the body.

  The people ran after him and cried, “Yo, Yo, why are you taking the body?”

  Yo answered, “Don’t you know?”

  Abla came from the farmers,

  The farmers took my hoes;

  The hoes came from the blacksmiths,

  The blacksmiths ate my fish;

  The fish came from the river,

  The fishermen took my beans;

  The beans came from the old woman,

  The old woman took my grasshoppers;

  The grasshoppers came from the straw,

  The straw came from one cowry;

  And the cowry came from Dada Segbo.

  So he left with the dead body. That day Yo traveled from early morning till night. He went to see the king of the country, and said to him that Dada Segbo had told him to go and look for a wife for him. And now, as he had found her, he wanted a place to spend the night with this girl who belonged to Dada Segbo.

  He put the dead body in the house that they gave him, and went inside with it. At cockcrow he left the body there, and went away. When he returned at six o’clock, he went into the house and began to wail.

  “The people here killed Dada Segbo’s wife! They killed Dada Segbo’s wife! What shall I do? What am I going to tell Dada Segbo?”

  The head of the family now called together all the people. The people said, “Yo is lying. This woman was dead when she came here. No one saw her. No one went near her. Yo is deceiving us.”

  Yo said, “I dare not take this dead body to Dada Segbo. I must have another girl, as fine looking as she.”

  So all the old people came together and talked this over. They said, “We cannot anger Dada Segbo. Yo says he brought this woman here alive. Now she is dead. She died in our village. We must find another woman.” And since the king of that country had a fine young daughter, they said he must give that one to Yo for Dada Segbo.

  Yo began to wail again. “What shall I do? What will I tell Dada Segbo?”

  So they gave him the girl, and he went on his way. They came to a village called Bodenu-Mawu-Bode. From there Yo sent a message to Dada Segbo that with only one cowry, he had found a wife for him.

  The girl began to sing:

  Hunger comes from afar,

  Hunger has followed the road here;

  The intestines come from afar,

  The intestines have followed the road here.

  Now, Dada Segbo sent many men to meet Yo on the way. He also had many, many dishes cooked which he sent along with the men. The girl and Yo were given much to eat. When the food came, the girl said, “Swallow it fast.” And when she had said this, the food disappeared. Yo was astonished.

  So the girl and Yo arrived at a place called Todogba. Yo sent another message to Dada Segbo asking for food, and Dada Segbo sent him more than before. There were six hundred and forty calabashes of food. There was water. There were bottles of strong drink. When the girl saw the food coming, she began to sing the same song again:

  Hunger comes from afar,

  Hunger has followed the road here;

  The intestines come from afar,

  The intestines have followed the road here.

  And when the men and women came near with all the food, the girl called out, “Swallow fast.” The food vanished.

  Yo said to Dada Segbo’s people, “This woman astonishes me. She never eats with her hand, but when she says, ‘Swallow fast!’ the food disappears.” He sent a message to Dada Segbo saying he wanted forty guns, and powder, and eight hundred calabashes of food.

  When the girl saw the new food approaching, she began to sing the same song:

  Hunger comes from afar,

  Hunger has followed the road here;

  The intestines come from afar,

  The intestines have followed the road here.

  Then, the people went back to tell Dada Segbo that the girl was too much for them. The moment she saw food come, she had but to exclaim, “Swallow fast!” and everything vanished.

  But Yo sent still another request for food to Dada Segbo. This time he asked for three thousand calabashes. The food came, and the girl did the same thing again, but this time, when she had made the food disappear, she began to eat the men. The moment she saw a man approaching, she called out “Swallow fast!” and the man was no longer to be seen.

  A man hurried to tell Dada Segbo that the girl was evil. She had finished the three thousand calabashes and now was doing away with the men. Dada Segbo called together all his elders. They said, “It is terrible to have a beautiful woman like this, who eats people. It is very strange.”

  They brought the girl to Dada Segbo. All the people of the country were gathered before the king’s door to see her. But the moment this girl fixed a man with her eyes and said, “Swallow fast!” the man disappeared.

  Dada Segbo asked the chief minister, Minga, “What shall we do now? Here is a girl who eats much, and is not satisfied unless she eats men, too. What shall we do?”

  The chief minister said, “This woman knows only to kill. Let us kill her. Yo has no family, so he is no man to send to find a wife.”

  Today, in order to marry, a man must have much money. In former times, one needed only to have a cowry to marry, but all a man was likely to get with it was a sorceress.

  —Dahomey

  9

  The Man and the Muskrat

  There was a certain hunter who used to go out with his dog searching for game to bring back to his wife and children. One day he said: “I’m going deep into the bush because game has become very scarce these days.” He set off with his bow, arrows, spear, and dog.

  When he had gone some way, he heard a voice saying, “Oh, you, hunter, help me over the crossroads, and I will help you another day.”

  He looked round without seeing who had spoken to him, then stopped, and said, “Who is it who’s talking? Speak again, so that I can see what you are?”

  Then he heard again: “Oh, sir, help me over the crossroads and I’ll help you some other time—I, a muskrat.”

  The man looked down and saw the animal, and said, “I would help you across the road only you stink so and will make me smell likewise.”

  The muskrat replied, “Oh no, sir, just help me across the road, because if I don’t get over I shall die. If you do help me, I will save you one day.”

  The man said, “What! You who are so small will save me who am so big? Whatever could beat me that you would be able to cope with? You’re lying, you little animal!”

  The muskrat replied, “Oh, no sir, just lift me with your bow if you’re afraid I will make you stink, and throw me so that I fall on the other side of the path, and one day I will rescue you from a great trouble!”

  The gentleman took his bow and lifted the muskrat over the path, dropping him on the other side.

  “Thank you very much for having pity on me,” said
the muskrat. Then both went their separate ways. That was all that happened on that day.

  In the evening, the man returned home and told his wife about his encounter with the muskrat and what it had told him. His wife said scornfully, “What nonsense! How could a rat help you!” The husband replied, “Well, I thought that, too, when he said he would save me one day, but that’s what he promised.” And the father slept until morning. That day he stayed in the village, saying that the next day he would go hunting in the bush. When darkness returned, he slept again.

  Came the morning, he said to his wife, “Oh, wife, prepare some food so that I can eat, because today I am going farther than I have ever gone before.”

  His wife heated some relish, grilled some flour, and prepared millet porridge. Her husband ate and was satisfied. Then he took his customary hunting equipment, called his dog, and set out.

  He kept going until he had covered a great distance. It was the wet season, at that time, and the sky was heavy with rain, with vast clouds obscuring the view. He said to himself, “Yes, today I’m going to get soaked, but what can I do?”

  He thought, “Just let me find somewhere to shelter”—the man would have died for sure, if he hadn’t exerted himself—and after that he killed three guinea fowl.

  He kept going and then, luckily, he noticed a cave and got inside with his dog just as the rain began pelting down. Well, there hidden in the darkness was the muskrat, too.