The Witch-Herbalist of the Remote Town

by Amos Tutuola

  But I was greatly surprised and afraid that, as these children of the mountain were giving such a great merriment and admiration to him, he did not show even a slight hint of happiness or make any motion of body to all that they were doing for him along the path. Yet they continued to perform this ceremony with all their power, so much so that they were sweating as if they were soaked in water.

  After a while, I joined these children. I began to dance, sing, shout greatly with great joy, and dash here and there as they were doing. Then I began to feel hunger and I loosened my food-bag. I took one big roasted meat out. But to my surprise, it was at this moment that I first saw this old man make a very faint motion. Because as soon as I put the roasted meat in my mouth and twitched a bit of it with my teeth and started to shew it, now I saw the twinkling of his dried eyes. The twinkling was so weak that if one’s eyes were not sensitive they would not see it at all. And once he had made that faint twinkling, he did not make any again but remained motionless as usual. Now this showed me that he was still a living old man.

  As I was still enjoying this meat, the children saw it in my hand and then they rushed to me. So we shared the rest of it. Although they did not allow me to satisfy my hunger with it, they were lenient to me from this time. As they had eaten from the meat, their joy was increased. They began to shout louder, sing louder and dance with more strength than ever; and then they were flattering the old father with their sweetest voices. But of course, I was doing as they were doing, along the path.

  Long-Breasted Mother

  of the Mountain

  When it was about the sixth hour of the evening, we left the area of the crevices of the rock. We came to a certain part of the top of this mountain which belonged to the wild people of the wild jungle. Although this place was flat and was more than three kilometres in circumference, it was surrounded by the crevices of the rock which were entirely covered by creeping plants. In the middle of the crevices of rock, there was a very big town. But the way of construction of the houses in this town was very ugly and was quite different from that of the people of the towns.

  Then, without hesitation, these children and I followed the thick shadow which was moving swiftly along in the town with the Old Man of the Mountain. After some twinklings, we passed through the town to the outskirts of it. On these outskirts, there was a large building which had a large entrance. Without stopping, the strange shadow moved into the premises of the mighty building with the Old Man, and we followed it. But there was a very large hall in the building and many small houses in those premises. So immediately we danced and sang in the premises. The children kept quiet at the same time and I did so as well.

  Then this strange thick round shadow moved gently to where there were heavy blocks of stone which were in rows in the middle of the large hall of the mighty building. But as it moved again onto the top of one of the blocks of stone, then it disappeared. I saw now clearly that this Old Man of the Mountain was on his old huge armed chair on top of one of the blocks of stone. And as soon as he was put on top of the block by the shadow, it disappeared. The whole of these children bowed low and paid respect to him, and then they went to the other part of the premises. But to my surprise, this Old Man did not make any motion or sign of satisfaction of what the children had done for him.

  But I did not follow the children to the premises. Instead, I stood at a little distance from this old man. Having fastened my eyes on him with surprise and fear for a few twinklings, I turned my eyes to this hall and its surroundings. So I saw that the walls of the mighty building in which the large hall was, were not mud but flat stones, and so also were those of the small houses which surrounded it. The roofs were very thick spider-webs, and the feathers of various kinds of big birds were stuck to them instead of thatching them with broad leaves or other kinds of materials. All of these feathers were of different colours. In this large hall, the blocks of stone in rows were the seats for these wild people of the wild mountain.

  At last, as I stood before this Old Man of the Mountain, I saw everything which were there to my satisfaction. I turned my eyes back to this old man. But when I had fastened my eyes on him for about twenty twinklings without seeing any other living creature come to him, I feared to remain there for a long time. So I went to the other part of the premises of this mighty building and I met those savage children as they were eating ravenously, because they had been nearly dying of hunger. And without hesitation, I sat before them with the hope of eating from their food. But I had hardly put a bit of it in my mouth when I poured it out because it just tasted and smelled like cow-dung. This kind of food was not that of the people of the town.

  Having finished with the food, these children went back to the old man in the hall and I followed them with an empty stomach. But to my fear, these children started to shout greatly and were flattering the Old Man. Then I heard heavy noises as if thousands of heavy stones were dragging along the ground towards that place. The noises were so heavy that the ground of the premises began to shake. As I began to look sternly here and there with extreme fear, just to see what was making the heavy fearful noises, there appeared from a big corner of the premises a very huge woman. She was coming with full force to the hall. These wild children ran and hid themselves in another corner of the premises immediately she appeared. But fear did not allow me to follow them to the hiding corner. I simply stood firmly before the Old Man with extreme fear.

  To my fear again, when I fastened my eyes on this hideous stout wild woman, I saw that she had many breasts. Each was about sixty centimetres long and was thicker than a tube of thirty centimetres’ diameter. Though each was tapered as well, its nipple was more than ten centimetres in diameter. Each of her arms was very thick from the shoulder to the elbow and was about eighty centimetres in circumference. But the elbow was thinner than the shoulder and wrist. The muscle from each of the shoulders to each of the elbows was swelled out very high, and was as hard as a stone. From the neck to the waist was round and very huge. Her head was so big that it spread over her neck and shoulders. This head had an ugly shape like that of an image carved by an unskilled man.

  The hair on her head was not visible at all because the head-cover which she wore almost covered the head. This head-cover was beautifully woven with white, red and green minute beads. Each of her thighs was round and very thick. The ankles were also very big in a strange way; and also the fingers on both feet were many, they were not ten altogether like those of a man of the town. Each of the thighs was so strong that it made her very strong and firm when she walked or stood or sat down, or when she gripped something. She wore a kind of material like a wrapper round her waist to the ankles. This wrapper was made with coloured beads. Each of the beads was as big as a grain of maize. This wrapper was very beautiful indeed. But she did not cover her breasts with anything because they were long and thick.

  She wore very costly corals on both ankles and wrists, and many images of the antiquities which belonged to these wild jungles and wild savannah people were tied on every part of her wrapper of beads and on her head-cover of minute beads. But she was a merciless antagonist to all the townspeople and to all other wild people of the wild jungles who were not her race. In short, her stature and the whole of her appearance was very terrible for the eyes of the townspeople to see.

  I stood half-dead so I could not run away with the wild children immediately this LONG-BREASTED MOTHER OF THE MOUNTAIN appeared. I saw her as she walked heavily and firmly to the part where the blocks of stone were in rows in this large hall. She walked to the block which was next to the one on which the old father of the mountain sat. She sat on that block and this meant she was next to him. But she did not attempt to greet him and the old father, too, did not greet her.

  Having rested for a few twinklings, she directed her fearful eyes on me. Then she began to look at me from head to feet as though she was sulky, and she did not talk to me. Now, her horrible appearance forced me to lose all my senses, and I did not
know what to do again at this moment. I feared so much that my first “mind” and second “mind” were completely paralysed with extreme fear immediately this wild mother appeared. Now, as my first and second “minds” were not able to advise me at this time, I was unable to decide within myself whether to run away for my life, or to shoot at this wild mother with my bow, then perhaps I might be saved.

  It was like that she fastened her terrible eyes on me till about the eighth hour of the night. But at a few twinklings past the eighth hour, I saw more of these wild people of the mountain arriving in this hall and every one of them sat on each of the blocks of stone. But before the ninth hour, there were more than two hundred in this hall, they were both men and women.

  It was then revealed to my “memory” that this hall was the court of law of the wild people of the mountain. So the wild Long-Breasted Mother was the judge and the Old Father of the Mountain was the chairman of this court. They came to judge some cases this night. And now it came to my “memory” that my second “mind” had foretold me some time ago that I would be sentenced to death sooner or later. But as soon as this came to my “memory”, my first and second “minds” could not help me, because both had become powerless and deserted me immediately the Long-Breasted Mother arrived in the court. So with the help of my “memory” I prepared myself ready to do any possible thing that could save me from these wild people. Again, as soon as I had planned what to do to save me from them, it came to my “memory” that the “strange round shadow” which brought me from the wild jungle to the mountain, was a trap with which the Long-Breasted Mother was catching the townspeople and the other wild people who had committed offences. This shadow was also used as their transport.

  Then after a long case had been judged, my own offence was read to me: “The day previously, on the dazzling white rock, you wounded the Abnormal Squatting Man of the Jungle. And you, as a son of the people of the town, wilfully sat on the ‘Round Shadow’ which belongs only to the wild people of the mountain. And you would have stolen it away if it were not for the wild children of this mountain who diverted it to the top of this mountain. Therefore, you are guilty of stealing and you are also guilty of hurting the Abnormal Squatting Man with your poisoned arrow some time ago! Have you anything to say?” It was like that this merciless Long-Breasted Mother told me my offences, as she was very sulky.

  When the two offences were read to me like that, I explained with bravery to the mother who was the judge: “Yes, I shot the Abnormal Squatting Man with my poisoned arrow because he wanted to kill me with the cold of his stomach and I must defend myself from this sort of danger!” And again, I explained with bravery to the mother, the judge, about the round shadow: “I do not agree that I am guilty of this offence at all, because I was travelling to the Remote Town of the Witch-Herbalist when I saw one thick shadow on the ground of the wild jungle. As the sun of that day was too hot, I sat on the thick shadow just to rest and then to eat my food there before continuing my journey. I did not know that it was not an ordinary shadow but a trap and transport for the wild people of this mountain. Unfortunately, I saw that the shadow began to move to the sky with me unexpectedly. It moved so fast that I was unable to come out from it. So for this, I am not guilty, and I am also not guilty for hurting the Abnormal Squatting Man!” It was like that I explained to the wild mother who was the judge. I defended myself with the help of my “memory”, as my first and second “minds” had deserted me for fear of the Long-Breasted Mother. But of course my “memory” used to record their behaviour, perhaps it was going to use it for a purpose when I returned from my journeys.

  But when I explained to her like that, and especially when she heard from me that I was a townsman, she shifted her wild and fearful eyes from me and directed them wildly onto the old man of the mountain, who sat next to her. Then she pointed her left hand to me as she started to say thus: “You see, the Old Father,” the Old Father was the chairman of the court, “I wonder, there is none of the men of the towns who is agreed that he has made a mistake! You see this one now, the Old Father, he has not agreed that he had stolen the strange round thick shadow! All of the townspeople take themselves to be the wisest of all, either wild people of the wild jungles or other wild beings! You see now, in his statements, he said that he was going to the Witch-Herbalist’s town, the Remote Town which is as far as heaven from his town! Nobody knows why he is going to the Witch-Herbalist, though in his statements he said that his wife is barren! So this proves that the townspeople are never satisfied with what their creator has given to them, but they are wandering about both day and night seeking for the treasures which their creator has not given to them! They are stealing the wild people’s property! You see, the Old Father, the chairman of the court, this one has denied totally now that he had not stolen the thick shadow, which is our transport!”

  Thus the judge or the Long-Breasted Mother of the Mountain, reminded the Old Father, who was chairman of the court, with great annoyance as she pointed her left hand to me. But I feared and was greatly surprised as soon as the wild mother with long breasts began to tell some of the behaviour of the townspeople to the Old Father. This Old Father began to become active or alive gradually. At first, he began to breathe in and out, then he began to wink faintly, again, he lifted his head up from his old and huge armed chair on which he had been seated since he was brought onto the block of stone by the thick shadow.

  Later, as the allegations which the wild mother or judge was telling him about me and about the townspeople as a whole were going more deeply, it was so every part of the Old Father’s body became more alive and active. And towards the end of the allegations this Old Father, who was the chairman of the court, became alive and active completely, as if he had slept deeply and then woken up suddenly.

  Then as soon as he had become alive and active completely, he stood up from the block of stone, he first shook away from his body all the dust which was on every part of it for a number of months. After that, he made a number of whiffs out of the long smoking pipe which was in his mouth for a number of months. After that, he stretched every member of his body thoroughly. Having done that, he walked firmly up and down in the large hall which was the court. After that, he shook hands with some members of the court with greetings and laughter, as if he had just returned from somewhere. Then he came back to his seat.

  As soon as he sat down on his usual old and huge armed chair which was on top of the block of stone, he chatted with the Long-Breasted Mother and also with the president of the court who sat at the left. Then he returned his eyes to me and told me with a sharp voice, as he pointed one of his fingers to me: “Yes, all days are for thief to steal but one day is for the owner of the property to catch him!”

  Then the Old Father continued to support the Mother or judge: “Yes, I believe all you have said about the townspeople. They are not satisfied with all the benefits which their creator had given them, but they are still wandering about both day and night in search of more treasures. Many of them who have attained contentments from their creator have left the contentments behind, but are seeking for uncontentments from one place to another throughout all their days! All those who are rich among them are forcing those who are poor to contribute the little they have to their own!

  “Now, look at this poor one,” the Old Father and Mother turned their wild eyes to me and then the Old Father continued his controversy, “for example. He had left his parents, wife, friends, etc. behind in his town, but he has started to find about making a child for his barren wife. He said that he was going to the Witch-Herbalist to help him make his wife pregnant. He is not content with his barren wife. But now, as he is not content with what his creator has given to him, he is going to suffer death within a few twinklings from now, because he has already found uncontentments with his own hands. Yes, he must be sentenced to death now for stealing and for harming our Abnormal Squatting Man of the Jungle!”

  It was like that both the Old Father and Long-
Breasted Mother were contrary to everything which all the people of the towns were doing, both good and bad. Then both of them took their wild fearful eyes away from me. But just to hear more from me, the Mother with Long Breasts asked from me once more: “Yes, have you anything more to say before I give you necessary judgment for the offences which you have committed?” So, this time, the rest of the wild people including the Old Father, who was the chairman of the court, the president of the court, all of the court-bearers and the Mother herself, hesitated without talking to one another. All of them were waiting to hear from me.

  So I told the Mother, the chairman and the president that I had many things to say. Then the whole of them roared: “What are you going to say, man of the town?” At the same time my second “mind” became active now suddenly and it advised me to defend myself in “the hunter’s dialects”, then perhaps these wild people of the mountain might understand my explanations more than before, and by that they might have mercy on me. Meanwhile I had prepared myself ready to fight them, just to prove that I was a brave hunter of wild animals and also to prove that the townspeople were more sensible than them.