Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 27, 1916.djvu/154

126 The Hare sang:

"Have you listened to my bundle?"

The Lion came out of the bundle of thatch and killed all the Monkeys.

There was a Man who used to kill many lions. Always he only took mealies and went out a long way till he found a Lion making its fire and then he used to sit down and say, "When you have finished cooking your mealies may I cook mine?" The Lion would say "Yes," and both sat down at the fire. By and bye the Lion says, "I want to go and drink water now; how do I know you will not eat my food while I am away?" The Man says, "Tie my legs and leave me here." The Lion ties his legs, and when he comes back he says to the Man, "Aha! shall I kill you now or shall I let you loose?" The Man says, "All right, if you want to kill me, do so; if you want to let me loose, all right, do so." The Lion says, " All right, I will let you loose."

By and bye the Man wants to drink water. So he says to the Lion, "How do I know you will not eat my food while I am away?" The Lion says, "Tie my legs and leave me here." The Man ties his legs and when he comes back he says to the Lion, "Aha! shall I kill you now or shall I let you loose?" The Lion says, "All right, if you want to kill me, do so; if you want to let me loose, all right, do so." The Man says, "All right, I will kill you."

By and bye his hut was full of lion skins. Then other men wanted to kill lions; but they did not know the way he managed. One man took a gun and went to shoot a lion; but he did not kill it; he only wounded it, and it killed him. Then the others came to the Man and said, "How do you kill lions? Our brother has been eaten." He said, "It has nothing to do with me; he was a fool."