Page:Where Animals Talk (West African folk lore tales).djvu/184

 she said to herself, "Alas! it is so! All my people are weary of me! I will not longer stay at grandfather's. I will go wandering into the forest, and, with the child, will see what I can get."

Taking with her only two ears of corn, she went far off with the lad into the forest. After much wandering, and eating only wild fruits, she selected a spot without having any idea of the locality, and built a shed for a camp in which to stay. At this place, she planted the corn. It quickly sprang up, and bore abundantly. And she planted other gardens. After a time came very many birds; and they began to eat up the corn. She exclaimed, "My son and I alone have come here, and have planted our corn. How is this that all the birds have come so soon to destroy it?" And the son, who by this time had grown to be almost a young man, said to her, "Mother, why do you allow the birds to eat? Why don't you do something?" She replied, "Why do the birds thus destroy the corn? What can I do?" So he came out of the shed into the yard in front of their house and shouted at the birds, "You birds! who have come here to spoil my corn, with this stick I will kill you all!" But the birds jeered at him, saying, "No! not all! Only one shall die!"

The young man went into the house, took up a magic spear-head he owned, fitted it onto a stick as a shaft; and going out again, he hurled it at the birds. The spear flew at them, pursuing each one, and piercing every one of them in succession. Then it flew on and on, away out into the forest.

The young man took up another medicine-charm that he had with him, and, calling to his spear by name, shouted after it, "Tombeseki-o-o! Come back, back, back. Here! again, again, again. Return!" The spear heard him, and obeyed, and came back. He laid hold of it, and put it again in the shed. So, he and his mother lived there. She planted a very large garden of plantains, cassava, and many other vegetables, a very large quantity. And her gardens grew, and bore fruit in plenty.

Then there came all kinds of small Animals, hogs, and antelopes, and gazelles, very many; and they spoiled the gardens, eating the fruit, and breaking down the stalks.