Page:Where Animals Talk (West African folk lore tales).djvu/219

 forward. He laid hold of a small tree. He cut it, and whirled it about at the Snails. And the Snails fell down on the ground, po! But they rose up again flinging themselves upon the man, ndwa! The man jumped aside crying out, "Ah! My father Njambu! Dibadi-O!"

He took fire, thrust it among the tribe of Snails, and every one fell down on the ground, mbwâ!

Then he shaped a leaf into a funnel, and dropped a medicine into the noses of his mother and sisters. They slowly rose and tried to sit up. He poured the ashes of the Snails over them, po! They breathed it into their stomachs, kii! and they came fully to life.

Then they said, "You are safe! Now! for our return home!" He said, "Good!" And they returned.

Mbuma-tyĕtyĕ continued his own journey, on, on, on, until at a cross-roads, he found a giant Tooth, as large as a man. Tooth asked, "Where are you going?" Said he. "I'm going to seek a marriage at a town of Njambu-ya-Mekuku." Then, with his axe in hand, he turned aside from the path; chopped firewood, chop, chop, chop, chop, mbwâ! Then he kindly carried a lot of it, and presented it to Tooth. He also opened his bag, and taking out an ukima roll, laid it down at the feet of Tooth; also a bundle of gourd-seeds, and laid it down; and then he said, "I'm going." But the giant Tooth, pleased with him, said to him, "Just wait!"

So, he waited; and, while waiting, said, "Ngalo! a fine house!" It appeared there. "A table!" There! "Good food!" There! "Fine drink!" There! They two ate, and drank, and had conversation together.

Tooth said to him, "Where you go, do not fear." It brought out from its hut a water-gourd, and said, "I will not show you more, nor will I tell you anything at all, but this Hova itself will tell you." Then Tooth said to him, "Go well!"

The man took the Gourd and clung to it as if it was a treasure.

He started again on his journey, and had gone but a little way, when he found Kuda-nuts in immense abundance. He took up one, drew his knife, cracked the nut, and threw the kernel into his mouth. He stooped again, and was