Page:Where Animals Talk (West African folk lore tales).djvu/24



Besides the words for "hunger" and "famine," the Bantu languages have a third word meaning, "longing for meat." In this story. Leopard's greed is matched by the artifice of Rat:—It was a practice of African natives to hide their ivory tusks in streams of water until a time convenient for selling them.

Polite natives will neither sit uninvited in the presence of their superiors, nor watch them while eating. If need be, to secure privacy, a temporary curtain will be put up, and the host will retire, leaving the guest alone. Rude or uncivilized tribes are offensive in their persistent effort to see a white foreigner's mode of eating.

One of the tricks of native sorcerers is to jump into a fire.

It was a time of ngwamba (meat-hunger) among the Animals in Njambi's Kingdom.

Leopard, being the eldest in his tribe, said to Rat, "Ntori! child! this is a hard time for meat. I think we better go to the forest, and make a olako (camp) for hunting." Rat replied "Good! come on!"

So they began to arrange for the journey. The preparation of food, nets, baskets, and so forth, occupied several days. When all was ready, they started. Having come to a proper place in the forest, they selected a site where they would build up their booths. Leopard was to have his own separate camp with his wives and his children and his people; and Rat his, with his wives and his children, and his people.

So they began to make two camps. Leopard said, "Ntori! child! I have mine here. You go there yonder." So they