Page:Where Animals Talk (West African folk lore tales).djvu/68

 King refused, and kept possession of the horns. Hog begged, "Please! let me have my horns!" But the King swore an oath, saying, "O savi! (By the Blessing!) wherever you go, and whatever you be, you shall have no horns." So the Hogs departed.

Now Oyster stood up, and said, "I wish to go to my place. Where shall it be?" The King said, "I will give you no other place than what you already have had. I do not wish to put you into the fresh-water springs and brooks with Manga. You shall go into the salty waters." So Oyster went; and its race lives on the edge of the rivers, near the Sea, in brackish waters. And the King said to Oyster, "A11 the tribes of Mankind, by the Sea, when they fail to obtain other fish, shall be allowed to eat you."

All knew that this was a punishment given by the King to Oyster, for having dared the test by fire, pretending that it had fat, the while it had none.

It is a practice of African natives, after taking a bath, to anoint their bodies with some oil or grease.

In the time of Long-ago, in Njambi's Town, Mosquito and Ear went out to take a bath together. After taking her bath. Ear began to rub an oily substance over herself; while Mosquito did not. So Ear said to Mosquito, "Why do you leave your skin so rough? It is better to rub on a