Black Tales for White Children Part 16

Then the first bird looked down and said, "Look, there is a human asleep underneath."

The other said, "Oh, that son of Adam is lying just where those jars of money are buried; just opposite him is the tree whose roots are medicine for mad people, and he is leaning against the eye medicine tree."

Then they flew away; but Lila heard these words, and he groped and took some of the bark of that tree and rubbed it on his eyes, and behold, he could see; both his eyes were whole.

Then he went to the other tree and dug up some of the roots, and after that he dug down where he had been lying and found jars of money. He took a little money, and the rest he covered up and left.

Next day he took the road and journeyed on, and that day he arrived at a town, and there he heard the news that the daughter of the Sultan had been seized with madness.

He was told, "No one is allowed to come to this country unless he knows how to make medicine for the Sultan's daughter. This is now the seventh year since she became mad, and the Sultan has made a vow that he who cures her will marry her, and he who does not cure her will be killed."

So Lila entered that town, and he was at once taken before the Sultan, who asked him, "Can you cure my child?"

He replied, "Master, I do not know medicines, but I will try."

So he was taken in to the Sultan's daughter through seven doors, and he saw her where she had been put. She was fastened with chains on hands and feet.

He gave her of that medicine, and immediately she became cured.

Then the Sultan ordered a feast to be prepared, and he married Lila to his daughter. He himself descended from the throne and put Lila in his place. So Lila became the Sultan of that town.

One day, as he looked out of the palace window, he saw a man pa.s.sing, and when he came near he recognised that it was his friend Fila.

He told his soldiers to fetch him and bring him before him.

When Fila was brought he said to him, "My friend, do you not recognise me?"

Fila replied, "I do not know you."

Then Lila said, "Is it not I whose eyes you put out?"

Then Fila was very afraid, and said, "Then it is you who will now put out mine."

Lila ordered his soldiers, "Take him out, put out his eyes and leave him in the way."

So they took him out and did as they were bid. After three days they went to look for him and found that he had died.

Lila and Fila, it was not possible for them to mix together, and even to-day, if there are two people who cannot agree, or two things which cannot go together, it is said of them: "They are like Lila and Fila."

XVIII

THE STORY OF THE HUNTERS AND THE BIG SNAKE

Long ago there lived some hunters who one day took their bows and arrows and went with their dogs to hunt in the forest.

And those hunters walked very far, looking for game, and they caught some animals, and then a very heavy rain fell upon them. So they looked for a place in which they could sit and take shelter until the rain was over, and they found a very big tree with a large hollow in it. Then those hunters and their dogs entered into that tree and sat down. Now that hole in the tree belonged to a large snake, and that snake had gone out to look for game.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Hunters]

The snake hunted and did not find any game, so it returned home hungry and annoyed. When it got near its hole it heard the voices of men talking in its house.

That snake was very surprised, and said to itself, "Who can it be talking in my house?" Then it said in a loud voice, "Who speaks there in my house?"

Those men inside were astonished, and asked one another, "Who can that be talking outside?"

Before they could answer, or look outside, the snake itself arrived at the entrance and blocked the way out. Then it said, "What sort of people are you to come and sit in my house? This is my house in which I sit by myself. Answer me quickly what you mean by going into it?"

Those men answered, "Please, sir, we have come from our village looking for game. We went very far and only caught some small animals, and then it rained very hard, so we came in here to escape the rain. We did not know that it was your house. Now we have nothing to say; we only ask your leave to go out. If you say 'go out' we will go our way at once."

The snake said, "You have no leave to go out."

Then those men asked, "Then what do you wish us to do?"

The snake said, "What you must do is that you must at once give that game you have caught to your dogs to eat, that they may get fat. Then you must eat your dogs, so that you become very fat, and then I will eat you."

Those men said, "We are not able to eat dogflesh, master. If this is indeed your house, perhaps you will eat us. No matter, it is the will of Allah."

Whilst they were talking thus to that big snake an elephant-nosed shrew came out of the bush and heard them talking, and came near to the door of the snake's house.

Then he asked, "What does this snake say?"

Those men said, "This snake is standing in the doorway and preventing us from going out, and he tells us we must give our game to our dogs, and then eat our dogs, that he may eat us. This is because we came to sit in here to escape from the rain."

The elephant-nosed shrew said, "Agree to what he says. When that snake has eaten you and become very fat I will eat him."

When that snake heard those words of the shrew it was very angry, and chased the shrew, and the shrew ran off into the bush, and the snake followed him very far, but did not catch him.

Then those hunters were able to come forth from that hole and escape. So they went out very quickly and ran back to their village.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Hunters]

When the snake came back to his house he found that those men had run away. It was indeed the elephant-nosed shrew who had saved them.

XIX

ALI OF THE CROOKED ARM

Long ago in olden days there was a country, and the Sultan of that country had seven wives and the Wazir also had seven wives.

And the seven wives of the Sultan had seven children, and the seven wives of the Wazir had seven children, all boys.