Now I have told you four African tales of animals, and perhaps you are tired of such stories. If, however, I can remember a very good one before I am finished writing to you I shall put it into this chapter.Let me now tell you about the black boys and girls’ riddles, and there are one or two nursery rhymes that I know of. I am sure you would like to hear them, so I shall write them down for you as they are spoken here, and then translate them for you. Here is one of them:—

Can you guess what this is all about? You have a rhyme that means just the same. Well this is what these funny words mean:—

It is you see an African finger rhyme. You have all one of your own, but I am sure in it you never call your fore-finger a plate-scraper, nor your thumb an old fool. But if you had to eat without spoons and knives and forks, and wanted to make your plate very clean you would have to use your fore-finger a good deal, and you would then understand why the black children call it a plate-scraper.

This is another finger rhyme for counting up all the fingers:—

This is the English for it:

Then about guesses. I have tried to pick out one or two just to let you hear what like they are. Many of the answers to riddles I have heard seemed to me to have little or no point in them. So it is with the stories. But when I have failed to see the joke and have not laughed the black boys have not failed. They have their own funny stories and laugh at them heartily. But our jokes they do not understand, nor do they play pranks on one another as white boys do. Let me try to tell you how you can make black boys and girls roar with laughter, and yet to a white man there is nothing to laugh about. If you are telling them about people scattering helter-skelter and say that the people, “nalimenya,” which means go off helter-skelter, the boys will go into fits of laughter. Now I can see nothing to laugh at in this, and I am sure you can’t either, and, if another word had been used, neither would the black boy. But here is the peculiar thing. It is the “li” in the middle of the word that makes it funny to African children here.

“Menya” means “beat,” but “limenya” means “run off helter-skelter.” Again “Sesa” means “sweep,” but “lisesa” means “run off helter-skelter;” and so on with a lot of other words, the addition of the syllable “li” makes them change their meanings entirely, and become “run off helter-skelter,” and so very funny that black boys and girls cannot keep from laughing. Now for the guesses:—

I think you will understand these answers to the above guesses, but what do you think of this one?

I am certain you and I would never have thought of such an answer.

Here are one or two of their proverbs:—

which latter means—

“Help your neighbour now, for some day you may need help.”

By means of these guesses the African children while away the time and amuse themselves on wet days or on cold nights round the fire by asking them from one another. Now let me close this chapter by telling you the story of

The Rabbit, the Lion, and the Wild Pig

There was once a lion that knew all about medicine. He did a good trade with people who came to buy it. One day some people from a far country came and begged him to come with them to heal their sick. So the lion agreed, and set about to get a servant to carry his bundle on the journey. Finding a wild pig near, he called him, saying, “Come, friend Pig, will you go on that journey?” and the pig agreed. So the lion gave him the load to carry.

When they were on the way the lion said to the pig, “Look there, Master Pig, that is the medicine for porridge. If they make porridge for us at the end of our journey you must run and get some of these leaves.” The pig said, “All right,” and they went on their journey.

While they were passing another bush the lion said again, “Look there, Master Pig, that is the medicine for rice. If they make rice you must run and get some of these leaves.” The pig again said, “All right,” and they continued their journey.

When they reached the village of the sick people the lion and pig were well received. In the evening porridge was cooked for them, and the lion said to the pig, “Master Pig, go and get yon leaves.” So Master Pig ran off to get the leaves. When he came back with them he found that the lion had finished all the porridge. So that night Master Pig went to bed hungry. Next evening the people cooked rice, and the lion said to the pig, “Master Pig, go and get yon leaves;” and Master Pig set off in a hurry to bring the leaves. But when he got back, all puffing and blowing, he found that the lion had just finished the rice, and he had to go hungry to bed.

Next day they returned home, and the poor pig arrived at his village in a famished condition, to the great sorrow of his wife and children.

Not long afterwards other people came requesting the services of Dr Lion to heal their sick, and he agreed to go.

Looking around for a carrier he spied the rabbit, and said, “Come, friend Rabbit, will you go on that journey?” and the rabbit agreed. So the lion gave him his load to carry.

When they were on the way the lion said to the rabbit, “Master Rabbit, do you see that bush? That is the medicine for porridge. If they make porridge for us at the village you must run and get these leaves.” “All right,” said the rabbit, and they continued their journey. But they had not gone far when the rabbit stopped, and said, “Where is my knife; I must have left it where we rested. Let me run back to get it.” “All right,” said the lion, “don’t be long.” So the rabbit ran back, pulled some leaves from the medicine bush, and hid them in the load. When he reached the lion they resumed their journey. Soon the lion stopped again at another bush, and said, “Master Rabbit, do you see that bush? That is medicine for rice. If they cook rice for us at the village you must run and get these leaves.” The rabbit said, “All right,” and they went on their way.

But in a short time the rabbit stopped, and said, “Where is my knife? I must have left it where we rested. Let me run back for it.” The lion was very angry this time, and said, “What kind of a servant are you, always losing your knife? Don’t be long.” So the rabbit ran back not to find his knife but to pull the medicine leaves for rice, which he hid in his bundle. When he made up on the lion again they continued their journey and soon arrived at the village.

In the evening porridge was cooked for the visitors, and the lion said to the rabbit, “Master Rabbit, go and get yon leaves.” So the rabbit untied his bundle and produced the leaves. The lion was so angry at seeing the leaves thus produced that he could not eat a bite, and the rabbit had all the porridge to himself. Next evening rice was cooked for them, and the lion said to the rabbit, “Master Rabbit, go for yon leaves.” But the rabbit again just opened his load and produced the leaves, and the lion was so sick and angry that he could not touch the rice, which the rabbit ate all to himself.

Next day they started on their homeward journey, and the first night slept in the same house, the lion in a bed, the rabbit on a piece of bark. During the night the rabbit said out aloud, “He who sleeps on bark will be fresh for his journey in the morning, but he who sleeps in a bed will walk heavily and with pain.” The lion on hearing this got out of bed, saying, “You little one, get off that bark, I myself will sleep there.” So they changed sleeping places. In the middle of the night the rabbit got up and lit a fire while the lion slept. The heat of the fire soon caused the bark to shrivel up and tightly enclose the sleeping giant. Then the rabbit ran off home and left him.

In the morning great roars were heard coming from the house and the people, wondering what had befallen Dr Lion, rushed in and found him struggling to free himself. With their axes they soon had him out, and he went home a hungry and sorrowful beast. When his wife and children saw him looking so thin, they set up a great crying.

And so people who believe that they are very clever, will soon find others more clever than they. The lion thought himself very cunning when he deceived the poor pig, but he found the rabbit too much for him.