Frog!"
Dog and the Kingship
Mr. Dog, they wanted to invest him with the kingship. They sought all the things
of royalty: the cap, the sceptre, the rings, the skin of mulkaka. The things are
complete; they say: "The day has come to install."
The headmen all came in full; they sent for the players of drum and marimba;
they have come. They spread coarse mats and fine mats. Where the lord is going
to sit, they laid a coarse mat; they spread on it a fine mat; they set a chair on.
They say: "Let the lord sit down." He sat down. The people begin to divide the
victuals.
He, Mr. Dog, on seeing the breast of a fowl, greed grasped him. He stood up in
haste; took the breast of the fowl; ran into the bush. The people said: "The lord,
whom we are installing, has run away with the breast of the fowl into the bush!"
The people separated.
Mr. Dog, who was going to be invested with the kingship, because of his
thievery, the kingship he lost it.
I have told my little tale. Finished.
The Builder of Ability and the Builder of Haste
Two men called themselves one name. This one said: "I am Ndala, the builder of
ability." The other one said: "I am Ndala, the builder of haste."
They say: "We will go to trade." They start; they arrive in middle of road. A
storm comes. They stop, saying: "Let us build grass-huts!" Ndala, the builder of
haste, built in haste; he entered into his hut. Ndala, the builder of ability is
building carefully. The storm comes; it kills him outside. Ndala, the builder of
haste escaped, because his hut was finished; it sheltered him when the storm
came on.