Part 3

And she came down to meet him and said, "Hang the leg up in the verandah, and I will go and get you water to wash with."

So he hung up the leg and went inside to wash himself.

And the leg said, "By Allah, I feel cold here." And his mother called out, "Mohammed." "Yes, mother." "Why is the leg talking there in the verandah?"

So Mohammed came out from the bathroom and took the leg and hung it up at the top of the house, and went back to wash.

Presently the leg said, "I hear some one washing there." And his mother called out, "That leg is still talking upstairs."

And Mohammed came out again and said, "Give me my knife; I will cut it open and see what is inside."

So he took his knife and cut open the leg, and there he found his father and brothers and all the people of that town inside the leg; but in cutting it open he stabbed one man in the face and put out his eye.

And this man, when he came out from the leg, was very angry indeed and said, "Why have you put out my eye? See, you have let all the other people out quite whole; but me, you have put out my eye."

And Mohammed said, "I am very sorry. I did not know what was in the leg, and my knife slipped in cutting it open, so now be content that you have escaped and forgive me."

But the man said, "I will not forgive you. You have put out my eye and now you must let me put out your eye."

Mohammed said, "I do not agree."

The man said, "If you don't agree to my putting out your eye we must fight."

Mohammed said, "I don't want many words, so now listen to what I have got to say. Let one of us take a rifle and five cartridges and the other stones, and let us go down to the shore and fight. So now choose which you will take."

So One-eye chose to take the rifle and five rounds, and Mohammed took a cloth and filled it with stones, and they went down to the shore.

And Mohammed said, "Now, One-eye, you have the rifle, you begin."

So One-eye fired the first round and missed, and the second and missed, and so on all five rounds.

Then Mohammed came near with his bag of stones, and hit him here and there and all over, and came closer and stoned him, and hit him in the other eye, putting that out, till he went down on his knees and said, "I repent; I am satisfied."

And this is the beginning of all one-eyed and blind men in the world, and this is how they began.

VII

THE WOODCUTTER AND HIS DONKEY

Once upon a time there was a poor woodcutter, and his work was to go out every day into the forest and cut wood. In the evening he used to load up his donkey with the wood he had cut and return to the town, where he sold it. The money he got each day was only sufficient for the food of himself and his wife for that day.

They lived like that many months and many days, and they were very, very poor; till one day the woodcutter went out to the forest as usual to cut wood. As he was at work he looked up and saw a number of birds sitting on the top of a tree, with their beaks wide open. And there was a cloud of insects about the tree, and they fell into the birds' mouths.

Then the woodcutter said to himself, "Behold these birds, they sit on the top of a tree with their mouths open, and God feeds them by bringing insects to fall into their mouths. They do not have to work or even to move from their perch; they just open their mouths and are fed. Why should I have to work hard all day and then only get just enough to eat? Why should not God feed me like that?"

So he loaded up his donkey with the wood he had already cut and returned to the town. When he reached his house he went in and got into bed.

His wife went out and sold the wood, and then bought some food and returned home. When she found her husband in bed she said, "My husband, are you ill?"

He replied, "No, my wife, I am waiting for God to feed me as I saw Him feed the birds to-day."

So she cooked the food and then called to him, "The food is ready, my husband."

He replied, "No. To-day I saw that God fed the birds without them having to move. They just opened their mouths and the food dropped in, so now I am not going to move out of bed, but am just going to wait here in bed to be fed also."

So his wife brought his food in to him there in bed and he ate and slept. Next morning his wife said to him, "Arise, my husband, for it is time that you went to work."

He replied, "No, I am not going to work; I am just going to stop here in bed and wait to be fed."

His wife said, "But, my husband, we have no food and no money in the house. What are we to do if you do not go and work?"

He answered, "Never mind. God is able to feed the birds when they are hungry, and so He is able to feed me."

So he stopped there in bed. Now a neighbour of his had a vision that night that in a certain cave was a great treasure stored. He wanted to go and search for it, and when he heard that the woodcutter was not going to work that day he thought that he would borrow his donkey to bring back the wealth, if his vision came true.

So he came to borrow the donkey; but as he was a very mean man he did not want to tell of his vision or for what purpose he wanted the donkey. He knocked at the door, and the wife came and opened it, and he asked to see the woodcutter.

The wife went to call her husband, but he said, "Tell him to come in here; I will not get up."

So the neighbour came in and asked the woodcutter to lend him his donkey, and said, "If I have a prosperous journey I will give you a few coppers."

The woodcutter agreed, and he took the donkey and went to the place about which he had dreamed. There he found the cave, and when he entered he saw piles of money, gold, silver and copper.

So he gathered up first all the gold and then all the silver and filled the donkey's saddle-bags, till at last they would hold no more.

He was loth to leave the copper, so he left the donkey outside the cave and went back and began to stuff his clothes with the copper coins. Whilst he was doing this the mouth of the cave fell in, and he was unable to get out.

The donkey waited and waited till at last, when evening was near, seeing no one coming, it set off and returned home, and came to the door of the house. The wife heard a noise at the door and said, "My husband, there is some one at the door; get up and open it to see who it is."

He replied, "No, my wife, I am going to stop just here in bed till God brings me my food."

So the wife opened the door, and the donkey walked in to where the woodcutter was lying in bed. When he looked at it he saw that the saddle-bags were stuffed full of gold and silver.

The man and his wife waited for the return of the neighbour, but when he did not come back they made plans together what they should do.

The husband said to his wife, "Behold, my wife, the neighbours all know that we are very poor and have no money in the house. Even if we were to take a little money and buy food to-morrow they will say that we have stolen it, so how are we to spend all this wealth? Even if we go away they will know that we have not the money to expend on a journey, so what shall we do?"

So they planned together, and then they crept out, when everybody was asleep, and put a little money on the doorstep of each house near them. On one they put ten reals, on another five, and so on.

In the morning when every one opened their doors, behold, some silver coins on the doorstep. So the neighbours said to one another, "I got five reals; what did you get?" and so on. Another said, "Surely some Jin must have put all this money here in the night."

Then were the neighbours not surprised when they saw that the woodcutter and his wife had a little money wherewith to buy food. So the woodcutter said to his neighbours, "I found twenty reals on my doorstep this morning, and I and my wife are going to expend this money on travelling to a far country, where perhaps we will meet with better fortune than here."

So they bought the necessaries for a long journey with a little of that money, and then the greater part they packed up on the donkey and journeyed off.

They travelled on and on, till at last they came to a country where they were not known, and there they bought a house and settled down, and the people said, "Behold, these must be some rich folk who have come from a far country."

So they lived there in great splendour, and spent their money and gave praise to God.

This is the story of the woodcutter who had trust in God, and it finishes here.

VIII

KITANGATANGA OF THE SEA

There was once a man, and he lived at Kilwa. And that man married a wife, and built a hut, in which they stayed. Everything that woman asked for he gave her, only that hut he had built without a door.

He himself, when he went abroad and returned, used to climb up a ladder and get in at the window, and when he went away he took away the ladder. So that woman stayed in that hut and was not able to go out, not even for a little, and so she was sick of heart.

Now when her mother heard about this she came and dug a hole under the wall, so that she was able to come and see her daughter whenever the husband had gone out. The mouth of that hole the woman covered over with matting, so that that man, her husband, did not get to see it.

Now that man was a merchant, and used to trade up and down the coast even as far as Maskat.

One day he came home to his wife and said to her, "My wife, it is time that I went up the coast trading, so in a week's time I will start and will go to Zanzibar and Maskat, and then, after the space of one year, I will return again."

So his wife said to him, "It is well, my husband; may you go and return in safety."

When her husband went away again she got out quickly by her tunnel and came to her mother and said, "My mother, my husband is going to travel away for a year and leave me in my hut. Now you must go quickly and get a fast ship ready for me and tell no one."

Then she returned and sat in the hut, and in the evening her husband returned and climbed in by that window of his.

After a week had passed the husband took leave of his wife and went down to the harbour, got on board his ship and set sail for Zanzibar.

After he had gone, the wife came out quickly and went down to the harbour and got on board the vessel her mother had prepared for her and set sail behind him.

In the middle of the ocean that boat of hers passed his. He looked at it and called out, "Who is that in the ship that is passing me?"

She answered, "It is I, my name is Kitangatanga of the sea."

She arrived at Zanzibar, moored her vessel and went ashore, and found that house where he stayed and entered it and sat down. Presently her husband arrived, moored his boat and went up to that house.

When he saw that woman he was surprised and said to her, "How like you are to my wife whom I left in Kilwa!"

So he talked to her for a while and then asked, "Are you married?"

She replied, "No, I am a widow."

Then he said, "If you will marry me I will settle on you a hundred reals."

So that woman agreed, and they were married, and they stayed together. After two weeks he said to her, "My wife, I must continue my journey to Maskat now; but in the space of six months I will return and stay with you."

She said, "It is well, my husband; go, and return in safety."

So he got in his boat and set sail for Maskat. After he had gone she got in her boat and set sail behind him. In the middle of the sea her vessel passed his, and he called out, "Who is that who is passing me?"

She replied, "It is I, Kitangatanga of the sea." She arrived first in Maskat and found that house where he stopped and went and sat in it. Presently her husband arrived, moored his ship and went up to the house.

When he saw that woman sitting there he was very surprised and said, "How like you are to my wife whom I left in Kilwa, and also to that woman I married in Zanzibar."

Then he asked her, "Are you married?"

She replied, "No, I am a widow." So he said, "I will marry you for one hundred reals."

She agreed, and they were married, and he stayed with her six months there in Maskat. At the end of that time he said, "My wife, I must now return home. I will stay a year, and then I will return to you."

She said, "Go, and return in peace, my husband."

So he set sail from Maskat, and that woman set sail after him. In the midst of the ocean she passed him again, and when he asked who it was, she replied, "It is I, Kitangatanga of the sea."

She arrived at Zanzibar and went up to that house.

Presently her husband arrived, and she said, "Welcome, stranger; what is the news?"

He replied, "The news is that I have made a prosperous journey to Maskat, and that there I met a woman just like the wife I left at Kilwa and also like you, and I married her."

She replied, "It is well, my husband."

After he had stopped several weeks he said to her, "My wife, I must now return home. I will stop one year, and then I will return to you."

So she said, "May your journey be prosperous, my husband, and may you return in safety."

So he set sail for Kilwa, and she set sail after him. In the midst of the ocean she passed him again, and when he asked who it was, she replied, "It is I, Kitangatanga of the sea."

When she arrived in Kilwa she moored her vessel and went up to her house. She entered by her underground doorway and sat down. After a while her husband arrived and climbed in by his window. She said, "Welcome, my husband."

Then she cooked food for him, and when he had eaten she asked him, "What is the news of there where you have been?"

He replied, "I made a good voyage to Zanzibar, and there I met a woman just like you. I married her for one hundred reals, and stayed with her for two weeks. Then I went on to Maskat, and there I met a woman exactly like you and like that woman I married in Zanzibar. I married her, too, for a hundred reals, and stopped with her six months.

"Then I returned to Zanzibar and stayed with my wife there a few weeks, then set out for home, and here I am. Now what is the news here of this place whilst I have been away?"

That wife replied, "The news is this, my husband. I was angered because you put me in a hut without a door, so I made this underground door which you see there.

"Then, when you set sail, I set sail after you, and I passed you in the sea; and when you asked who I was, I replied, 'Kitangatanga of the sea!'

"I came first to Zanzibar, and it was I whom you married there for a hundred reals.

"When you left for Maskat, I set sail behind you, and arrived there first. It was I also whom you married in Maskat for one hundred reals. That is my news, my husband."

When her husband heard that, he said, "Indeed, this is true. Now I will build you a very fine hut with a door in it, so that you may go out when you please."

So he built her a splendid hut with a door and put her into it, and there they lived happily.

IX

THE LION'S TALISMAN

The talisman of the lion is like that of cattle; it is a hairy pellet, and he carries it about with him in his mouth.

When he goes out to hunt he digs a hole in the ground and hides it there. Then he goes to hunt, and when he has finished hunting and eating meat till he is satisfied, he comes back to that place where he has hid his charm and digs it up and swallows it.

When he sees that he is about to die, he throws it far away, so that it may not be found at his death.

Should a man get it, he becomes possessed of great good fortune. If he wishes he can put it away and keep it, or if he desires he can sell it for much money, or he can make it into a charm and wear it himself. If a man wearing this charm meets with a lion, that lion is unable to do anything to him, by reason of that charm.

X

THE STORY OF KIBARAKA AND THE BIRD

Once upon a time there was a Sultan, and he had one son, a very handsome youth, called Hasani.

Every day at noon the Sultan and his son used to go to the mosque to pray. After they had gone the Sultan's wife used to sort out the seeds of every kind of grain in the Sultan's store. Those that needed drying she gave to a slave, called Kibaraka, to put out in the sun to dry.

One day, after the Sultan and his son had gone to prayer, she called to the slave, "Kibaraka, take these seeds and put them out in the sun." Kibaraka took the grain and spread it out to dry, each kind by itself.

Suddenly a wondrously fine bird came and sat down by the grain and called out--

"Kibaraka! Kibaraka!"

He answered, "Here, lady, here."

Then the bird sang--

_Bird._ "Shall I eat of this wheat? Or shall I not eat? Or shall I eat millet?"

_Kibaraka._ "Eat, Lady, I will it."

_Bird._ "Shall I eat rape instead? Or must I not be fed? Shall I eat maize to-day?"

_Kibaraka._ "Eat, Lady, eat, I pray."

_Bird._ "Shall I eat all the grain? Or must I now refrain? Shall I eat rice to-day?"

_Kibaraka._ "Eat, Lady, eat, I pray."

_Bird._ "Where has your master gone to-day?"

_Kibaraka._ "Gone to the mosque to read and pray."

_Bird._ "My greetings to the Sultan give When he returns. Long may he live."

At that it flew away.

On the next day and the day after the bird came again and sung the same song.

Till one day Kibaraka told his young master Hasani, "Master, every day at one o'clock, when you are at the mosque, a lovely bird comes here."

Hasani asked, "What kind of bird is this?"

Kibaraka said, "All ordinary wonders are surpassed by this bird, for it sings a very beautiful song," and he told his master of the song.

At these words the Sultan's son perceived that this bird was of the daughters of the Jins, and he fell in love with her.

Then he said to Kibaraka, "See here, I have given you your freedom, you are no longer a slave, and now you must catch this bird for me."

After that Hasani was seized with a grievous illness because of his longing for that bird till, on the third day at one o'clock, the Sultan went out to look for all the wisest of the medicine men to attend to his son.

Whilst he was gone that bird came and sat by the grain and called, "Kibaraka! Kibaraka!"

Kibaraka cut a thin pole and made a noose at the end and set it near the bullrush millet, the grain the bird loved best.

When it had finished eating all the seeds it wished to fly away, but one of its wings caught in the noose.

Then it said to Kibaraka, "Please let me go and do not touch me, for you will injure me. Take this feather of mine and carry it to your master, and let it be my salaams to him."

So Kibaraka brought the feather to the Sultan's son. Hasani was very pleased. Then he said to him, "Kibaraka, my brother, why did not you catch the owner of this feather?"

Kibaraka said, "I was not able to catch it. When I saw it I fell down seven times because of its light, and my wisdom forsook me."

When the Sultan returned, his son said to him, "My father, you must sound the pallaver-horn, that all the people may come before the palace." The Sultan loved his son exceedingly, so he gathered all his people together. Then Hasani said, "Tell the people that they must look for this bird and bring it to me, and if they do not bring it I shall die." So the Sultan gave out the order, "There is no leave to weave or spin, to grind corn or pound grain, until this bird has been brought."

At once all the people of that country went out into the jungles and deserts to look for that bird. Every one who found a fine bird would seize it and bring it to the Sultan's son, but to each he said, "This is not the one."

Till one day, as people were sitting in the Sultan's court holding a pallaver, just after one o'clock had struck, they looked up and saw a dustcloud coming like rain.

Behold, it was that bird coming, and Kibaraka recognised its coming.

When it came it sat down by the grain and ate all the seeds till, as it came to the last, Kibaraka caught it and brought it to his master. When Hasani looked on that bird, behold, it was a beautiful woman.

He said, "Kibaraka, run quickly, go your way to the audience chamber and tell my father that he must fire the cannons, for the thing I desired has come to pass, and the request I made of Allah has been granted."

So Kibaraka came and told the Sultan, and the cannons were fired, and wedding festivities and feastings were held for nine years.

After that Hasani and the fair Jin had a child, a boy like pearls and precious stones.

And Hasani loved his wife exceedingly, and the people of that country saw wonders come to pass, for the second son was like the stars and the moon.

The house of that Sultan was greatly blessed, and the story ends here.

XI

THE STORY OF THE FOOLS

Once upon a time there lived a man called Omari and his wife, and they had a very fine fat black ox. So fat was this ox that all the young men in the village wanted to eat it, but Omari would not part with it.

Till one day he went away on a journey; then they thought, "Now we will be able to get that ox and have a feast, for his wife is a great fool."

So twenty men set out and came to the house of that woman, Omari's wife, and they knocked on the door.

"Hodi!"

And she replied, "Come near."

So they went in and told that woman, "We have had a vision, and in that vision we saw that you were going to have a child, a beautiful boy, who will be rich and clever, and will marry the daughter of the Wazir."

Now when the woman heard this she was wondrously pleased, for she had no child.

Then these men said, "There was, in our dream, the sacrifice of a black ox, before this came to pass."

So she said, "Take my ox and sacrifice him, that the vision may come true."

They replied, "Shall we kill him, though, while your husband is away?"

She said, "Take him, yes, take him, for my husband will be only too pleased when he knows for what purpose the ox has been slain; and he, too, desires a son."

So the youths took away the ox and killed it and feasted and made merry.

After three days the husband returned, and when he did not see his ox in its stall he asked his wife, "Where is the ox?"

She said to him, "It has been slaughtered."

"Why?"

She replied, "Men came who had dreamed a dream that we should have a beautiful male child of great good fortune, and as the sacrifice of a black ox was necessary to bring it true, I gave ours to them."

Omari then said to his wife, "You are a fool. Now I am going out to search for as great a fool as you are. If I cannot find any one who is your equal in folly, I shall leave you; you will cease to be my wife."

So Omari took his donkey and rode away till he came to the house of a certain rich man, and this house had a verandah beneath it. Omari got off his donkey, and as he stood there, a woman, one of the slaves of the household, passed in, and said to him, "Master, where do you come from?"

Omari replied, "I come from the next world."

Then was that slave very astonished, and she went upstairs to her mistress and said to her, "There, below in the verandah, is a man who comes from the next world."

"Is that indeed so?" asked the mistress.

"It is indeed true, and if you doubt me ask him yourself, for he is there below," said the slave.