Once in a time of famine a woman left her home and went to live in a
distant village, where she became a cannibal. She had one son, whose
name was Magoda. She ate all the people in that village, until only
herself and Magoda remained. Then she was compelled to hunt animals,
but she caught people still when she could. In hunting she learned to
be very swift of foot, and could run so fast that nothing she pursued
could escape from her.
Her brother, who remained at home when she left, had two daughters,
whom he did not treat very kindly. One day he sent them to the river
for water, which they were to carry in two pots. These pots were made
of clay, and were the nicest and most valuable in the village. One of
the girls fell down on a rock and broke the pot she was carrying. Then
she did not know what to do, because she was afraid to go back to her
father. She sat down and cried, but that did not help, the pot would
not be whole again.
Then she said to her sister: “Let us go away to another place, where
our father will not be able to find us.”
She was the younger and the cleverer of the two, and so she persuaded
her sister. They walked away in the opposite direction from their home,
and for two days had nothing but gum to eat. Then they saw a fire at a
distance, and went to it, where they saw a house. It was the house of
their aunt, but they did not know it. They were afraid to go in, but
Magoda came out and talked to them. When he heard who they were, he was
sorry for them, and told them their aunt was a cannibal, giving them
advice not to stay there. But just then they heard her coming, so they
went into Magoda’s house and hid themselves, for he lived in one house
and his mother in another.
The woman came and said: “I smell something nice; what is it, my son?”
Magoda said there was nothing.
She replied: “Surely I smell fat children.”
But as she did not go in, they remained concealed that night.
The next morning Nomagoda (so called because she was the mother of
Magoda) went out to hunt, but she did not go far, so the children could
not get away. They went into her house, where they saw a person with
only one arm, one side, and one leg.
The person said to them: “See, the cannibal has eaten the rest of me;
take care of yourselves.”
When it was nearly dark, Nomagoda came home again, bringing some
animals which she had killed. She smelt that children had been in the
house, so she went to her son’s house and looked in.
She said to Magoda: “Why do you not give me some? Do I not catch
animals for you?”
Then she saw the children, and was very glad. She took them to her
house, and told them to sleep. They lay down, but were too frightened
to close their eyes. They heard their aunt say, “Axe, be sharp; axe, be
sharp;” and to let her know that they were awake, they spoke of vermin
biting them.
After a while the cannibal went to sleep, when they crept out, first
putting two blocks of wood in their places, and ran away as fast as
they could. When Nomagoda awoke, she took the axe and went to kill
them, but the axe fell on the blocks of wood.
As soon as it was day, the cannibal pursued the children. They looked
behind, and saw clouds of dust which she made as she ran. There was a
tall tree just in front of them, so they hastened to climb up it, and
sat down among the branches. Nomagoda came to the tree and commenced to
cut it down; but when a chip fell out, a bird (Ntengu) sang—
“Ntengu, ntengu,
Chips, return to your places,
Chips, return to your places,
Chips, be fast.”
The chip then went back to its place and was fast again. This happened
three times; but Nomagoda, who was very angry, caught the bird and
swallowed it. When she put it in her mouth, one of the feathers dropped
to the ground. Then she began to chop at the tree again; but as soon as
a chip was loose the feather sang—
“Ntengu, ntengu,
Chips, return to your places,
Chips, return to your places,
Chips, be fast”
The chip then stuck fast again. The cannibal chopped till she was
tired, but the feather continued to keep the tree from receiving harm.
Then she tried to catch the feather, but it flew about too quickly for
her, until she sank down exhausted on the ground at the foot of the
tree.
The children, up in the branches, could see a long way off; and as they
strained their eyes, they observed three dogs as big as calves, and
they knew these dogs belonged to their father, who was seeking for
them. So they called them by name, and the dogs came running to the
tree and ate up the cannibal, who was too tired to make her escape.
Thus the children were delivered, and their father was so glad to get
them back again that he forgave them for breaking the pot and running
away.