How Isuro the Rabbit
Tricked Gudu
Far away in a hot
country, where the forests are very thick and dark, and the rivers very swift
and strong, there once lived a strange pair of friends. Now one of the friends
was a big white rabbit named Isuro, and the other was a tall baboon called
Gudu, and so fond were they of each other that they were seldom seen apart.
One day, when the
sun was hotter even than usual, the rabbit awoke from his midday sleep, and saw
Gudu the baboon standing beside him.
'Get up,' said Gudu;
'I am going courting, and you must come with me. So put some food in a bag, and
sling it round your neck, for we may not be able to find anything to eat for a
long while.'
Then the rabbit
rubbed his eyes, and gathered a store of fresh green things from under the
bushes, and told Gudu that he was ready for the journey.
They went on quite
happily for some distance, and at last they came to a river with rocks
scattered here and there across the stream.
'We can never jump
those wide spaces if we are burdened with food,' said Gudu, 'we must throw it
into the river, unless we wish to fall in ourselves.' And stooping down, unseen
by Isuro, who was in front of him, Gudu picked up a big stone, and threw it
into the water with a loud splash.
'It is your turn
now,' he cried to Isuro. And with a heavy sigh, the rabbit unfastened his bag
of food, which fell into the river.
The road on the
other side led down an avenue of trees, and before they had gone very far Gudu
opened the bag that lay hidden in the thick hair about his neck, and began to
eat some delicious-looking fruit.
'Where did you get
that from?' asked Isuro enviously.
'Oh, I found after
all that I could get across the rocks quite easily, so it seemed a pity not to
keep my bag,' answered Gudu.
'Well, as you
tricked me into throwing away mine, you ought to let me share with you,' said
Isuro. But Gudu pretended not to hear him, and strode along the path.
By-and-bye they
entered a wood, and right in front of them was a tree so laden with fruit that
its branches swept the ground. And some of the fruit was still green, and some
yellow. The rabbit hopped forward with joy, for he was very hungry; but Gudu
said to him: 'Pluck the green fruit, you will find it much the best. I will
leave it all for you, as you have had no dinner, and take the yellow for
myself.' So the rabbit took one of the green oranges and began to bite it, but
its skin was so hard that he could hardly get his teeth through the rind.
'It does not taste
at all nice,' he cried, screwing up his face; 'I would rather have one of the
yellow ones.'
'No! no! I really
could not allow that,' answered Gudu. 'They would only make you ill. Be content
with the green fruit.' And as they were all he could get, Isuro was forced to
put up with them.
After this had
happened two or three times, Isuro at last had his eyes opened, and made up his
mind that, whatever Gudu told him, he would do exactly the opposite. However,
by this time they had reached the village where dwelt Gudu's future wife, and
as they entered Gudu pointed to a clump of bushes, and said to Isuro: 'Whenever
I am eating, and you hear me call out that my food has burnt me, run as fast as
you can and gather some of those leaves that they may heal my mouth.'
The rabbit would
have liked to ask him why he ate food that he knew would burn him, only he was
afraid, and just nodded in reply; but when they had gone on a little further,
he said to Gudu:
'I have dropped my
needle; wait here a moment while I go and fetch it.'
'Be quick then,'
answered Gudu, climbing into a tree. And the rabbit hastened back to the
bushes, and gathered a quantity of the leaves, which he hid among his fur,
'For,' thought he, 'if I get them now I shall save myself the trouble of a walk
by-and-by.'
When he had plucked
as many as he wanted he returned to Gudu, and they went on together.
The sun was almost
setting by the time they reached their journey's end and being very tired they
gladly sat down by a well. Then Gudu's betrothed, who had been watching for
him, brought out a pitcher of water--which she poured over them to wash off the
dust of the road--and two portions of food. But once again the rabbit's hopes
were dashed to the ground, for Gudu said hastily:
'The custom of the
village forbids you to eat till I have finished.' And Isuro did not know that
Gudu was lying, and that he only wanted more food. So he saw hungrily looking
on, waiting till his friend had had enough.
In a little while
Gudu screamed loudly: 'I am burnt! I am burnt!' though he was not burnt at all.
Now, though Isuro had the leaves about him, he did not dare to produce them at
the last moment lest the baboon should guess why he had stayed behind. So he
just went round a corner for a short time, and then came hopping back in a
great hurry. But, quick though he was, Gudu had been quicker still, and nothing
remained but some drops of water.
'How unlucky you
are,' said Gudu, snatching the leaves; 'no sooner had you gone than ever so
many people arrived, and washed their hands, as you see, and ate your portion.'
But, though Isuro knew better than to believe him, he said nothing, and went to
bed hungrier than he had ever been in his life.
Early next morning
they started for another village, and passed on the way a large garden where
people were very busy gathering monkey-nuts.
'You can have a good
breakfast at last,' said Gudu, pointing to a heap of empty shells; never
doubting but that Isuro would meekly take the portion shown him, and leave the
real nuts for himself. But what was his surprise when Isuro answered:
'Thank you; I think
I should prefer these.' And, turning to the kernels, never stopped as long as
there was one left. And the worst of it was that, with so many people about,
Gudu could not take the nuts from him.
It was night when
they reached the village where dwelt the mother of Gudu's betrothed, who laid
meat and millet porridge before them.
'I think you told me
you were fond of porridge,' said Gudu; but Isuro answered: 'You are mistaking
me for somebody else, as I always eat meat when I can get it.' And again Gudu
was forced to be content with the porridge, which he hated.
While he was eating
it, however a sudden thought darted into his mind, and he managed to knock over
a great pot of water which was hanging in front of the fire, and put it quite
out.
'Now,' said the
cunning creature to himself, 'I shall be able in the dark to steal his meat!'
But the rabbit had grown as cunning as he, and standing in a corner hid the
meat behind him, so that the baboon could not find it.
'O Gudu!' he cried,
laughing aloud, 'it is you who have taught me to be clever.' And calling to the
people of the house, he bade them kindle the fire, for Gudu would sleep by it,
but that he would pass the night with some friends in another hut.
It was still quite
dark when Isuro heard his name called very softly, and, on opening his eyes,
beheld Gudu standing by him. Laying his finger on his nose, in token of
silence, he signed to Isuro to get up and follow him, and it was not until they
were some distance from the hut that Gudu spoke.
'I am hungry and
want something to eat better than that nasty porridge that I had for supper. So
I am going to kill one of those goats, and as you are a good cook you must boil
the flesh for me.' The rabbit nodded, and Gudu disappeared behind a rock, but
soon returned dragging the dead goat with him. The two then set about skinning
it, after which they stuffed the skin with dried leaves, so that no one would
have guessed it was not alive, and set it up in the middle of a lump of bushes,
which kept it firm on its feet. While he was doing this, Isuro collected sticks
for a fire, and when it was kindled, Gudu hastened to another hut to steal a
pot which he filled with water from the river, and, planting two branches in
the ground, they hung the pot with the meat in it over the fire.
'It will not be fit
to eat for two hours at least,' said Gudu, 'so we can both have a nap.' And he
stretched himself out on the ground, and pretended to fall fast asleep, but, in
reality, he was only waiting till it was safe to take all the meat for himself.
'Surely I hear him snore,' he thought; and he stole to the place where Isuro
was lying on a pile of wood, but the rabbit's eyes were wide open.
'How tiresome,'
muttered Gudu, as he went back to his place; and after waiting a little longer
he got up, and peeped again, but still the rabbit's pink eyes stared widely. If
Gudu had only known, Isuro was asleep all the time; but this he never guessed,
and by-and-bye he grew so tired with watching that he went to sleep himself.
Soon after, Isuro woke up, and he too felt hungry, so he crept softly to the
pot and ate all the meat, while he tied the bones together and hung them in
Gudu's fur. After that he went back to the wood-pile and slept again.
In the morning the
mother of Gudu's betrothed came out to milk her goats, and on going to the
bushes where the largest one seemed entangled, she found out the trick. She
made such lament that the people of the village came running, and Gudu and
Isuro jumped up also, and pretended to be as surprised and interested as the
rest. But they must have looked guilty after all, for suddenly an old man
pointed to them, and cried:
'Those are thieves.'
And at the sound of his voice the big Gudu trembled all over.
'How dare you say
such things? I defy you to prove it,' answered Isuro boldly. And he danced
forward, and turned head over heels, and shook himself before them all.
'I spoke hastily;
you are innocent,' said the old man; 'but now let the baboon do likewise.' And
when Gudu began to jump the goat's bones rattled and the people cried: 'It is
Gudu who is the goat-slayer!' But Gudu answered:
'Nay, I did not kill
your goat; it was Isuro, and he ate the meat, and hung the bones round my neck.
So it is he who should die!' And the people looked at each other, for they knew
not what to believe. At length one man said:
'Let them both die,
but they may choose their own deaths.'
Then Isuro answered:
'If we must die, put
us in the place where the wood is cut, and heap it up all round us, so that we
cannot escape, and set fire to the wood; and if one is burned and the other is
not, then he that is burned is the goat-slayer.'
And the people did
as Isuro had said. But Isuro knew of a hole under the wood-pile, and when the
fire was kindled he ran into the hole, but Gudu died there.
When the fire had
burned itself out and only ashes were left where the wood had been, Isuro came
out of his hole, and said to the people:
'Lo! did I not speak
well? He who killed your goat is among those ashes.'
[Mashona Story.]
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