Reading Diary B [Stories of the Congo]

The Antelope and the Leopard:

• The leopard bet his life that the antelope would not be able to find him if he hid but he was able to find him. Then it was the antelope's turn to hide. 
• He searched and searched everywhere but could not find him. He called upon his people to help find the antelope. 
• Upon cracking a nut, a dog came out. He went to each of the leopards wived and they shooed him away until they killed it. As the dog lay dying, it turned into a beautiful maiden.
• The leopard was taken with the maiden and asked her to be his wife. She told him to kill the women who killed the dog, he did. 
• She also asked him to take out his nails, ears, and teeth. As he lay dying, the maiden turns into the antelope. 

"My dear leopard, you thought to kill me to avoid giving your life to me, as promised, when I found you. See now how I have outdone you. I have destroyed you and your whole family." Source

• This is why the leopard always kills the antelope. 

The Turtle and the Man:

• A turtle and a man build a small town. As there was nothing planted yet, their was nothing to eat. So the turtle and the man decide to build a trap. Because it was too large, they decided to split up the trap but the turtle got the better one. 
• The man ended up not getting a catch but the turtle caught an antelope. Because it was too large for him to carry, he asked his friends to help him. Alas, he found a great ox to carry the antelope back to his home with the promise of sharing it with him. 
• Once the ox set out to grab some leaves to wrap the meat around it, the turtle shut him out. The ox told him that he was going to destroy his trap but unfortunately, it killed him instead. 
• He called his people to dance and sing again, gaining the attention of a leopard.
• The turtle did the same thing to the leopard as he did the ox. Only this time the leopard was able to destroy the trap and act like he was entrapped. When the turtle came to boast, the leopard bit the turtle's head before he could go back to his shell. 
• He returned to the turtle's shimbec and when questioned by the man, he believed he was right in doing so. 

The Gazelle and the Leopard:

Source

• The gazelle, mad that the leopard killed his friend the antelope, set revenge on him. 
• The gazelle then kills the leopard and sends his skinned head for his wife. 
• She then eats it, not knowing that it was her husband. The gazelle taunts that she had eaten her husband's head and she curses the gazelle. 
• It is odd to see that the usual prey is now the predator. 

The Fetish Sunga:

• Basa, was a great fisherman but would always lie about his catches. He would tell people he caught nothing when his house was full of fish. 
• The Sunga was tired to his lies so she set a big feast for him and told him to drink all the wine he wanted. 
• The Sunga then deprived him the power of speech so he could lie no more. 

The Leopard and the Crocodile:

• A man was not able to feed himself and his many wives so one day he came up with a plan. He presented a leopord with palm nuts and he told the man that if he were to only supply him with palm nuts, he would give him fresh meat.
• The man then went to a crocodile and offered him palm nuts. The crocodile made a deal with him, if he were the only one to be supplied palm nuts, he would supple the man with fresh fish. 
• This went on for a while but both animals were getting tired of palm nuts and both craved dog. They both bothered the man tremendously about it. The man finally got fed up and told the animals if they went to a place, they will find a dog.
• Not knowing what a dog actually looked like, the crocodile and leopord thought they were dogs and killed each other as the man and his town looked on. They feasted in the food the animals supplied until the next day. 

Why the Crocodile Does Not Eat the Hen:

• The crocodile really wants to eat the hen that feeds by the river daily. However, every time he attempts to eat it, she calls him "brother".
• He asks his friend for advice and he says it is because they all lay eggs, making them brothers in a sense. 

The Three Brothers:

• A woman had three babies and could not take care of them so she left them in the grass. The little ones were hungry and found a river with fruits they did not dare eat. However, the river spirit called to the children and told them to eat the fruit. 
• The children grew up to be big and strong. They even had their own town to multiply. 
• A man approaches the town. He happens to be their father and goes to tell his wife. The wife goes as far as she could to go see them but went to rest.
• The children of one of the three brothers finds her and they go to kill the intruder but the river spirit tells them not to for she is their mother.