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THE STORY OF HLAKANYANA.
Once upon a time there was a village with many women in it. All the women had children at the same time except the wife of the chief. The children grew, and again all the women gave birth to others. Only the wife of the chief had no child. Then the people said: “Let us kill an ox, perhaps the wife of the chief will then bear a child.”
While they were killing the ox, the woman heard a voice saying: “Bear me, mother, before the meat of my father is all finished.”
The woman did not pay any attention to that, thinking it was a ringing in her ears. The voice said again: “Bear me, mother, before the meat of my father is all finished.”
The woman took a small piece of wood and [[90]]cleaned her ears. She heard that voice again. Then she became excited. She said: “There is something in my ears; I would like to know what it is. I have just now cleaned my ears.”
The voice said again: “Make haste and bear me, mother, before the meat of my father is all finished.”