The Swallower went at Libanza with his mouth wide-stretched to gulp him down, and as he went his lower jaw dragged along the ground. Libanza stirred the molten metal, the Tortoise blew the bellows, and as the Swallower rushed forward with his mouth wide open Libanza threw the liquid metal right into the gaping jaws, and the Swallower of people fell dead.
There are several folk-lore stories that have crystallized for us their ideas concerning Libanza, and it is interesting to note that such stories are called Mabanza (plural form of Libanza), and these contain a statement of some of the doings of Libanza, whereas their word for fable, parable, story is mokulu. The common opinion was that Libanza lived on the earth, and was the first to go into heaven. His origin, life, and adventures as told in their folk stories are briefly as follows:
Libanza’s mother (names of father and mother were never given) gave birth first to elephants, the various kinds of bush animals, the different varieties of flies and insects, and to the amphibia; then his mother told him to come out, but before Libanza would do so he ordered his mother to scrape her finger-nails; when she had done this he threw out spears, shield, a chair covered with brass nails, and finally came out himself.
Libanza’s father, according to another folk story, was trapped and killed while stealing some nsafu fruit for his wife. And he acquainted his wife of his death by causing a fetish horn he had left with her to overflow with blood. As soon as Libanza was born he inquired about his father and the manner of his death, and set himself to punish the one who had killed him, which after a series of futile attempts he finally accomplished by slaying the murderer of his father. Then comes the story of his own adventures, which reach their climax in the destruction of the Swallower of people.
It is not at all improbable that Libanza is the name of some great chief who by his resource and courage delivered the people from great peril and oppression, and around whose name have gathered many myths, and to him is ascribed great magical power. In the original story much magic is performed to meet the various difficulties that arise, as changing himself into different shapes, making horns and saucepans move and speak, and resurrecting broken and dead animals. No moral qualities were ascribed to Libanza, but he was regarded as being very strong, and rich. When our steamer, the Peace, made her first journey up-river, the Boloki of Monsembe told me that they thought it was “Libanza going to Singitingi (Stanley Falls) to visit his sister Nsongo.” They could hear the noise of the engines, but as they could see no paddles they thought that “the river mingoli (water-spirits) were pushing the steamer along.”
Story II
The Fowl and the Hippopotamus; or,
the Cause of the Enmity among Birds and Animals.
A Fowl, on returning from a trading journey, hid one of his legs under his wing and said: “I sold my leg for two thousand brass rods in the towns I have been visiting.”
A greedy hippopotamus, hearing this, said: “If the Fowl could receive two thousand brass rods for his small leg, how much shall I receive for mine?” So calling some of his friends they entered a canoe and paddled down-river to the towns. On arriving, the leg of the Hippopotamus was cut off, carried ashore, and sold for a large number of brass rods.