After they had eaten, they went to their room for the night. Leopard, as usual, jumped over the pit; but Antelope fell in. And Leopard gave his shout to the people to come and take the Dowry-goods he had brought. The next morning, after breakfast, Leopard again started on his home journey. There, again he was anxiously asked, “But, those whom you take with you don’t come back! Why?” He made the same reply, “They know why! Off there are damsels and dancing; and they were unable to return.”
For his next journey, Leopard asked Red Antelope, who heartily replied, “Yes, come on! There is nothing to prevent my going on a journey!” They journeyed, and they came to the River. There, Leopard made his statement about the necessity of throwing their knives into the river. Red Antelope wondered a little, but he consented saying, “Yes, but what is that to me?” Said Leopard, “Well, then, shut your eyes, and I will be the first to throw, lest you say I am deceiving you.” Said Red Antelope, “Yes.” And he shut his eyes tightly. Then Leopard, having a stone in his hand, flung it into the water, saying, “I’ve thrown mine; throw also yours!” Red Antelope demanded, “But, you must shut your eyes also.” Leopard half-closed his eyes, and Red Antelope, knife in hand, flung it into the water. Then, wading across, they went on and on to the base of the Kuda tree. Said Leopard, “Mr. Ehibo, this Kuda is eaten of here only by each person on his own side of the trunk.” Red Antelope assented; and they turned, this one to one side, and that one to the other side. There, as Red Antelope was vainly trying to crack the nuts with his teeth, Leopard was deriding him while himself was comfortably using his knife.
Then, Leopard said, “Let us go on; for, the day is declining.” Red Antelope agreed. As they went, they came to an Ebwehavu tree. And Leopard said, “Let us climb for Bebwehavu fruits. But, when we climb this particular tree, it is the practice here, to climb, one by one. While the one is climbing, the other has his eyes shut; and, the climbing is done, not by the trunk, but by this adjoining Bongo tree which you see here. But, first, close your eyes, and I will go up.” (The Bongo’s trunk is covered with hard sharp thorns.) Red Antelope stood, with his eyes tightly closed. Leopard grasped a vine; and, with one swing, he at once was up the tree. Red Antelope began climbing that Bongo, creeping slowly to the top, his whole body spoiled, and nothing on him but blood and blood.
Said Leopard, “This Ebwehavu is accustomed to be plucked only the green unripe, but the dark ripe ones are to be left.” That seemed strange to Red Antelope, nevertheless he said, “Yes.” But Leopard was plucking the ripe and leaving the green. When they had finished plucking, Leopard said, “Ehibo! shut eyes! that I may descend!” Red Antelope shut his eyes. Leopard grasped the vine; and, with one spring, was on the ground. Then, he said, “Now, Ehibo, descend.” Red Antelope began descending by the Bongo, down, down, landing finally on the ground.
Leopard waited for him; and then said, “Having no fire, how shall we cook those green bebwehavu?” Just then, he saw a Fire-fly passing; and he said. “Mr. Ehibo! Pursue! That’s fire passing there!” Red Antelope bent in rapid pursuit. Leopard turned to the base of the tree, gathered dried fire-wood, struck his flint, lighted a fire, cooked his fruits, ate them, finished, and put out his fire. Red Antelope, back again, said, “I did not reach it, I’m tired.” Leopard said, “Well, let it go. I chewed mine uncooked. But, let us journey; and, as you go, you chew yours.” They went on, and came to the town of the marriage. Food was cooked and set for them in their room. Said Leopard, “Ehibo, sit you on the floor, while I eat at the table. And, while I eat the flesh, you eat the bones.” Red Antelope had become so utterly wearied and humiliated that he did not resent this indignity. They ate. And then Leopard said, “Ehibo, sweep up the scraps, and go and throw them into the back yard.” (Immediately on his arrival at the town, Leopard had gone alone to his father-in-law, and said, “I have brought you an animal. But, let another pit, this time, be dug in the back yard of the room where we shall be. And, do you put spears and daggers and all kinds of sharp sticks there. When I shall send him to throw away the sweepings, and he shall fall in, kill ye him.”)
Red Antelope swept, and scraped up the sweepings, and threw them into a basket. He turned with them to the back yard, to fling them away. As he was about to do so, he slipped down to the bottom of the pit. Impaled on the spears, he was unable to jump out. When the town’s-people arrived, they thrust him through with sharp poles; and he lay dead.
When Leopard returned home, Red Antelope’s people asked, “Where is Ehibo?” Leopard made his former answer, “Ehibo was hindered by the hospitality of that marriage town, with its food and its women; and, he said, ‘I won’t go back!’ ”
Thus, with each journey, Leopard called for another animal. They went, over the same route; and the same things happened each time. So, matters went on for a long while. But, Gazelle, a very smart beast, began to suspect, observing that none of Leopard’s travel-companions ever came back. In his heart, he thought to himself, “Leopard deceives people!” He determined to find out, by offering to go, and watch for himself. At last, he said, “Uncle Njâ, let me go to escort you to the town of your marriage. When next you go on your journey, call me to go with you.” Said Leopard, “I don’t want you.” (He suspected Gazelle’s smartness.) Gazelle insisted, “Uncle, as to these others whom you have invited to go with you, and not the rather me, your relative?”
So, Leopard agreed, “Yes, let us go.” By the next morning they started on their journey, going on and on, clear to the big River. There, as usual, Leopard told about knives to be thrown into the river; and he said, “Nephew Ihĕli, you first throw your knife.” Said Gazelle, “First, you throw yours, then I will throw mine also.” Said Leopard, “Well! shut your eyes!” Gazelle half-closed his hands on his eyes, and was peeping. He saw Leopard seize a chunk of wood and fling it in the water. Then he said, “Shut eyes! Let me also throw mine!” Leopard’s eyes shut tight. Gazelle, seizing a stick, flung it into the water. Then, they crossed the river, and went on and on, until they came to the base of the Kuda tree. Leopard made his usual statement about parties eating the nuts on opposite sides of the tree. Gazelle, with apparent obedience, said, “Yes.” Leopard, with knife drawn, began to hack and split the nuts, throwing the kernels into his mouth, and making his usual derisive remark, “By the truth! a person without a knife can not eat the kernels of kuda.” Gazelle also, hacking his, and throwing them into his mouth, said, “Just exactly so! a person without a knife can not eat the kernel of kuda-nut!” Leopard exclaimed, “What are you doing? Have you two knives?” Gazelle replied, “But, what are you doing? Had you two knives?” Leopard answered, “Yes, for, I am the senior.” Gazelle responded, “And I also carry two knives; for, I also am an adult.” Leopard only said, “Ihĕli! Come on!” They went on, until they came to the Ebwehavu tree. There, Leopard made his usual explanation of climbing only by means of the Bongo tree. Gazelle agreed, and said, “Yes; climb you first.” Leopard said, “Shut your eyes.” Gazelle stood, with eyes apparently tightly closed. With one swing on a vine, Leopard is up the tree. Said Gazelle, “You also, shut your eyes. Let me go up.” Leopard pretended to shut his eyes. And Gazelle, with one swing, was also up the tree. Leopard made his usual statement about plucking only the green fruit. To which, Gazelle seemed to assent.
And they descended the tree, without Leopard attempting to deceive Gazelle about the Bongo tree.