Piṭiyē sameyan keruwen,
Man-kaḍullē yana eññan deggatten,
Uluwassē waḍu-haḍukan iganagatin,
Hulu-attē baemma kaeḍin,
Āciriyē kaettē kaepun baeluwen,
Baḍahaelayē walandē in̆dun baeluwen.
Rālahamī, Ōn̥! Balā-inḍa hon̆dayi.”
There is a variant in the Sierra Leone district, given in Cunnie Rabbit, Mr. Spider, and the Other Beef (Cronise and Ward), p. 160. A devil who lived near a town had forbidden traps to be set in the “bush” [forest and bushes] there. A stranger set a trap, and caught a pigeon. The pigeon then told him to carry it to his house. When he had done this, it told him to kill it; then to pluck off its feathers; then to clean it; to put the pot on the fire; to cut it up; to cook it immediately; to put in salt; to put in pepper; to taste the food; and lastly it told him to eat it up. He complied with all the instructions. In the evening he went to the “bush” again. When he opened his mouth to speak, the bird flew out, the man died, and his body was carried off by the devil.
In a Soninka story of Senegambia in Contes Soudanais (C. Monteil), p. 145, there are incidents of the same type. A hunter met with a female gazelle, which recommended him to look for a larger animal. He fired at it, but it did not fall. Then he killed it with a charmed bullet, saying, “Eh! Who is the stronger?” The animal replied, “Oh, oh! It is not finished!” It made the same remark when he cut its throat, when he skinned it, and also when he carried it home and learnt that his wife and son had died of colic. The man said no more words, but cut it up and placed it in a pot on the fire, on which it repeated the words. After cooking it for some hours he found the meat as hard as at first, and it murmured, “It is not finished.” Neighbours seeing him cooking all day inquired what was in the pot. A voice came from it, “An antelope that won’t be cooked. It is not finished.” At last the man threw a magical powder into the pot, and the meat then became cooked, and he ate it without any ill result.