The entertainment of the ninth night
The people of my village were gathered earlier in the front of my house to hear the continuation story of my sixth journey. All were served with the palm-wine as usual and then I continued to tell the story as follows:
In the following morning, when we were ready to leave, the porter or the boundary-keeper asked us to show him the weapons with which we were travelling. But when I showed him my gun and machet and my friends showed him their own matchets as well, he bursted into a great laughter. He told us that all our weapons cannot save us from the dangers of the underground, especially the fearful hairy giant and the hairy giantess whom we were going to meet on the way. But of course, as he was a kind porter, he gave us plenty of bows and poisonous arrows. After that we told him to show us the invisible road which led into the underground. So he pointed hand to a kind of a house which was far away but within our sights.
This house, as I called it, was as narrow and long as a chimney. It showed that it had been built with mud more than two hundred years. Its narrow entrance was very rough and the withered leaves were full up the bottom of it and this showed that people were not going through there to the underground town frequently. It was closed with a very heavy flat stone which about one hundred men could not move. There was a small space on top of it through which something like smoke was rushing straight into the sky.
We felt very reluctant when the porter told us to go to this house and bow down for three times before we knock at the stone which was the door for the entrance. Anyhow, after we had thanked him greatly for his kindness and then bade good-bye to him and his family, we started to go to this house with doubtful minds. Having travelled hastily for thirty minutes we came to the house and then all of us stood before its entrance. Having bowed down for three times, then I knocked and we were waiting for the reply. After a while, we saw many hands which pushed that heavy stone to one side and then we heard a weary voice which told us to come in. But to our surprise, we did not see the rest bodies of the owners of those hands and we did not see the person who had told us to come in as well.
Anyhow, with bravery, I entered the house and my friends followed me with fear. Immediately I entered and walked to a short distance, I saw a long ladder which went into the underground. Then I began to climb that ladder down as my friends were following me. When we climbed it for about one hour then we came to the ground of the underground. But as we stood in one place and were still wondering to see that this underground was another world, one middle-aged man, who was completely in black dress, came to us. He told us that we were wanted. When he said so, I asked him with a soft voice: “We are wanted by whom?” He replied: “By my father who is the keeper of this place!” Then we followed him with the hope that his father was near that place. But after we had travelled with him for about two hours, we came to a very high rock and without hesitation, we were following him as he was climbing that rock along to the top.
When we got to the top, we saw his father sitting on an old wooden chair. Having brought us to his father and as we bowed and were saluting him, this middle-aged man entered the house which was behind his father. After the salutation, the father told us to sit before him and each of us sat on each of the stones which were at a little distance in front of him like the visitors’ seats. I hardly sat down when I began to notice his appearances and surroundings. He was so old that he seemed that he could not die. He was old beyond death. Because all the muscle of his body had already dried up to the state that when he stood up there was no difference between him and a dried slender stick. Neither of his eyes had dried up to the size of a bean. His cheeks had already melted but his teeth were complete. His legs were stretched forward as if both could not move to anywhere. But what made us afraid was that the hairs on his head were very few but his beard was long up to ten feet and all went along on the ground. One guana lay down on his left and one snail on his right. The snail was as big as a load which a strong man could not even move to one side. Of course, I could not say the kind of helps that which the guana and the snail were rendering to him.
But as I began to notice his surroundings, he asked suddenly: “I believe, you were the persons who had knocked at the door of the entrance!” When I replied: “Yes,” he asked again: “Where are you going?” I replied: “We are going to the town of wealths!” “What for?” he asked. I replied: “We are going there for wealths!” “Wealths?” he repeated it with great wonder and I confirmed it loudly: “Yes, indeed!”
Then he looked at the sky and thought over for a few minutes before he raised head down and told us that he was very sorry that the hairy giant and hairy giantess who were on the rock would kill us as soon as we climbed that rock to the top. Having told us like that I asked him whether there was another road on which to travel but he said that there was only one road in the underground. When he told us like that some of us were so much feared that they wanted to return to the village from there. But this old man hastily explained to us that we could not go back again because once we had entered the underground, there was no way to go back except to go forward.
Then all of us became quiet at the same time, we did not talk until the old man asked whether we knew him before, but I said: “We did not know you before because we had not come into the underground before.” After that he explained to us that he was there as well to be interviewing those who were coming in to the underground. He said that every newcomer was bound to pay the boundary fee to him before he or she would be allowed to proceed on his or her journey.
Then I asked him for how much we were going to pay, but he told us that it was ten thousand cowries (about threepence) per head. Then I gave him seven threepences from the money which was given to us by the king of Ife town and the king of Ede town, the god of thunder. These seven threepences were the boundary fees for the whole of us. After the payment, he stood up like the skeleton and then he blessed every one of us before he allowed us to go. But we could not travel so far when it was night. Then we slept under one tree which was on a small hill near the road and we woke up in the morning and then continued to travel along as early as possible.
We felt to eat when we had travelled as hastily as we could till twelve o’clock. Then we stopped under one of the mango trees which lined up along the road on which were travelling. We hesitated for some minutes perhaps we would see the owner of these fruit trees so that we might beg him to give us some of the fruits. Having hesitated for a while but we did not see anyone. Then one of us, whose name was Ajasa, climbed one of the trees. As he was plucking the ripen mangoes down to us and we were eating them with greediness and as he was eating them on top of that tree. One fearful man and his wife appeared from a distance of about five hundred yards.
Then the whole of us stopped eating the mangoes at the same time but we gazed at both of them as they were coming direct to that place. When they came nearer, we saw them clearly that the man was a giant and his wife was a giantess. None of them wore clothes but their bodies were full of hair. The hair were as fluffy as that of a cat but had many spots like that of a leopard. The hair of their heads were very bushy and made the heads bigger and so the hair of their feet were bushy and made the feet bigger as if they wore shoes. Their palms had no hair at all but their mouths were hardly to see when were shut up because of the hair which made them seemed as if there were no mouths at all. But of course, their eyes were seen always because of the eyeballs which were swelled out like a big knob of a big tree.
Their nose were very big and the nostrils were full of hair. Each of their teeth was about a half of an inch wide and about two inches long. The husband was about twelve feet tall and was very stout and strong and smart. Both of them were always seemed as if they were in a great anger. But I noticed again that the eyeballs of his wife were four times bigger than the husbands. She had the breasts which were nearly to touch the ground.
The husband held one short thick cudgel of stone and it was so heavy that he placed it on the shoulder as he held it. His wife held one dead antelope with the left hand and one half-dead hawk with the right hand. Immediately both of them saw us, the husband held his cudgel of stone very tightly and then raised it above head this time.
But when they were about twenty yards from us, the husband shouted greatly: “Who are you? Who are you eating my mangoes? Stop in one place and let your death meets you there or be running away and let your death chase you! Please, choose neither of the two! Because I am the death who is coming to kill you all now! Willing or not all of you will go in my soup pot tonight!” But when this fearful hairy giant shouted like that and was getting ready to beat us with his cudgel of stone as both were coming to us with great anger. So without hesitation, we snatched our loads from the ground and then we started to run along on the road for our lives. But unfortunately Ajasa, who was on top of that mango tree, was unable to climb down and follow us, until the hairy giant came to the tree and then threw his cudgel of stone to him as that was still trembling with fear. But when the cudgel missed him but was hung between two branches. Having failed to bring Ajasa down with his cudgel he began to climb the tree to the top as hastily as he could just to take it and then to beat him to death at the same time.
Having seen him coming up to him, Ajas hastily jumped from the top of that mango tree to another one which was nearby. But as this fearful hairy giant was still struggling hardly to take his cudgel in time and then to jump from that mango tree on to the second one on which Ajasa was and as his wife, the hairy giantess, was going round that tree so that Ajasa might not be able to jump down before her husband would be able to come to him. Ajasa jumped on to another part of the ground suddenly and without hesitation, he was running away as fast as he could.
When the giant had taken his cudgel and come down from the mango tree, he and his wife started to chase us. After a while, Ajasa overtook us, and then we were running along together as fast we we could. After a while we were lost within the sight of the giant and his wife. But of course, that was not so long when we ran to one hill on top of which the road went along to the other side. Then without hesitation, and as we were breathing in and out heavily for tiredness, we began to climb it with all our power. And with much difficulties and tiredness, we climbed it to the top when it was about six o’clock in the evening.
As we were very tired before climbing this hill to the top and as the darkness of the night was coming gradually. So we did not waste time but we began to find a place in which to hide ourselves at the same time before the hairy giant and giantess came. As there were some houses on top of the hill which had already ruined from a long time. Therefore it was very hard for us to find a hiding place as soon as possible. The roofs of these houses had already fallen down and the walls were badly split and some were nearly washed away by the rains. So this showed us that the inhabitants had left there or died from a long time. But there were many fowls, goats, rams, etc. which were seeing everywhere in this ruined town.
But as we were trying to hide ourselves before this fearful man and his wife came. So without hesitation, we entered one of these ruined houses but we hardly entered when the fowls which were perched on the walls and beams scattered and began to make great noise. Then without hesitation, we ran out so that they might not suspect us to the giant. Again, we ran to another one which was next to that and without hesitation, we entered it but we ran out with fear when several big and small birds which were perched in there to sleep scattered by that time. Again, without hesitation, we ran to another one but as there was no shelter on the floor of it we began to climb it so that we might hide on some of the beams which were not yet fallen down. But as we sat on the beams and then we were peeping and expecting when the giant and his wife would come, the beams together with the old walls fell down suddenly and all were broken into pieces. And all of us were wounded but two of us were wounded seriously and they were fainted before we took them out from the fallen walls and beams.
Having taken them out, I hastily cut some long strips from the stem of the plantains which was near there Then I used them as bandages for the wounded parts of the bodies of those two men. After that I cut some palm-fronds and wove them. So we carried these two men with them to another house as hastily as possible. But this house was not so ruined and it showed that somebody was living in it. Because I noticed that there were pots of water, plates, brooms, one big mortar and pestle, soup pots and a very big hearth in which there was a big fire, was in the centre of the house. All these things were not in order at all and this showed us that the person who was living in there was not so normal.
Anyhow, we did not think so much about the owner before we entered one of the four rooms. We lay the two wounded men near left corner and then the rest of us lay in the second corner which was on the right. But as we were very tired, so it was not long when we fell asleep without putting our loads and gun inside, all were in the front of that house. Not knowing that this house belonged to the fearful hairy giant and his wife and they were coming to sleep in there that night. Only two of them were in that ruined town.
When they had tried all their efforts to find us out but failed. Then they were coming back to that house with great anger when it was about eleven o’clock in the night and they were very happy when they met us sleeping in one of the rooms. When they entered that room and met all of us still sleeping, he told his wife to look very sternly at us with her big eyes. But she hardly did like that when the power of her eyes made us powerless at the same time. We were unable to move any part of our bodies but we could feel if something touched us and we could think as when we were not powerless by the power of the eyes of the hairy giantess.
Then as his wife did so, he first tied up our hands and legs with ropes. After that he put plenty of woods in the centre of that room and then lighted them. When the fire became powerful, he pushed every one of us nearly to touch it so that we might be roasted to death. Having done that he told his wife to take her eyes away from us or to stop to look sternly at us. But she hardly stopped to look sternly at us when we gained our power back. We could move and control every part of our bodies and then we were woken by the heat of the fire at the same time because we had nearly roasted to death before she took her eyes away from us.
Now, he and his wife sat in a little distance from us. Both were laughing greatly at us as we were in great suffering before the fire. After a while his wife put some pepper in that fire and as it was burning, we began to cough repeatedly. As our bodies were perspiring it was so our eyes and nostrils were watering and as we were shouting greatly for help it was so we were coughing and sneezing continuously and it was so both wife and husband were mocking and laughing at us.
After a while about two of us were fainted again and then we were three who were still shouting greatly with sorrow. But to our fear, these three men were hardly fainted when this fearful hairy giant and his wife walked to us and held them on heads and feet. They were preparing to put them in the centre of that big fire to be roasted and then to eat them. But luckily, before that time, the ropes with which my hands and feet were tied up, had dried up by the heat of the fire. So as they wanted to put these three fainted men in the fire, I was so feared that I stretched my body with all my power and then the ropes cut from my feet and hands suddenly.
Then without hesitation, I rushed furiously against them and as they were still holding the three men and were just lowering them into the fire, both of them fell backward suddenly as I dashed to them. The three men fell away from their hands at the same time when they were trying to save themselves from falling. And again, before they stood up, I ran to the corner on which his cudgel of stone was leaned and then I took it and again, without hesitation, I ran to the outside of the house. I hastily picked up my gun and got ready to shoot them to death when they came to me. And they hardly got up when they were running to the outside just to beat me to death at once. But as he and his wife were passing through the narrow door and as it was not contain both of them to pass out at a time. So their heads struck each other so heavily that they fell back to the house and the pains were so much for them that they were unable to stand up and then come to me.
So I ran to them and beat their arms with his cudgel until all were broken instead to shoot them with my gun. Then I hastily ran back to that room, I first took the three fainted men to the outside so that the fresh air might rush to them, and after that I ran back to the room, I cut the ropes away from the feet and hands of the rest men and then I helped them to the outside as well. All lay helplessly because they had nearly to die of heat of that fire. But as I was doing all this, the hairy giant was gaining his strength gradually and I hardly bent down just to examine the condition of those fainted men when he ran to me. He gave me a heavy blow suddenly and then I fell down a little distance away from him. But I hardly fell down when I hastily stood up and then I ran to him just to beat him in return. But it was a great disappointment to me that I was unable to do that when he gave me another heavy blow which landed me several times.
But as I believed that he would kill the rest men if I left them there and ran away for my life. So I ran to him again, but I started to wrestle with him this time. He tried to raise the whole of me off the ground and then to knock me to the ground but I did not give him chance to do that. After a while I held his right leg just to lift it up and then to push him backward but I was unable to lift it. It was so every one of us was trying all his power till about seven o’clock in the morning.
Before that time I had become so tired that I had no more hope that I would be saved. But as he was unable to knock me down, so he began to push me along to the extreme end of this hill, so that he might push me from there on to the big river which was at the foot of it. Having pushed me to the edge and as he pushed me to fall on that river. So I hastily held his neck with all my power and this prevented me from falling.
And he was still trying to push me on to that river, when Ajasa became conscious and then he ran to him and he pushed him suddenly and then he fell down with me. But as he was still struggling to stand up and then to revenge on us, we pushed him to the extreme end of the hill and then he rolled down on to the river at the same time. Having seen this, his wife, the hairy giantess, stood up and wobbled to us. But as she wanted to revenge on us, we joined hands together and pushed her on to that river as well.
As both of them were still struggling to save themselves from drowning, then we packed up our loads. Having helped the rest men to stand up, we continued our journey at the same time before the hairy giant and his wife saved themselves from the river. Having travelled far away from that hill and that we were quite sure that we were saved from them. Then we stopped and rested for some hours before we found some edible fruits which we ate. And within a few days, all of us were well. That was how we were saved from the hairy giant and his wife.
Then the people sang and danced for a while before they went back to their houses with great joy.