Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria, West AfricaAfrican Traditional ReligionsLegend / Oral TraditionEnglishShareFolk Stories from Southern Nigeria 37Project Gutenberg #34655 - EnglishMoreVersion - 1 availableProject Gutenberg #34655LanguageEnglishEspañol‹Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 0Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 1Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 2Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 3Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 4Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 5Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 6Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 7Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 8Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 9Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 10Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 11Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 12Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 13Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 14Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 15Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 16Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 17Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 18Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 19Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 20Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 21Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 22Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 23Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 24Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 25Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 26Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 27Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 28Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 29Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 30Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 31Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 32Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 33Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 34Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 35Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 36Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 37Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 38Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 39Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria 40›Concerning the Hawk and the OwlFolk Stories from Southern Nigeria 37ListenPlay this chapter in spoken English.Save chapterListen to chapter1In the olden days when Effiong was king of Calabar, it was customary at that time for rulers to give big feasts, to which all the subjects and all the birds of the air and animals of the forest, also the fish and other things that lived in the water, were invited. All the people, birds, animals, and fish, were under the king, and had to obey him. His favourite messenger was the hawk, as he could travel so quickly. The hawk served the king faithfully for several years, and when he wanted to retire, he asked what the king proposed to do for him, as very soon he would be too old to work any more. So the king told the hawk to bring any living creature, bird or animal, to him, and he would allow the hawk for the future to live on that particular species without any trouble. The hawk then flew over a lot of country, and went from forest to forest, until at last he found a young owl which had tumbled out of its nest. This the hawk brought to the king, who told him that for the future he might eat owls. The hawk then carried the owlet away, and told his friends what the king had said. 2One of the wisest of them said, "Tell me when you seized the young owlet, what did the parents say?" And the hawk replied that the father and mother owls kept quite quiet, and never said anything. The hawk's friend then advised him to return the owlet to his parents, as he could never tell what the owls would do to him in the night-time, and as they had made no noise, they were no doubt plotting in their minds some deep and cruel revenge. The next day the hawk carried the owlet back to his parents and left him near the nest. He then flew about, trying to find some other bird which would do as his food; but as all the birds had heard that the hawk had seized the owlet, they hid themselves, and would not come out when the hawk was near. He therefore could not catch any birds. 3As he was flying home he saw a lot of fowls near a house, basking in the sun and scratching in the dust. There were also several small chickens running about and chasing insects, or picking up anything they could find to eat, with the old hen following them and clucking and calling to them from time to time. When the hawk saw the chickens, he made up his mind that he would take one, so he swooped down and caught the smallest in his strong claws. Immediately he had seized the chicken the cocks began to make a great noise, and the hen ran after him and tried to make him drop her child, calling loudly, with her feathers fluffed out and making dashes at him. But he carried it off, and all the fowls and chickens at once ran screaming into the houses, some taking shelter under bushes and others trying to hide themselves in the long grass. He then carried the chicken to the king, telling him that he had returned the owlet to his parents, as he did not want him for food; so the king told the hawk that for the future he could always feed on chickens. 4The hawk then took the chicken home, and his friend who dropped in to see him, asked him what the parents of the chicken had done when they saw their child taken away; so the hawk said-- "They all made a lot of noise, and the old hen chased me, but although there was a great disturbance amongst the fowls, nothing happened." His friend then said as the fowls had made much palaver, he was quite safe to kill and eat the chickens, as the people who made plenty of noise in the daytime would go to sleep at night and not disturb him, or do him any injury; the only people to be afraid of were those who when they were injured, kept quite silent; you might be certain then that they were plotting mischief, and would do harm in the night-time. ‹Previous chapterFolk Stories from Southern Nigeria 36Next chapterFolk Stories from Southern Nigeria 38›Similar passagesBy tradition and source labelFind similarCompare selectedCompare with similarAsk Deep ThoughtSelect passages to search for parallels.Tap any verse to select it, then compare selected passages or ask Deep Thought. Public domain in the United States via Project Gutenberg