Suriname folk-lore

55.

Anąnsi, ala san' den tak' nąŋga hɛm, a i piki, ‘No, ser,’ ɛn ‘Yɛ', ser.’ Nō, a go suku wroko na Kon' 'oso. Konu ɑks' ɛ̨ŋ te a mu' nyąm, ɛf' a wani n'nyąm. Nō mō Anąnsi piki, ‘Yɛ, ser.’ Te Konu ɑks' ɛm taki, ɛf' a g'a wroko, a i piki, ‘No, ser.’ Ma a no bɛn tak' wąn no tra fasi lei̯ki, ‘Yɛ, ser,’ ɛn ‘No, ser.’

Konu praxeri, taki, ‘Wɛ, sɔrtu mąn na mąn dɩsi? Tu sani, nō mō, a i taki. Te-i ɑksi 'ɩm fō wąn bǫn sani, a i piki, “Yɛ, ser,” ɛn te i ɑks' ɛm fō wan ɔgri sani, a i piki, “No, ser”.’ Konu ɑksi hɛm baka, ‘Ąŋgri kir' yu?’ A-i piki, ‘Yɛ, ser.’ Te 'a Konu ɑksi 'ɛm baka, ‘Yu wan', Anąnsi, go du wan bɔskopu gi mi?’ Nō mō a i

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piki, ‘No, ser.’ So Konum mek' den kis' ɛm, go serɔt' ɛm, mek' tak', ‘A lau̯, a lau̯.’

Anąnsi waka na ɩn' post-ɔro f' ɛm, kɔmɔpo ɩni na dungr' 'oso. Konu 'ɛ waka suku pɛ wą' mąn 'ɛ libi, a i tak' so-so ‘Yɛ, ser,’ nąŋga ‘No, ser.’ Tɛ lei̯k na dei̯ fō tidɛ, Konu no kɩs' Anąnsi mɔro. A kaba fō tak', ‘No, ser’ nąŋga ‘Yɛ, ser.’

55. Speech Mannerism as Disguise.²

Everything that was said to Anansi, he answered ‘No, sir,’ and ‘Yes, sir.’ Now he went to look for work at the King's house. The King asked him when it was time to eat, if he wanted to eat. At once Anansi answered, ‘Yes, sir.’ When the King asked him, he said, if he was going to work, he answered, ‘No, sir.’ But now he did not talk in any other fashion than ‘Yes, sir,’ and ‘No, sir.’

The King studied, and said, ‘Well, what sort of man is this? Two things only does he say. When you ask him about a good thing, he says, “Yes, sir”, and when you ask him about a bad thing, he says “No, sir”.’ The King asked him again, ‘Is hunger killing you?’³ He said, ‘Yes, sir.’ When the King asked him later, ‘Do

2 Told by 4. Compare Nigeria (Yoruba), Frobenius 304, No. 50.

3 That is ‘Are you hungry?’

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you want to come and do an errand for me, Anansi?’ At once he answered, ‘No, sir.’ So the King had them seize him and lock him up, saying, ‘He is mad, he is mad.’

Anansi walked into a post hole in order to come out of prison. The King went about trying to find where a man lived who said only ‘Yes, sir,’ and ‘No, sir.’ To this day, the King has not caught Anansi. He stopped saying, ‘No, sir,’ and ‘Yes, sir.’