Suriname folk-lore

126.

Wąn Konu bɛn dɛ. A no bɛn habi nowąn mąn-p'kin. Ma wąn dei̯, wąn mąn bɛn kɔm na ɛ̨ŋ, ɛn na mąn ɑksi hɛm taki, ‘Mi Konu, noi̯ti mi wei̯fi bɛn kɩsi wąn mąn-p'kin. Soso umą a bɛn kɩsi. Ma, mi Konu, di̯a wi dɛ mek' wąn pramisi, ɛfu mi wei̯fi sɑ kɩs' wąn mąn-p'kin ɛn yu wei̯fi sɑ kɩsi wąn umą-p'kin, den tu sɑ tro.’ Ma Konu bɛn wɩ̨nsi fō ɛ̨ŋ wei̯fi bɛn kɩsi na mąn-p'kin.

Ɛn so, wąn yari na baka, na Konu wei̯fi bɛn kɔm kɩsi wą umą-p'kin, ɛn na mąn wei̯fi bɛn kɔm kɩsi wąn mąn-p'kin. Nō, Konu no bɛn prisi nąŋga dati. Di den p'kin kɔm bɩgi, Konu feni taki na tra mąn-p'kin na wąn pɔti-suma p'kin. Ɛn na Konu p'kin a bɛn trɔbi ɛ̨ŋ fō den tro. Ma di a bɛn mek' 'a pramisi kaba, so den bɛn kɔm tro.

Ma di den tro, na wąn dei̯ dąn, den go na ɩni na busi go waka, na yųŋgu nąŋga na mei̯shɛ. Ma di den waka so tɛ ... dem kɔm weri, ɛn so dem bɛn sidǫ'. Ma so di den sidǫ', na yųŋgu bɛn kɔm sribi. A bɛn pɔti hɛm hɛdɛ na na mei̯shɛ futu-tapu.

Ɛn so, na mei̯shɛ bɛn kɔm si wąn Kuli Konu. Ɛn so, na Kuli Konu bɛn kɔm tak' 'ąŋga hɛm fō' tyari hɛm gowe. Ɛn so, a puru na yųŋgu hɛde safri na hɛm futu-tapu. Dɑt' mek' dɛm taki, ‘sribi na dɛdɛ,’ bika' na yųŋgu bɛn sribi, dati a no sab' srefi. Ɛn so, na Kuli Konu bɛn tyari na mei̯shɛ gowɛ.

Di den gowɛ fara kaba, na yųŋgu kɔm wei̯ki, ɛn a si hɛm wąwąn na ɩni na busi. A no si na mei̯shɛ. A tek' pasi, a gowe baka na hɛm

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papa kɔndre. A taki, ‘Mi papa, gi mi wan sɩpi nąŋga matrosi, meki mi go suku na umą dɩsi du so nąŋga mi.’ So na yųŋgu lai̯ sɩpi, a dɔro na na kɔndre. Di a dɔro, a bigɩn fō sutu kanǫ. Na Kuli Konu no bɛn sabi-taki na na yųŋgu. Ma na mei̯shɛ bɛn sabi. Ɛn so a bɛn miti-mɔfo nąŋga wąn fō dem matrosi, taki, ɛfu dem no kąn fufuru na lɩ̨ŋga na na yųŋgu fɩ̨ŋga, gi hɛm. Ɛn so na matrosi di a ben mit'-mɔfo 'ąŋga hɛm, fufuru na lɩ̨ŋga na na yųŋgu fɩ̨ŋga gi hɛm. Di na yųŋgu dɔro shɔro, nō, tai̯gi na Kuli Konu taki, ‘Tidei̯ mi kɔm teki mi umą.’ Na Kuli Konu taigi hɛm taki, ‘Wɛ, fō kɩs' na umą, yu 'a' fō kɔm feti dei̯ker.’ Bika na Kuli Konu bɛn kąn feti na dei̯ker bǫn. Tamara mamɛ̨ntɛm dem feti, tɛ ... dem feti na ɩni na vɔrku. Ma nō, na Kuli Konu bɛn si taki na yųŋgu dɛ go mɔro hɛm. A kar' na umą, a taki, ‘Yu si di̯a yu mąn kɔm fō kɔm teki yu. Yu kąn go nąŋga yu mąn, bikasi na srefi są' yu du nąŋga hɛm, so yu go du nąŋga mi tu.’

Umą den kiri mąn,
Suma p'kin a no yu p'kin.
Sribi na dɛdɛ.

'A tɔri kɔm kaba.

126. ‘Woman Kills Man’: The Faithless Wife.²

There was a King. He did not have a single son. But one day a man came to him, and the man asked him, he said, ‘King, my wife never gave birth to a son. She has had only girls. But, my King, here we will make a vow, if my wife should have a son, and your wife should have a daughter, the two shall marry.’ But the King was hoping his wife would give birth to a son.

And so a year later, the King's wife gave birth to a daughter, and the man's wife gave birth to a son. Now, the King was not pleased with that. When the children grew up, the King found that the other man's son was a poor person's son. And the King's daughter was troubling him about marrying. But since he had already made the promise, so they were married.

But when they were married, then one day they went for a walk in the bush, the young man and the girl. But as they walked so till... they grew tired, and so they sat down. But as they sat down, the young man grew sleepy. He put his head in the girl's lap.

And so (later) the girl saw a Coolie King.³ And so the Coolie King came to talk to her about taking her away. And so she lifted the young man's head gently from her lap. That is why they say ‘sleep is death,’ because the young man was sleeping, so that he was unaware (of what was taking place). And so the Coolie King took the girl away.

When they had already gone far, the young man awoke, and he saw he was alone in the bush. He did not see the girl. He took the

2 Told by 4.

3 In Suriname, the British-Indian and Javanese workers are called coolies.

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road back to his father's village. He said, ‘Father, give me a ship with sailors, and let me go in search of the woman who has done this to me.’ So the young man loaded the boat, and he arrived at that village. When he arrived, he began to shoot cannons. The Coolie King did not know that it was the young man. But the girl knew. And so she plotted with one of the sailors, she said, couldn't they steal for her the ring on the young man's finger. And so the sailor who had plotted with her, stole for her the ring on the young man's finger. When the young man arrived on shore, now, he said to the Coolie King, said, ‘Today I came to take my wife.’ The Coolie King said to him, he said, ‘Well, to get the woman, you must come fight with daggers.’ Because the Coolie King could fight well with daggers. The next morning they fought till... they fought in the clouds. But now the Coolie King saw that the young man was going to surpass him. He called the woman, and he said, ‘You see, here is your husband who came to take you. You can go with your husband, because the same thing you did to him, so you will do to me, too.’

Woman kills man,
Someone's child is not your child.
Sleep is death.

The story has come to an end.