Mr. Tort insearch of a Wife

Did you know what happened today? Mr. Tortoise came to our town in search of a wife.

Mr. Tortoise is native of Mbagaja village. He is known all over our town for his cunning and slothful character. To some people, he is famous; to others, he is notorious. He has done many marvellous things with his cleverness.He has even cleverly won the first prize in a marathon race in which Mr.Dog, Mr.Hare and others participated.

Mr.Tortoise has been coming to the stream in our village to fetch some water. We did not know he was wooing a beautiful girl who also goes there to fetch water too.

Mr. Tortoise arrived in our village with some of his people. They went straight to the house of chief Oringaoko, just trailing chief Oringaoko's daughter who was coming from the stream. People stretched their neck to see Mr.Tortoise passing. He's a short, haggard-looking man.

After exchanging greetings with Mr.Oringaoko, Mr.Tortoise said: "Sir, I came to announce to you that I would like to marry your daughter. She has agreed to my proposal but said I must seek your consent"

Mr. Oringa does not like this sluggish man as son-in-law. So he thought of a way to refuse, a way to express his disapproval. "Yes," he said,"You may marry my daughter but on two conditions only."

"What are they?" proudly asked Mr.Tortoise. He was confident of fulfilling any condition Mr.Oringa may give. "After all," he whispered to his companions, "I'm a 'wise' man not for nothing."

"You'll bring me a basket of water, filled to the brim, and a long bundle of dust neatly tied up with a strong string,"Mr. Oringa said, puffing out smoke from his snuff. He felt sure of the efficacy of his demands.
"Hun! This man's got me," said Tortoise. Turning to his companions and other people who had gathered to look at him, he added,"How on earth can one tie up a bundle of dust? Have you ever heard such a thing, people?"

Mr.Oringa glared at him.

Mr.Tortoise thought for a while.
"Okay! okay!," he said, "I'll bring you three baskets of water and three bundles of dust well tied up if you'll make the string for me from the smoke of your tobacco pipe."

Oringa and Tortoise stood gazing at each other. They refused to compromise.

In the end, Mr.Tortoise had no choice but to return home without a wife. "No problem," he said to his people, "I'll find myself a wife yet. After all, there are plenty of more fish in the sea."

Where two tortoises transact, there's usually no profit.
* * * * *

At home, Mr. Tort continued his routine living. After a week, he heard that the king of the lizards had announced that he will marry his two nubile daughters to any man who could tell him their names. Grown up in the royal palace, the two girls' names were unknown to outsiders. Many a man had attempted and were still attempting to tell the names.

The Tortoise thought for a while. Then he travelled to the land of the red-necked lizards to survey the king's palace. There, he observed that the king's children often came out to play in the shade of a mango tree by the palace wall.
"Were there fruits on the tree, I'd pluck and pledge it to them and ask them to tell me their names," he said to himself.

He went to the market and bought two partially ripe mangoes. Early every morning he would crawl up the mango tree, sit in the branches and watched the king's children. On the third day, the two marriage-able sisters came out together to play under the mango tree. When one of them pranced to a side of the shade, Mr.Tort threw one ripe mango at her. "Karanda! Karanda! Come and see!," she called to her sister as she moved to pick the fruit. Immediately, Mr.Tort threw the other fruit at the other girl. Kirindi! Kirindi! Here is another! This one is for me!" the girl shouted.

That night, Mr. Tort went, in his best clothes, to the gate guard and said: "I have come to tell the king the names of his nubile daughters". ...

The guard took him to the palace chief of staff. "This stranger had come to marry the king's daughters," he stated.
The palace staff chief introduced Mr. Tort to the king.

Because Mr. Tort did not understand the language of the lizards, the palace chief had to serve as an interpreter...

After all, thinking that it was his chief of staff who stated his children's names, the king said: "I am happy. I shall give my daughters in marriage to my most honourable Chief of Staff. He's the only one who found out and told me my daughters' names."

He wedded the girls to his chief of staff.

Mr. Tort went home, disappointed, angry...He began to think how to retrieve his rightful prize from the chief of palace staff...