On that day, an elephant, a mouse, a woman, and a thief appeared before Kalaga, who was seated in court to hear the grievances
of his subjects

The elephant spoke: “I am big and powerful, thanks to you, Kalaga. But there is one thing I don’t understand: why can I have only one child every two years, when I can hold so many in my belly? Instead, that microscopic little mouse there always has ten to fifteen children at a time. Is that right?” Kalaga replied, “See that banana grove over there? Further on, there is also a beautiful cassava field. Don’t move from
there for a few days. I will have your case investigated and then
give you the answer.”

Then came the little mouse: “Why does everyone persecute me and chase me away? What harm do I do?” Kalaga asked him: “Where do you live?” The little mouse replied, “When the man gathers peanuts or rice, I slip into the piles and live there with my wife and children.” Kalaga said, “Go ahead. I will enquire and then answer you.”

The woman came and complained: “Why does my husband always have to sleep on the bed in the best place towards the door, and I at the bottom in the most uncomfortable place? Are we not all equal before you, and do we not have the same rights?” Kalaga gave the usual answer: “Go ahead. I will enquire and then answer you.”

Finally, a thief showed up with the friend who had helped him steal. He said: “Listen to that pretence! We went to steal together, but he stayed near the hut under a plant to see if anyone was coming. He did nothing else. And now he claims the biggest share of the loot, forgetting that the greatest effort and the greatest risk was mine, for I entered the hut with so much effort by breaking a window.” Kalaga replied: “I will make an investigation, then we will see.”

When the court was closed, towards evening, Kalaga called the leopard and instructed him to make enquiries about the day’s cases and provide him with the necessary elements for a just judgement. The leopard set off and went first to the elephant. The banana grove and cassava field where the elephant had been sent were reduced to a desert.

Everything had been devoured and trampled underfoot as if a violent hurricane had passed. “How did you do this?” asked the leopard. “And how could I do that?” replied the elephant. “I am big and have a huge belly; I need a lot of fodder every day.”  “All right – replied the leopard -. Come to the Kalaga court tomorrow and you will get your sentence.”

He took some notes in his notebook and set off. The leopard approached the mouse and found him basking in the sun with his thirteen cubs near a hut. “Where do you live?” the leopard asked. The mouse gestured towards a pile of peanuts inside the hut and explained that he had his nest there. He, his wife, and their children ate a couple of peanuts each week and were content. The leopard noted this and concluded: “Be on time for the Kalaga court in the morning.”

He then went in search of the woman. By now it was night. Eventually, he found the hut. The husband, since his wife had accused him of bullying Kalaga, had relinquished his place to her. The leopard knocked at the door. The woman got up reluctantly, opened the door slightly, and asked, “Who is it?” “It is I, the leopard.”

The woman let out a startled scream, jumped backwards, stepped over her husband, and fell awkwardly, injuring her arm. The man grabbed his spear to confront the leopard. However, the leopard explained good-naturedly, “Do not be frightened. Kalaga sends me for the investigation. Report to his court tomorrow around noon.”

He finally went to see the thief and his friend. They recounted the events to him precisely. The friend glanced around, stretched his ear restlessly, and attentively scanned the darkness… The other had quietly pushed open the window, gone in and out.

The leopard took note of everything, and as he departed, he advised them to be punctual the following day at the Kalaga court.

Kalaga, after carefully examining the reports of his envoy, summoned the complainants and provided each with the response they deserved. He said to the elephant, “Did you see? You hardly required a banana grove and a field of cassava to sustain yourself for two days. How would you have managed to support five or ten children of your sort?” The elephant understood and departed without a word.

To the mouse, Kalaga remarked, “You are a very peaceful and temperate creature. You consume so little that even with fifteen children, you can get by without causing harm to anyone sensibly. Go in peace.”

Then the woman arrived. “And what of you? Did you see? When there is danger, only a man can protect you. Therefore, it is right that he should be in the position most conducive to his task.”

Finally, Kalaga explained to the disgruntled thief, “If your friend had not been there to watch, or if he had seen the master of the hut approaching, would you have stolen? Thus, the primary credit is his, and consequently, the larger share of the loot must also belong to him.”  Kalaga’s judgments are always wise. (Open Photo: African Mask. 123rf)

Folktale from Lega people (DR Congo)