KWEE: Liberian Literary Magazine AUGUST 1, 2015 ISSUE | Page 30

Liberian Literary Magazine
mother to lose her son?” a woman
asked.
“No Oldma, I do not want my
mother to suffer like that.” He
replied.
“Then just go home,” pleaded
the woman.
Several older women tried to
persuade him, whilst some of the
younger people thought he was
crazy. When all failed, some of the
younger maidens escorted him to
the Paramount Chief’s Palace. He
expressed his desire to kill Mr.
Ginah.
After some dialogue, the Chief
assured him that if he succeeded,
he would be a wealthy young
warrior. “I will give you my pretty
daughter. She is my most favorite
and is still a virgin. I hope you get
rid of this nuisance for all our
sakes.” The chief then gave his
blessings and Tamba set out to
meet the Ginah.
He boldly approached the
bridge carrying his sac on his back
and a stick attached to it. Some of
his goods were in his hand. Mr.
Ginah could hardly believe his luck
when he heard and smelt the
person approached. He jumped on
the bridge to challenge the
person. He was shocked at what
he saw. There before him stood a
Tamba, barely old enough to be a
warrior but there all the same. He
was food. Meals came so far and
few in between that he dared not
complain.
"Oh young man, only fools come
to this bridge, and I eat fools for
supper. Let us not waste time.
Lash me a hundred times with your
stick or any other wood and I will
lash you once," said Mr. Ginah as
he stretched his hands.
"Aren’t
you
forgetting
something?" asked Tamba.
"Forgetting
what?”
Ginah
asked.
"The part about lying down and
covering your face," said Tamba.

July 15, 2015 ISSUE # 0715
“Oh that,” . Ginah feigned
ignorance. The fact was he was in
a hurry to eat.
“Yes that,” Tamba insisted.
"Ah, very well, I will lie on my
stomach and cover my face but
see that you beat me well, for one
of us must die," Ginah said as he
lay on his stomach and covered his
face.
Tamba removed from his bag
the stick and swung it with a
powerful blow. When it landed on
the
Ginah’s
skull, he
said
“One.”
Ginah
cried out
in a loud
voice,
"Aieeeei!"
Tamba
swiftly
switch
sticks as the Ginah quickly turned
over, sat on his tail, and held his
hands to his head. He moaned and
rocked himself back and forth. He
looked at Tamba in disbelief. He
let out a grunt and said,
"Eeeeeyaaaaa!” as he continued to
rob his head.
Tamba raised his stick as if
impatient then he said, “Are you
ready?”
“Who are you, young man?”
Ginah asked.
“I am Tamba,” Tamba replied.
“Why have you decided to
swing this hard knowing you must
keep up this amount of strength or
more until you finish?” Ginah
asked.
Tamba replied, "I know that I
can’t swing any less but I do not
intend to swing any less. In fact, I
expect to increase my swings as I
go along, take a look at me if you
doubt.”
“From what village do you
come?"

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“I come from a distant land
where man is brave and strong.
Remember that you have turned
over once.” Tamba said.
“What is it you use to hit me
with?” Ginah inquired.
Tamba said, “It is my walking
stick and nothing more.”
The Ginah looked at him
uncertainly, and asked, “Are you
sure of that. No one has swung this
hard before.”
“I am sure. Do you wish to see
it?” Tamba offered the stick for
inspection.
The Ginah considered Tamba a
little and thought, “But he is only
a simple young man.”
“Here, have a look.” Tamba
interrupted his thought.
“Okay! Try again; you were
lucky. You must have been.” Said
Ginah as he went back on the
floor, braced himself for the blow,
and covered his face.
Tamba switch sticks raised it
over and above his head and
knocked the Ginah’s head as he
said, “Two!” Just as before,
Tamba hurriedly hid the stick
behind his back.
Ginah shouted, “Oooohhh!
Yayayaya!!!” The Ginah rose to his
feet and staggered. He looked at
Tamba as if drunk. “I need to
enter the forest and get break. In
fact, it is unfair. I can’t just allow
you to beat me up like this. This is
too much. I must have a break or
we will not continue otherwise!”
whined the Ginah.
Tamba said, “You can’t! This
was your idea. You alone planned
this so you must go through. Are
you so cowardly and scared of a
few blows from a simple young
man?”
“Very well, only a few more
blows then, I am not scared of
you. You are a kid. I have
conquered great warriors why
would I be scared. This time
around, I will not lie on my

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