Simbi and the Satyr of the Dark Jungle Read Free Page A

wide, flat ground at the front of this shop. It was on that ground the auctioneer used to sell all articles or slaves which or who were to be sold very urgently.
    After Dogo had explained to the auctioneer that he wanted him to sell Simbi by urgent, for he wanted the quick money for buying food, then the auctioneer first put Simbi on the weighing scale just to know her exact weight which would enable him to know the real price that he would impose upon her.
    Having quite sure of her real weight, he wore several oversized garments for her. Each of the garments was sewn with about twenty yards of cloth.
    After that, he put on her head an oversized hat which swallowed her head so that she was terrible to see at that moment. All these dresses made Simbi bigger than her usual size.
    After, he put a sofa at the centre of the ground. Simbi sat on it and he compelled her also to swell out every partof her body with pride so that she might be seemed to every intended buyer that she was pleased for selling her. Then a number of the appraisers seated on two benches at a little distance from her. After this arrangement, the touting man of the auctioneer came with a big bell and he stood at the front of her.
    Within ten minutes that the touting man was ringing the bell loudly more than one thousand people heard the bell and came there. They surrounded Simbi who was greatly surprised to see herself in this condition.
    After a while, the darkness of the night came and she could not be seen clearly from the sofa. Then the auctioneer lighted his big “fitila”, he put it nearly to touch her face. Its brown flame shone to all over her body and also to some part of the ground, but there was still darkness at the back of the ground.
    When the auctioneer noticed that enough people had gathered there, he stood up and announced loudly with the voice of business, “Yes, give an offer!” Then those appraisers started their business. They were raising the price of Simbi up and up and up together with those intended buyers. And a few minutes later, every one of the buyers was greedily raising up the price so that Simbi might fall in his hand.
    Having seen this, the appraisers insisted on twenty thousand cowries for which to sell her. At that stage, it became the matter of bribery. “No bribe, no Simbi!” was the slogan saying of the appraisers and the auctioneer. And it was so those people were pressing her body with hands every time just to make sure how fat she was. Anda few minutes later she became unconscious suddenly because she was nearly pressed to death.
    Before she became conscious, those people had scattered in the darkness at the back of the ground. Everyone of them was calling the appraisers, the auctioneer, and the touting man up and down and he was bribing them with money. But at last a rich man who was among, bribed the auctioneer with a very considerable amount that he was happily accepted. Of course, when this revealed to the rest intended buyers, they disordered at once and started to fight each other instead to fight the rich man, for they could not distinguish one from another in the darkness.
    However, Simbi fell into the hand of the rich man. Then she was escorted by the touting man to the auctioneer, appraisers and the rich man and she stood before them. And on her presence the rich man paid the amount for which he bought her to Dogo. Having seen this, Simbi asked painfully “Do you sell me in the darkness, Dogo?” “Yes,” he replied sharply. Because it was just revealed to her at that moment, that she was put on that sofa for sale, though she had been thinking within herself that those people were going to instal her the queen of that town. And it was from that darkness she was taken to the rich man’s slave yard.
    But to everyone’s surprise, it was in this town Dogo had spent such a considerable amount of money for food and gambling before he left for his town.
    Immediately Simbi was mercilessly pushed inside the