The King who Married the Cock's Daughter

King Effiom of Duke Town, Calabar, was very fond of pretty maidens, and whenever he heard of a girl who was unusually good-looking, he always sent for her, and if she took his fancy, he made her one of his wives. This he could afford to do, as he was a rich man, and could pay any dowry which the parents asked, most of his money having been made by buying and selling slaves.

カラバルのデューク・タウンのエフィオム王は、かわいい乙女がたいそう好きで、並外れて見目のよい娘がいると聞くと、いつも呼び寄せた。そして気に入れば、自分の妻の一人にした。王は金持ちで、両親の求める結納をいくらでも払えたので、それができたのである。その金のほとんどは、奴隷を売り買いしてこしらえたものだった。

Effiom had two hundred and fifty wives, but he was never content, and wanted to have all the finest women in the land. Some of the king's friends, who were always on the look-out for pretty girls, told Effiom that the Cock's daughter was a lovely virgin, and far superior to any of the king's wives. Directly the king heard this he sent for the Cock, and said he intended to have his daughter as one of his wives. The Cock, being a poor man, could not resist the order of the king, so he brought his daughter, who was very good-looking and pleased the king immensely. When the king had paid the Cock a dowry of six puncheons of palm-oil, the Cock told Effiom that if he married his daughter he must not forget that she had the natural instincts of a hen, and that he should not blame Adia unen (his daughter) if she picked up corn whenever she saw it. The king replied that he did not mind what she ate so long as he possessed her.

エフィオムには二百五十人の妻がいたが、決して満足せず、国じゅうのいちばん美しい女をみな手に入れたがった。いつもかわいい娘を探している王の友だちの何人かが、エフィオムに、雄鶏の娘は美しい乙女で、王のどの妻よりずっとすぐれていると告げた。王はこれを聞くとすぐに雄鶏を呼び寄せて、その娘を妻の一人にするつもりだと言った。雄鶏は貧しい者だったので王の命令に逆らえず、娘を連れてきた。娘はたいそう見目がよく、王はたいそう気に入った。王が雄鶏に椰子油六樽の結納を払うと、雄鶏はエフィオムに、娘と結婚するなら、娘には雌鶏の本能があることを忘れないでほしい、トウモロコシを見ればいつでもついばむだろうが、アディア・ウネン(娘)を責めないでほしいと言った。王は、自分のものにできるなら娘が何を食べようとかまわないと答えた。

The king then took Adia unen as his wife, and liked her so much, that he neglected all his other wives, and lived entirely with Adia unen, as she suited him exactly and pleased him more than any of his other wives. She also amused the king, and played with him and enticed him in so many different ways that he could not live without her, and always had her with him to the exclusion of his former favourites, whom he would not even speak to or notice in any way when he met them. This so enraged the neglected wives that they met together, and although they all hated one another, they agreed so far that they hated the Cock's daughter more than any one, as now that she had come to the king none of them ever had a chance with him. Formerly the king, although he always had his favourites, used to favour different girls with his attentions when they pleased him particularly. That was very different in their opinion to being excluded from his presence and all his affections being concentrated on one girl, who received all his love and embraces. In consequence of this they were very angry, and determined if possible to disgrace Adia unen. After much discussion, one of the wives, who was the last favourite, and whom the arrival of the Cock's daughter had displaced, said: "This girl, whom we all hate, is, after all, only a Cock's daughter, and we can easily disgrace her in the king's eyes, as I heard her father tell the king that she could not resist corn, no matter how it was thrown about."

それから王はアディア・ウネンを妻にして、たいそう気に入ったので、ほかの妻たちをみなないがしろにして、アディア・ウネンとばかり暮らした。アディア・ウネンは王にぴったり合って、ほかのどの妻よりも王を喜ばせたからである。アディア・ウネンはまた王を楽しませ、王と戯れ、いろいろなやり方で王の心を引きつけたので、王はアディア・ウネンなしではいられなくなり、いつもそばに置いて、以前のお気に入りたちを遠ざけた。王は以前のお気に入りたちに出会っても、口をきくことも気づくこともなかった。これにないがしろにされた妻たちはたいそう腹を立て、みなで集まった。妻たちは互いに憎み合っていたけれど、雄鶏の娘を誰よりも憎むという点だけは一致した。雄鶏の娘が王のもとへ来てからは、誰一人王に近づく機会がなくなったからである。以前は王にもいつもお気に入りがいたけれど、それでもとりわけ気に入った娘たちに情けをかけていた。妻たちの考えでは、それは、王の前から締め出されて、王の愛情がみな一人の娘に注がれ、その娘が王の愛と抱擁をひとりじめするのとは、まったくちがうことだった。そういうわけで妻たちはたいそう怒って、できればアディア・ウネンに恥をかかせてやろうと決めた。さんざん話し合ったあげく、アディア・ウネンが来るまでいちばんのお気に入りだった、押しのけられた妻の一人が言った。「わたしたちみんなが憎んでいるこの娘は、結局のところ雄鶏の娘にすぎないのよ。王さまの目の前で恥をかかせるのはたやすいわ。父親が王さまに、あの娘はどんなふうにまかれたトウモロコシでも我慢できないと言っていたのを聞いたもの」

Very shortly after the king's wives had determined to try and disgrace Adia unen, all the people of the country came to pay homage to the king. This was done three times a year, the people bringing yams, fowls, goats, and new corn as presents, and the king entertained them with a feast of foo-foo, palm-oil chop, and tombo.[7] A big dance was also held, which was usually kept up for several days and nights. Early in the morning the king's head wife told her servant to wash one head of corn, and when all the people were present she was to bring it in a calabash and throw it on the ground and then walk away. The corn was to be thrown in front of Adia unen, so that all the people and chiefs could see.

王の妻たちがアディア・ウネンに恥をかかせようと決めてまもなく、国じゅうの人々が王に敬意を表しにやって来た。これは年に三度行われ、人々はヤムイモや鶏や山羊や新しいトウモロコシを贈り物として持ってきた。そして王は、フーフーと椰子油の煮込みとトンボ酒[7]の宴で人々をもてなした。大きな踊りも催され、たいてい何日も何晩も続けられた。朝早く、王の正妃は召使いに、トウモロコシの穂を一本洗っておいて、人々がみな集まったらひょうたんの器に入れて持ってきて、地面にまいてから立ち去るよう言いつけた。トウモロコシはアディア・ウネンの前にまかれることになっていた。人々も首長たちもみな見えるようにである。

[Footnote 7: Tombo is an intoxicating drink made from the juice which is extracted from the tombo palm, and which ferments very quickly. It is drawn from the tree twice a day--in the morning very early, and again in the afternoon.]

[脚注 7: トンボはトンボ椰子から取れる汁でこしらえた酔う飲み物で、たいそう早く発酵する。木からは一日に二度——朝たいそう早くと、午後にもう一度——採られる。]

About ten o'clock, when all the chiefs and people had assembled, and the king had taken his seat on his big wooden chair, the servant girl came and threw the corn on the ground as she had been ordered. Directly she had done this Adia unen started towards the corn, picked it up, and began to eat. At this all the people laughed, and the king was very angry and ashamed. The king's wives and many people said that they thought the king's finest wife would have learnt better manners than to pick up corn which had been thrown away as refuse. Others said: "What can you expect from a Cock's daughter? She should not be blamed for obeying her natural instincts." But the king was so vexed, that he told one of his servants to pack up Adia unen's things and take them to her father's house. And this was done, and Aida unen returned to her parents.

十時ごろ、首長たちと人々がみな集まって、王が大きな木の椅子に座ると、召使いの娘がやって来て、言いつけられたとおりトウモロコシを地面にまいた。娘がそうするやいなや、アディア・ウネンはトウモロコシのほうへ進み出て、それを拾って食べはじめた。これに人々はみな笑い、王はたいそう腹を立てて恥じ入った。王の妻たちや多くの人々は、王のいちばん立派な妻なら、ごみとして捨てられたトウモロコシを拾うよりもましな行儀を身につけているものと思っていた、と言った。ほかの者たちは言った。「雄鶏の娘に何を期待するというのです。生まれつきの本能に従ったからといって責めるべきではありません」けれども王はあまりに腹を立てたので、召使いの一人にアディア・ウネンの荷物をまとめて父親の家へ届けるよう言いつけた。そしてそのとおりにされて、アディア・ウネンは両親のもとへ帰った。

That night the king's third wife, who was a friend of Adia unen's, talked the whole matter over with the king, and explained to him that it was entirely owing to the jealousy of his head wife that Adia unen had been disgraced. She also told him that the whole thing had been arranged beforehand in order that the king should get rid of Adia unen, of whom all the other wives were jealous. When the king heard this he was very angry, and made up his mind to send the jealous woman back to her parents empty-handed, without her clothes and presents. When she arrived at her father's house the parents refused to take her in, as she had been given as a wife to the king, and whenever the parents wanted anything, they could always get it at the palace. It was therefore a great loss to them. She was thus turned into the streets, and walked about very miserable, and after a time died, very poor and starving.

その夜、アディア・ウネンの友だちだった王の三番目の妻が、この件のすべてを王と話し合い、アディア・ウネンが恥をかかされたのはひとえに正妃の嫉妬のせいだと説き明かした。三番目の妻はまた、ほかの妻たちがみな妬んでいるアディア・ウネンを王が追い出すよう、何もかも前もって仕組まれていたのだと告げた。王はこれを聞くとたいそう怒り、あの嫉妬深い女を、着物も贈り物も持たせず手ぶらで親のもとへ送り返すことに決めた。女が父親の家に着くと、両親は迎え入れるのを断った。女は王に妻として差し出された者であり、両親は何か欲しいものがあればいつでも宮殿で手に入れられたからである。それが失われるのは、両親にとって大きな損だった。こうして女は通りに放り出され、たいそうみじめにさまよい歩き、しばらくして、たいそう貧しく飢えたまま死んだ。

The king grieved so much at having been compelled to send his favourite wife Adia unen away, that he died the following year. And when the people saw that their king had died of a broken heart, they passed a law that for the future no one should marry any bird or animal.

王は、お気に入りの妻アディア・ウネンを追い出さねばならなかったことをたいそう嘆いて、その次の年に死んだ。そして人々は、自分たちの王が悲しみのあまり死んだのを見て、これから先は誰も鳥や獣と結婚してはならないという法を定めたのである。