The Turtle and the Lizard

A turtle and a lizard went to a field to steal ginger. When they arrived at the field, the turtle said to the lizard, “We must be very still, or we will be caught.” The lizard tasted the ginger and, very pleased, said, “This ginger is delicious.”

“Hush,” said the turtle, but the lizard did not heed the warning. He spoke even louder, alerting the man and causing him to rush out to catch the robbers.

The turtle could not escape quickly, and so he lay perfectly still, escaping the man’s notice. The lizard dashed away, and the man pursued him. When they were gone, the turtle went in and concealed himself under the man’s coconut shell.

After chasing the lizard quite a distance, the man gave up trying to catch him and returned to his bamboo house. He entered and sat down on the shell.

The turtle clucked loudly, and the man jumped up to survey his surroundings. Unable to tell where the noise came from, he sat down again. The turtle called a second time, and the man again could not identify the source of the noise. The turtle continued, and the man grew so agitated at his unsuccessful attempts to isolate the sound that he died.

The turtle escaped and soon met up with the lizard again. They walked along until, observing some honey in a tree, the turtle said, “I will go first and get some of the honey.”

The lizard couldn’t wait and bolted ahead. When he seized the honey, the bees stung him. Continuing on, the turtle and the lizard found a bird snare, and the turtle said, “That is the silver wire that my grandfather wore about his neck.”

The lizard rushed to get it first, but he was caught in the snare and captured until the trapper came and carried him off. Then the wise turtle went on alone.