Saturday, April 13, 2024

L is for Liberia

 

The Good Child and the Bad

Two girls helped a witch doctor spin cotton. One of them spat on her staff and had to wash it in a river or disaster would strike. During her journey, she met a cat and a rooster, who aided her because she fed  them. The girl returned home with a treasure basket. The other girl wanted a basket too so she spat on the staff and set out, but didn't feed the animals. She chose a large basket, full of dangerous creatures, and barely survived their assault.

Source: Folk-Tales from Liberia (In Abstract) by Richard C. Bundy.

Tale Type: ATU 480, The Kind and Unkind Girls.

Variants: "The Fairy" and "Frau Holle" and "The Twelve Months"

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