In the heart of Central Africa, where the deep forests of Gabon hum with life, two unlikely companions once set out on a journey together: the elephant, mighty and wise, and the fox, small but endlessly cunning. The day was warm, the path long, and the air thick with the scents of earth and leaf. As they walked, the elephant asked, “Fox, where are you going?” The fox replied eagerly, “I am going with you.”
The elephant looked down at him with skepticism. “Stay behind, little one. You cannot endure hunger and thirst as I can.”
But the fox, sly and determined, insisted. “I can endure it, Uncle. I will not complain of hunger or thirst.”
The elephant sighed, resigned. “Very well, then. Walk with me.”
The Thirsty Fox
They traveled for a day’s journey under the burning sun, and soon the fox’s resolve crumbled. He licked his lips and whimpered, “Uncle, I am thirsty!”
The elephant frowned. “Did you not promise not to complain? Still, go drink from that water-pit and return.”
The fox hurried to the pit, drank deeply, then mischievously filled it with earth and leaves so it would appear empty. When he returned, he told the elephant, “I found it filled up, Uncle.”
READ THIS: The Lion, the Hyena, and the Fox: A Gabonese Folktale
The march continued, and once more the fox cried out, “Uncle, I am thirsty!” Again the elephant directed him to a well, and again the fox drank, filled it, and returned claiming, “It was already closed.”
This game repeated, the fox pretending to suffer while secretly drinking his fill. At last, they entered a land unfamiliar even to the elephant. The fox whined once more, “Uncle, I am thirsty!” But this time, the elephant shook his great head. “I do not know the wells here. Yet there is water within me. Enter through my behind, drink, and return without wandering.”
Desperation overcame hesitation. The fox obeyed, slipping inside the elephant, drinking, and retracing his steps back out.
Betrayal Inside the Elephant
On another day, thirst returned. The elephant once again allowed the fox to enter him for water. But this time, the fox noticed the fat swinging inside the elephant’s belly. Temptation was too strong, he tore off a piece and ate.
The elephant groaned. “Fox! You betray me inside my own body. May betrayal find you as it has found me.”
But the fox ignored him, chewing happily on the fat.
When the elephant demanded he leave, the fox refused every suggestion. “Not through your behind, you will soil me. Not through your mouth, your tusks will crush me. Not through your foot, you will squash me. Not through your ear, the wax will cover me. Not through your trunk, you will seize me.”
Furious, the elephant threatened, “If you refuse, I will hurl myself with you from this precipice.”
The fox mocked, “Do as you wish, Uncle.”
In despair and rage, the elephant leapt. His body shattered upon the rocks below. But just before the fall, the fox escaped through his behind, safe and smug.
The Fox and the Merchants
The fox dragged out the elephant’s entrails, unrolling them behind him as he wandered. Along the road he met traveling merchants, among them his cousin. “Where do you come from, Fox?” asked his cousin.
“I found an elephant fallen to his death,” the fox boasted. “Follow his entrails; they will lead you to him.”
The merchants asked who would guard their goods while they went. The fox volunteered eagerly. Once they left, he slit their skins of butter, drank it all, and filled the skins with filth. Only his cousin’s skin he spared.
When the merchants returned, grateful, they offered him a meal. The fox slyly requested, “Make me butter-sauce from my cousin’s skin. My aunt’s butter is always the best.” They agreed, and the fox ate greedily before slipping away.
At market, the merchants discovered their skins ruined, save for one. “The fox has tricked us!” they cried, and set out in pursuit. But the fox mingled among other foxes, impossible to distinguish.
The Fox’s Last Trick
Determined, the merchants gathered all foxes and planted a spear in the ground. “Jump over it,” they ordered. All cleared it with ease, except the guilty fox, too heavy from the butter. “It is he!” they shouted, and tied him to a tree while fetching switches to lash him.
Bound and helpless, the fox awaited his fate until a jackal appeared, herding goats and playing his harp. Curious, the jackal asked, “Why are you tied, Fox?”
The fox replied smoothly, “My family offered me the chieftainship, but I refused. They tied me here until I agreed.”
The jackal scoffed. “Who refuses to be chief?”
“Then untie me,” the fox offered. “Take my place and claim the chieftainship when they return.”
The jackal agreed, and soon he was tied while the fox vanished with his goats and harp.
When the merchants returned, they lashed the jackal. He protested, “Let me be chief!” Realizing they had been tricked again, they released him in fury. And so the fox escaped once more, leaving chaos behind him.
Moral Lesson
This Gabonese folktale reveals how cunning can outwit strength, but also how greed and deceit sow destruction. The fox survives every danger, yet his victories come at the cost of trust and harmony. The elephant, the merchants, and even the jackal learn too late the danger of misplaced faith. The tale warns us that while cleverness may win battles, betrayal eventually consumes both betrayer and betrayed.
Knowledge Check
Who warned the fox he could not endure hunger and thirst?
The elephant cautioned the fox before their journey.
How did the fox trick the elephant at the wells?
He drank secretly, then filled the wells to appear empty.
What did the fox do inside the elephant’s belly?
He drank water and greedily ate the elephant’s fat.
How did the fox escape the merchants’ pursuit?
He hid among other foxes, making it hard to identify him.
What role did the jackal play in the story?
The jackal was deceived into taking the fox’s place, tied to the tree.
What cultural value does this folktale highlight?
It emphasizes caution, distrust of deceit, and the dangers of betrayal.
Source: Gabonese folktale, Central Africa.
