Elsie Spicer Eells | Brazil
How the Monkey and the Goat Earned Their Reputations
A clever monkey outwits a deceitful tiger who had previously tricked a goat during a journey to a friend's house.
Once, a tiger invited a goat to visit a friend’s house. The goat happily agreed. On the day of their journey, they set off together. As they walked, they came to a dangerous swamp. The tiger, trying to act brave, said, “Friend Goat, you seem scared of the swamp! Don’t worry, you can go first!”
The goat didn’t want to look like a coward. So, he puffed up his chest and walked forward. But as soon as he stepped into the swamp, he got stuck in the mud. He struggled to get through. Meanwhile, the tiger walked around the swamp on dry land and stayed clean.
After the swamp, they reached some banana trees. The tiger said, “Friend Goat, aren’t you hungry? Let’s eat some bananas. You can climb the tree and give me the ripe bananas. You can keep the green ones for yourself.” The goat climbed the tree, picked the bananas, and gave all the ripe ones to the tiger. The goat was left hungry while the tiger ate all the tasty bananas.
They continued walking and saw a cobra on the path. The tiger said, “Friend Goat, look at that snake! You could take it home as a necklace for your daughter, and it wouldn’t cost you anything.” The goat hesitated. But before he could do anything, the tiger warned, “If you care about your life, leave it alone.”
When they finally arrived at the friend’s house, it was already late. They slept in hammocks side by side. In the middle of the night, the tiger sneaked out. He went to the sheep pen, killed the fattest lamb, ate it, and wiped the blood on the goat’s hammock before returning to sleep.
The next morning, the host saw the missing lamb and asked the tiger, “Did you take my lamb?” The tiger said, “Do you see any blood on me?” There was no blood on the tiger, but the host found blood on the goat’s hammock. Angry, he beat the goat, who barely escaped with his life. Since then, people have said that someone who is easily tricked is “like the goat.”
A few days later, the tiger invited a monkey to visit the same friend. The monkey agreed, and they started the same journey. When they reached the swamp, the tiger pretended to be brave again and said, “Friend Monkey, don’t be afraid of the swamp. Go ahead!”
The monkey, being clever, said, “You go first.” The tiger didn’t want to look scared, so he stepped into the swamp and got stuck. He struggled to get out while the monkey walked around on dry ground.
Later, they arrived at the banana trees. “Friend Monkey,” said the tiger, “climb the tree and pick the bananas. Give me the ripe ones, and you can keep the green ones.” The monkey climbed the tree, but instead of giving the ripe bananas to the tiger, he ate them all and threw down the green ones. The tiger was left hungry.
Finally, they saw the cobra again. “Friend Monkey,” said the tiger, “take that snake for your daughter’s necklace. It’s free!” The monkey wisely said, “Why don’t you pick it up yourself?”
When they arrived at the house, the monkey stayed awake to watch the tiger. In the middle of the night, the tiger sneaked out, killed a lamb, and returned to wipe the blood on the monkey’s hammock. But the monkey pushed the tiger just in time, and the tiger spilled blood all over himself.
The next morning, the host saw the tiger covered in blood and cried, “Now I know who has been stealing my lambs!” He beat the tiger, and the tiger barely escaped.
