Storymania - The Feather Of Glory by David Aoloch Bion

The Feather Of Glory (3)
David Aoloch Bion

“If you fail to wear it for one occasion I will refuse to eat food.”

“If you fail to wear it for two occasions I will divorce” Abuk swore solemnly on 11-7-7051 RCP.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

After Abuk Deng, Madut had been marrying other three wives the following three years. They were Amou Malual, Achol Geng and Amear Bil. He gave each woman a herd of cattle as soon as he married her. He built each woman a homestead. He didn’t dig the farms. If he was asked why, he said he was not the son of a farmer or fisherman. He didn’t stay with any of his four homesteads Luak, he stayed in the village chief Luak during daytime and his food was taken to him there.

He pretended as though he wouldn’t love any of his wives yet he was devoted to all of them in secret. One day he traveled to a black smith who made beads by ostrich egg shells. He bought four beads. He went to Abuk. He gave her one bead. He warned her not to show it to the other three wives. He told her that she was the only woman she loved so much among his wives. He went to the other three wives and gave them beads at different times. As he gave each woman he warned her not to show the other women and that she was the only one woman he loved so much.

One afternoon, Madut’s four women went to collect firewood. Amou and Amear quarreled and they fought. Abuk and Achol separated them and stopped them from fighting.
“I can’t talk with you” Amou said
“Why can’t I talk with you? We are all Madut’s wives” Amear replied.
“Do you think Madut loves you the way he loves me?” Amou asked.
“Yes, madut loves me” Amear answered.
“If he loves you, what has he given you?”
“What about you? What has he given you if he loves you?”
“Madut loves me and he gave me this beautiful bead of an ostrich egg shell” Amou showed her bead
“What about this” Amear showed her bead of ostrich egg shell.
All the four women were surprised by Madut’s trick. Amou was greatly disturbed by this deceiving incident. It was discovered that all four women had the same bead. In that evening, the four women cooked and ate the meal with their four children. Madut moved from home to home and never found food. The following morning, the four wives came to Madut and asked him why he deceived them about the beads. Madut told them that all of them were his wives and he had to treat them equally. All the other wives forgave Madut, but Amou who was boasting about being loved so much never forgave him.

Two months went. Madut put on his feather of glory and with other eighty men went hunting for elephants. An elephant was killed. Hunters were so many that they scrambled over the elephant carcass. As all hunters were naked Madut cut of the testicles of a man called Mareng Lual. Maleng didn’t feel the pain. When the animal finished he fell down dead. The man who cut his testicles was unidentified. Mareng was carried home. Madut took to the meat he brought from hunting to his wife Amou Malual. Amou found the testicles of the man in the meat.
“What is this?” she wondered. She called in her husband Madut and showed the testicles to him.
“That is a man’s testicle” said Madut.
“Who’s?” Amou asked.
“For Mareng Lual.”
“What shall we do?”
“Don’t tell anyone”
Madut buried the testicles. Months passed. Amou beat to death a calf. When madut was about to beat her, she said “I will tell the other secret.” Madut stopped from beating her and walked away very angry.
Amou continued misbehaving and always threatened Madut with the other secret. Amou first born son was very young, she was called Dut.
“Madut had left the home of Amou Malual for the home of Achol Geng for fear that Amou might cause him problems. As it has been said, “there is no good home.” Madut got some problems at Achol’s home again. Madut quarreled with Achol and he beat her violently. The neighbour came and helped Achol from Madut. That very night Madut and Achol went to the hut to sleep. At mid night Achol woke up, she lit a bundle of grass and moved around the hut.
“What are you looking for? You will burn the hut. If you burn the hut I will beat you severely and you will suffer and suffer” Madut said.
“I’m looking for love” Achol said.
“Which love?” Madut asked.
“Our love during engagement. The sweet words you had been telling me. Where are they now?” asked Achol.
“Love is different from stubbornness” said Madut.
“A person you love you can’t beat like this.” Achol said

CHAPTER TWELVE

The time came for changing the chiefdom. Many contenders emerged. The chief should be physically fit, huge in size, and brave. Intolerant to anything that might come into the clan in a humiliating way. Always in favour of his clan’s side even if they are wrong. He should deny justice to other clan’s members if they have a case with his own clan members. He should pass wise and good and exact judgment if he is judging his own clan people.

Madut was appointed the new chief of Akoi village and Riet clan. He was given a spear, wooden throne – wooden wand. These were symbols of authority.

Some times, Aleu came with his brother Kuot from the next village Molar. They told the chief Madut about the cow that was stolen by Aciek, one of Maduts clan man. Madut called in his helpers in judging the case. The case was heard.

“ Chief, I greet you all,” Aleu spoke. “My cow got lost last dry season. I traced in all cattle camps. Nevertheless I didn’t find it. It had been lost for eight months now. This month, when I was going to my sister’s home, I found it at Luak of Aciek. When I asked Aciek, he said that the cow was his,” Aleu narrated.

“What is the color of your cow?” the helper asked.

“Well, the color of my cow was white, but now it was washed by cow urine so it is yellow now.”

“Can you speak, Aciek”, the helper asked.

“Nothing I can explain. The cow is mine and it was born by my cow” Aciek said.

“Which cow produced it?” the helper asked.

“Don’t ask me like that? Do you know all my cattle?” Aciek said.

Madut gave the chance to onlookers to make any comment on the case. The on lookers agreed that the cow belonged to Aleu and Aciek was a thief. Madut sent all people away and remained with his helpers.

Madut and helpers started discussing the final verdict. They agreed unanimously that although Aciek is a thief, he was their man and relative. And it was their policy to stop any cow from leaving. They called back onlookers and Aleu and Acien.

Madut said “you Aleu testified that your cow was white, and now it is yellow. This does not give enough evidence that the cow is yours. The cow belongs to Acien and the case is finished”.

Madut’s decision disappointed many chiefs in the neighboring clans and villages. One chief said “should he come or his clan mates come, I will deny for them their truth.”

Four days passed and two members of Madut’s own clan brought a new case. One of the men Alier Arem who was claiming a cow of someone, Agau Chol came to Madut at night. He gave Madut a goat and a groundnut paste as bribery. When the case was heard in the morning, all the helpers found that the cow belonged to Agau and Alier was a liar. When the case was decided in favour of Agau, Madut commented that my man of last night we are defeated. I didn’t call you. You were the one who came to my home”. Madut was referring to the one who bribed him. After some month came when Madut was sleeping outside on his bed covering his head.

“Madut, Madut” the man called.
“Yes” Madut answered sleepily.
“Bring your hand” the said.
Madut gave his arm, thinking someone was giving him something as many men with bribery do. The man put a scorpion in the palm of Madut and the scorpion stung him. The man ran away unrecognized, and Madut mourned in great pain.

Two years passed. Madut was judging minor cases. There came a major case between Madut’s best friend and his clan member Magok Machar, and neighboring Riet clan member Nyok Thiong. The case was opened in neighboring clan court tree. Maduut told Magok that he would be the one following the case. When Riet clan chiefs realized that Madut had replaced his clan man, the Alek chief Atem Aguer replaced Nyok. Other chiefs were to judge the case. Many people came to witness how the two chiefs should face each other on behalf of their clan member.

“My cow gave birth to a grey heifer two years ago and it got lost three months ago, and I have found it with Madut” Atem Aguel the chief of the Alek said.

“I have the heifer, and the heifer was born by my cow” Madut said

The chiefs who were judging the case had ordered the two cows claimed by both men be brought for comparison to the heifer. When the cows were brought, the heifer ran to its mother, the cow of Atem Aguer.

“You chief, you on lookers, this is my heifer. It is like this finger of mine” Madut Kuol cut his small finger on his left hand off with a spear and his hand bled badly. The judge were puzzled by this finger cutting incident

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

The people had been terrified in the forty-five clans of the Borolian tribe by Madut’s courage and wisdom. Madut could easily turn big lies into big truths, big truths into big lies. There was a young man called Herjok. He was a great wrestler, singer and dancer. Herjok had been throwing men without being thrown, he composed very beautiful songs. If he dances, all spectators watch only him. Madut Kuol had a principle that anything good should come only from him or his clan.

For two days Madut didn’t go to court tree. He stayed at his Luak. When his people came and asked why he was not going out to court tree, he told them that he was sick and his wife Abuk told his brothers that he had spent three days so far without saying a word or drinking water, or eating food.
“Which part of the body is hurting?” one of his brothers asked.
“No part is hurting” Madut answered.
“In fact, I am not sick. If you want to know what I am sick of, I will tell you” he added.

In that afternoon, madut went to court tree. All people of all clans gathered earlier. He cleared his throat and said “you see my people, that man called Herjok Awar the wrestler, singer and dancer is my son. I slept with his mother before Awar married his mother and I want my son. That is my sickness I am suffering from. Some one put a song of courage and the song he said

“That is a simple matter. We shall solve it if it requires tongues, we have tongues. If it requires cattle, we have cattle. If it requires anything, we shall see”

Madut brought a bull. The bull was slaughtered and roasted and eaten. Wine was brought and drank. The following morning the clan of Madut moved to the big court tree of the tribe. Madut explained the case, Awar and his son Herjok were summoned by tribe elders’ chiefs. The clan of Awar got annoyed, they came with spears, shields and sticks threatening fighting. The other clans persuaded them to talk, not to fight. Everything would be solved peacefully. Awar clan was convinced.

Awar and Madut sat down before fifteen chiefs.

“What is the problem, Madut?”
“The man Herjok is my son” Madut said.
“He is your son in which way?” the chief asked.
“Before Awar married his mother I slept with her”
“Why didn’t you say he was your son when young?” the chief asked.
“It is the same when he is young and old” Madut answered.
Awar was very angry, he was not able to talk. The judge told him that he should talk.
“You know judge, this case does not need only talk. It is death. We are nearing death with him” Awar threatened.

When the mother of Herjok was asked, she said she was actually engaged by Madut but Herjok was not his son.
The case was very difficult for the judges to pass a verdict. The judges referred the case to god Ajak Bungang for swearing the death swearing. At Ajak Bungang god’s shrine, if you swear for a lie you must immediately die. Madut and Awar were given four days to think before they went for swearing.
Madut Kuol was told by his wife Abuk that “you must not swear for a child of your wife but the child of your sister. So don’t go for swearing.” Madut didn’t listen to any advice.

The four days had finished. So Madut and Awar came. The judge asked each of them whether Herjok was their son, both men answered “yes”.

“Go for death swearing” the judge said
On their way to the death swearing shrine, Madut and Awar were singing and dancing. When they were about to reach the shrine, Madut hit his right leg on a log. When Madut saw that sign he ran to the bush and didn’t reach the swearing shrine

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