The King's Magical Drum

Once upon a time, there was a peaceful king named Efriam Duke, who ruled over Calabar. He detested war and preferred to resolve conflicts peacefully. Efriam owned a magical drum with a remarkable ability: whenever it was beaten, it would conjure up a feast of delicious food and drink. Whenever enemies threatened to attack, he would gather them, beat the drum, and instead of battle, they would find themselves enjoying tables filled with dishes like fish, foo-foo, yams, and plenty of palm wine. His enemies, satisfied with full bellies, would leave in peace, and the kingdom remained calm.

However, the drum had a peculiar curse: if its owner stepped over a stick or tree on the road, the food would spoil, and three hundred Egbo men would appear, mercilessly beating everyone in sight.

Efriam Duke was wealthy. He owned many farms, had numerous slaves, and had large stores of palm oil and kernels. He was married to fifty wives and had many children. His wives were healthy, good mothers, and bore him numerous children, adding to his fortune.

Every few months, the king would invite all his subjects to a grand feast. Even the wild animals—elephants, leopards, antelopes, and others—would attend, for in those days, animals and humans lived in harmony. Although everyone envied the king's magical drum, he refused to part with it.

One day, one of the king's wives, Ikwor Edem, took her daughter to the spring to wash her. The little girl was covered in sores, and while there, a tortoise was perched in a nearby palm tree cutting down nuts for his meal. A nut fell near the girl, and she cried for it. Her mother, thinking it harmless, gave it to her. The tortoise, seeing this, climbed down and demanded the nut back. The mother explained that she had given it to her child, not realizing it belonged to him.

Seizing this opportunity, the cunning tortoise decided to escalate the situation and demand compensation from the king, hoping to acquire the drum. When they presented the matter to the king, he offered the tortoise money, palm oil, or other goods, but the tortoise rejected all offers. Finally, the tortoise insisted on taking the drum. The king reluctantly agreed but did not warn the tortoise about the drum’s curse.

The tortoise, now feeling rich and powerful, returned home and proudly beat the drum, summoning a grand feast. For three days, he and his family feasted without worry. Then, the tortoise decided to show off his wealth by inviting the king and all the people of the kingdom to a feast. When they came, they were astonished at the lavish spread of food, and word spread that the poor tortoise had suddenly become very wealthy. However, only the king knew the secret behind the drum.

As time passed, the tortoise became lazy, boasting of his newfound wealth and drinking heavily. One day, after drinking too much, he stumbled over a stick on his way home but didn’t notice the error. The next morning, when he beat the drum for food, instead of the usual feast, the house filled with Egbo men who severely beat the tortoise and his family.

Angered by the misfortune, the tortoise decided to share his misery with others. He invited the townspeople and animals to another feast. When they arrived, he beat the drum and quickly hid. Instead of food, the Egbo men appeared and whipped all the guests mercilessly. After hours of beating, the tortoise released the guests, who were furious.

The next day, the tortoise returned the drum to the king, complaining about its curse and asking for something else in exchange. Feeling sorry for the tortoise, the king gave him a magic foo-foo tree, which would provide food every day as long as he followed one rule: he could only collect food once a day.

The tortoise gladly accepted and took his family to the tree. They gathered enough food for the day and returned home, content. However, one of the tortoise’s sons grew curious and greedy. Determined to learn the secret of the food, he followed his father by secretly tracking him with wood ashes sprinkled from a hole in the tortoise’s bag.

The son discovered the location of the foo-foo tree and, after his father had collected the daily food, he and his brothers returned to gather more, breaking the tree’s magic. The next day, the tree vanished, replaced by a dense thicket of prickly palms.

Realizing the Ju Ju had been broken, the tortoise lamented his loss. He gathered his family and told them that, since they had destroyed the magic, they would now have to live under the prickly palm trees. From that day forward, tortoises have made their homes beneath the prickly tie-tie palm, as they have no other place to find food.