"Ay, that'll be an easy job," said the smith, and took his smallest
hammer, laid the nut on the anvil, and gave it a blow, but it wouldn't
break.

So he took another hammer a little bigger, but that wasn't heavy enough
either.

Then he took one bigger still, but it was still the same story; and so
the smith got wroth, and grasped his great sledge-hammer.

"Now, I'll crack you to bits," he said, and let drive at the nut with
all his might and main. And so the nut flew to pieces with a bang that
blew off half the roof of the smithy, and the whole house creaked and
groaned as though it were ready to fall.

"Why! if I don't think the Deil must have been in that nut," said the
smith.

"So he was; you're quite right," said the lad, as he went away laughing.




V

ANANZI AND THE LION


Once on a time Ananzi planned a scheme. He went to town and bought ever
so many firkins of fat, and ever so many sacks, and ever so many balls