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You have no doubt heard of the Hare and the Tortoise? Well this is an African fable from Zaire which shows that tortoises are good at winning all over the world. This story is about a trial of strength. Who do you think is stronger, an elephant or a tortoise?

As with many of our fables, it is told in the voice of a character. Can you guess what sort of African bird is telling the story?

Proofread by Claire Deakin.
Read by Natasha. Fable adapted for Storynory by Bertie.

I think of myself as the smartest of birds. I never trouble myself with work or danger. I sit shrugging on a tree, or spread my shaggy wings and flap lazily over the African plains. When I see a lion eating its kill, I wait for it to finish, and then hop down and pick the bones clean. Leftovers are easy and tasty meat. So you see, we vultures live off the work of others. Is that not the cleverest way to live?

The other day I saw an animal pull off a trick that even impressed a wise old bird like me. He wasn’t much to look at – just a stumpy-legged, sleepy-eyed, wrinkly-mouthed tortoise. He did not exactly seem like a quick thinker, but do not let his slow steps fool you, for his heavy hard shell hides a mind of cunning.

He was sleeping in the grass, when an elephant came stomping along with his fat heavy feet. The ground was shaking, but he did not wake up or stir his shell.

“Out of my way titch, or I’ll step on you,” called out the elephant.

“That’s fair warning,” I thought. “He’d better get out of the way swift-like.” But the tortoise did not budge.

Instead he poked his head out of his shell and said, “Do as you like Jumbo, I’m stronger than you are!”

“Rubbish! No one is stronger than me!” Trumpeted the bigger of the two beasts – and that’s rather understating their difference in size by the way.

“Well I am too sleepy to move, and I don’t care if you tread on me,” replied the little one gamely.

“All right then, you asked for it brother,” said the elephant. A moment later he placed his foot and his six tonnes of weight onto the shell of the sluggish one. Even I winced… then I wondered what squashed tortoise would taste like. Not too tender, I thought, but you can’t complain about the menu when you eat for free.

Much to surprise of everyone the tortoise was not squashed. His shell could hold up even an elephant. Well that was some roof!

“Humph!” Said the elephant. “You’re not strong, you’re just not squishy, that’s different.”

“You’re just a bad loser,” said the tortoise with a yawn, before going back to sleep.

Well that little episode caused a stir on the African plain. Soon all the animals were gossiping about how the tortoise got the better of the elephant. Little did we realise that there was still better to come. Towards evening, when the sun began to head for bed behind the horizon, the tortoise eased his way down to the river for a sip of water. There on the banks he met a hippopotamus.

The hippo smiled when he saw the little fellow and said:, “I heard how you got the better of that fat old lump of an elephant, but don’t be so foolish as to take me on. I am no fool. I would turn you over before I squashed you – so don’t go getting any ideas above your station.”

“All the same, I bet I’m stronger than you,” boasted the tortoise. I was listening in to this conversation, and this time, I thought that triumph had gone to the little fellow’s head. He was boasting too much, and his pride would surely lead to his fall. You can’t go around taking on all the biggest and heaviest animals and expect to live for long – or so I thought. The hippopotamus clearly thought the same. He replied, “That’s a bet I’d like to take.”

“Well you see that rope left by the boatman after the crocodile invited him for lunch. We will use it for a tug-of-war.”

“You’re on,” said the hippo.

“What does he think he’s doing?” I wondered. “How can that geriatric shell-dweller possibly win this trial of strength with the tubby river beast?”

The hippopotamus picked up one end of the rope, and the tortoise the other. There was plenty of slack in it, and it only seemed natural that the tortoise should take his end up the river bank and over the other side.

“Don’t pull until I shout ready,” he called out. Now I saw what he was up to. On the other side of the bank, he met the elephant.

“Hey fatso,” said the tortoise. “I’ll give you a chance for a rematch. How about a tug-of-war?” The elephant, who was still steaming from his earlier loss, was only glad too agree.

Now the tortoise hid in the hollow, near the top of the bank, and called out, “Ready!” Both the huge lump animals pulled the rope, neither knowing who was on the other end. First the hippo gave way a few steps, and then he pulled the elephant back. Neither could win victory until at last the rope snapped in the middle. The reputation of the tortoise was sealed. All the animals now thought that that the little one was invincible. The rumour went around that he could do witchcraft. Only I had seen both ends of his rope trick.

I thought I had seen it all, but I have to say that the tortoise could teach me a thing or two about using the strength of others. He let those two beasts fight each other and drain their force, while he sat in his shell. He was the strongest of all the animals, but it was his brain, not his muscles, that brought his victory.

And don’t forget we have loads of stories from around the world on Storynory.com, including fables by the Greek writer, Aesop.