[From Kiungani, or: Story and History from Central Africa by Arthur Madan, 1887.
[From Kiungani, or: Story and History from Central Africa by Arthur Madan, 1887. See item #130 in the Bibliography. The photograph of the chameleon is by Charles J. Sharp at Wikimedia Commons.]
One day a frog spoke to his fellow frogs and said, “I have heard that there is a chameleon about. The day I see him, he shall be my friend.”
Well, one day they met, the frog and the chameleon, and they at once wished each other good morning, and after wishing each other good morning, they made mutual inquiries. First the frog asked the chameleon, “How are you getting on?”
“Capitally,” replied the chameleon. “And how are you — well or badly?”
“Excellently,” said the frog, “and how have you been this long time past?”
“In peace and quietness,” answered the chameleon, “passing all understanding.”
“My friend,” said the frog, “you have given me an answer, but it has a fatal flaw. Peace cannot pass all understanding, unless you ascribe it to Almighty God, who created us, me and you. You, my friend, speak to me of a peace passing all understanding without naming your Creator, yours and mine, the Creator of all things, Almighty God.”
“Quite true,” answered the chameleon. “You have a very fine sense of propriety.”
Well, the frog and the chameleon clung to each other as the ring to the finger, and so remained for many a day, the frog and the chameleon.
At last the frog got up and said to the chameleon, “My friend, we are still unmarried. Let us go and look for wives, and so marry.”
“By all means, my friend,” said the chameleon, “let us go in search of wives.”
So off they went to search for wives, and they traveled for many a day without finding what they were in search of. However, one day they saw a town and said, “Suppose we enter this town. It is possible we shall get them here.”
So they entered the town and were at once made welcome — “Welcome, welcome, strangers.” They sat down, and food was brought in abundance, and they made a meal on the spot. In the morning they were asked, “How are things going in your parts — well or badly?”
“As well as could be,” answered they. ” But there is just one thing to mention: we are in want of wives.”
“What do you say?” rejoined the people of the town.
“Wives,” said they, “simply wives.”
Now in that town there was a certain man who had two children, both girls, and just at that time the two daughters of this man appeared and passed in front of the frog and the chameleon, who noticed that they were fine girls, and they asked the people of the town, “Where is their father?”
The people answered and said, “He is the man you were just now talking to here. They are his daughters.”
“We should like,” they said, “to marry his daughters.” Their father and their mother were at once called. The frog and the chameleon said, “We should like to marry your daughters.”
The man had a little conversation with his wife. Our daughters are asked in marriage by the frog and the chameleon. Are they to marry or not marry?” “Just as you like, my dear,”