This is the song for my next tale. Once there were no stories in the world. So I decided to go to Nyan-Kopon the sky god in order to buy the sky god’s stories. The sky god said, “What makes you think you can buy them?”

“I know I shall be able.” I said, flashing my roll.

Nyan-Kopon laughed and said, “Great and powerful towns like Kokofu, Bekwai, Asumengya have come and they were unable to purchase them, and yet you who are but a masterless man, you say you will be able?”

“What is the price of the stories?”

The sky god said, “They cannot be bought for anything except Onini the python, Osebo the leopard, Mmoatia the fairy, and Mmoboro the hornet.”

“That’s it?”

The sky god sneered, “Go and bring them then!”

So first on the list was the snake. I went to where Python lived and debated out loud whether Python was really longer than the palm branch or not as his wife Aso says. Python overheard and, when I explained the debate, agreed to lie along the palm branch. Because he cannot easily make himself completely straight a true impression of his actual length is difficult to obtain, so Python agreed to be tied to the branch.

When he was completely tied up, I took him to the sky god.

To catch the leopard, I dug a deep hole in the ground. When the leopard fell in the hole I offered to help him out with my webs. Once the leopard was out of the hole he was bound in my webs, making a nice package for Nyan-Kopon.

To catch the hornets, I filled a calabash with water and poured some over a banana leaf that I held over my head and some over the nest, calling out that it was raining. I suggested the hornets get into the empty calabash, and when they obliged, I just sealed the opening.

To catch the fairy I made a doll and covered it with sticky gum. I placed the doll under the Odum (Tree of Life) where the fairies play and put some yam in a bowl in front of it. When the fairy came and ate the yam she thanked the doll which of course did not reply. Annoyed at its bad manners she struck it, first with one hand then the other. The hands stuck and I captured her, although she did try to bite me.

When I handed my captives over to Nyan the sky god. The latter said, “Kawku Anansi, from today and going on forever, I present my sky god stories to you, kose! kose! kose! my blessing, my blessing, my blessing! No more shall we call them the sky god stories, but we shall call them the spider stories!"

This is my story which I have related. If it be sweet, or if it be not sweet, take some elsewhere, and let some come back to me.