This is a colorful confusion of history and legend such as Grebo men have told around their fires for many generations.
In the peace of evenings old men smoke their pipes and tell of the Bulobos and Gudobos, two clans who lived before the birth of thunder or lightning. The Bulobo were bald and strong and they had a mighty giant named Gbovanh, who was leader of their army. The Gudobo. They paid heavy tribute and worked as slaves in Bulobo fields: they were not permitted to beat drums, play any music, or even laugh. They were very sad.
But among the Gudobos there was a diviner, one rich man, and three powerful warriors. The diviner said to the rich man, whose name was Gekplo:
“Let us send riches to the Wise Woman, who dwells in the Far Forest, and ask for her help and advice. It is not good that we should remain forever slaves.”
Gekplo summoned the three warriors. He gave them riches, and sent them to ask the Wise Woman for help. The three warriors set off, and marched rapidly for a month through forests and swamps, crossed rivers and mountains and came to the high place where the Wise Woman lived. On the way they met a small dwarf woman who carried a heavy burden, and they carried her burden for her. The little woman was a spirit in disguise, and when the three warriors told her of their mission she gave them each a magic stone, and said:
“Each of you take one stone and hold it tightly. Do not let it go until you have done what you want to do.”
The warriors accepted her advice. They went to the Wise Woman and gave her the riches they carried, saying:
“Our people send us with gifts. Our group is small and has been enslaved, for our enemies are numerous and have a giant who leads their army. We beg that you will help us.”
“I have only one giant left,” she said, “and of course, his horn-blower. The giant is known as Doe, and his partner is called Gbia; but Doe is so dreadful, so monstrous and so fierce, that no one wants to have him.”
“We want him,” said the warriors, and held their stones more tightly.
“Can you control him? He can pull up trees like rice stalks, or push a mountain on its side.”
“We can control him.”
The Wise Woman called on Doe, and the giant came. He was a truly terrifying giant; steam issued from his nostrils, and the hair upon his head was like a thousand raffia palms. His horn-blower Gbia, was only slightly smaller. They scorned the three young warriors, but the warriors laid hold of them and overthrew them with the power of the magic stones they held. When the Wise Woman saw that Doe and Gbia would submit, he gave a leopard’s tooth to the warriors and said:
“Drop this tooth in the village pond. Command your woman to search for it, and she who finds it will give birth to twin sons. These will be Doe and Gbia. They will grow to manhood as members of your clan, and will do as you command.”
The three warriors were suddenly transported back to their town, among the Gudobo. They dropped the leopard’s tooth in the pond, and announced to all the young women:
“Go to the pond and search for a leopard’s tooth. She who finds it will bear two sons, and they will lead us from slavery.”
The young woman searched all day and night, groping with their hands and feet and fishing nets, and bailing water; but all they found was fish. Then Gekplo’s wife tried too, although she was old and people laughed; and she found the leopard’s tooth.
On the following year all the young Gudobo girls gave birth to vigorous baby boys, for somehow while searching in the bond they had been seduced by the leopard’s tooth. Gekplo’s wife bore two sons in severe agony. The first to appear was Gbia then horn-blower, who gazed about him in surprise and blew a mighty blast on his horn to announce that Doe was coming. When Doe arrived he wore a cutlass strapped diagonally across his body: and, like all the other babies born around that time, Doe and Gbia refused the breast and demanded nuts and meat, and grew with amazing speed.
The character of the whole clan changed, and all the men felt confident and brave. The infants grew to manhood in two years, strong and lusty men who soon began to fight and kill each other. they drank all the springs and streams dry, killed elephants for pleasure and were in general strong and fierce beyond the nature of normal men.
Doe and Gbia grew into giants, formidable fellows who could pluck trees from the ground like rotten rice stalks. One day Doe saw the tribal drums and asked what their use was. He learned his clan were slaves, and not permitted to make the noise which could be made on drums; and, becoming angry at such foolish words, he beat the drums at once.
The hostile Bulobos heard the drums. They sent a group of warriors to seize and kill the drummer, but Doe crushed their skulls between two fingers like ripe berries and flung the bodies back in the general direction from which they came.
This meant war. The Bulobos wondered what form of madness had seized the weak Gudobos; but when their spies reported that the slaves had somehow raised a formidable army, the Bulobos were alarmed. They assembled an army themselves, consisting of their own warriors and those of friendly groups, and they marched to war against the Gudobos with their giant Gbovanh, and his horn-blower, in the vanguard.
The two armies met, and the killing was a fearful thing to see. For two days the battle raged and neither side would yield; and Gbovanh, the enemy giant, was causing such havoc that the Gudobos called on Doe and Gbia. They had kept their giant and horn-blower in reserve. Doe and Gbia decided to wear iron rings on their ankles to mock the Bulobos, reminding them the Gudobos had once been slaves; so they took iron bars and twisted them round their legs. when Doe walked his anklets rang out a song:
Wloko youm, kpoyo yum!
Wloko youm, kpoyo yum!
They walked towards the battlefield; but on the way they found palm wine, drank deep draughts and fell asleep. Warriors came to wake them, but could not. They thrust red hot irons in the horn-blower’s ear, and he awoke. He took his horn and blew:
“To battle, O mighty Doe.
Kill all you can, O mighty Doe!”
The summons aroused the strongest emotions and the strongest bravery. Doe awoke and seized his sword. Together they entered the battle, hacking and cutting and slashing and thrusting, destroying the very trees so that nothing was left standing. They slew the entire army except the enemy giant and his horn-blower, and then night fell.
Great was the feasting among the Gudobos that night! On the following day Doe and Gbia went forth again.
Wloko youm, kpoyo yum!
Wloko youm, kpoyo yum!
Gbia blew his trumpet.
“To battle, O Mighty Doe
“Kill all you can, O Mighty Doe!”
Gbovanh and his horn-blower appeared, and the enemy horn-blower blew such a deafening blast on his horn that rocks crumbled into sand. Gbia put his horn to his lips and blew till his muscles swelled and the veins stood out on his forehead. his rival trembled, his eyes bulged, and he fell down dead on the ground.
Doe and Gbovanh engaged in mortal combat. They struggled briefly, then Doe’s gleaming sword pierced Gbovanh through the throat and slit him from his bobbles to his brain. He tore his rival limb from limb and then ripped out the bones, and went on the massacre and ravished all the towns and people of the Bulobo clan.
Thenceforward the Gudobos lived a happy and peaceful life which did not agree at all with Doe and Gbia. the two giants served their people well and made great drums from the trunks of trees. When they were ready to marry they simply went into any house and took any number of young women until they did not want any more; whether the women were married or not they did not ask or care, and the clan grew and grew in a fashion marvelous to behold.
But since there was no more fighting, Doe and Gbia became less and less content, until one day they decided to leave. They entered a field which was being burned; the fire surrounded them and advanced, and they were burnt. The skies darkened, black clouds appeared, a great storm arose. There was a violent volley of thunder, and lightning stabbed the earth.
It was the first thunder and lightning known to the world. Gbia was up there blowing his mighty horn, and Doe was searching the world for other giants to kill with his gleaming sword.