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1 Chike Leaves His Village

Chike lived with his e of Uo His mother worked very hard to feed and clothe her three children and to send therew most of the food they ate-yaetables She also traded in dry fish, palm oil, kerosene, and matches

Chike was now eleven years old, and he had never left his village Then one day histo Onitsha in the new year to live with his uncle as a clerk in one of the firms there At first Chike was full of joy He was tired of living in a bush village and wanted to see a big city He had heard many wonderful stories about Onitsha His uncle’s servant, Michael, had told him that there was a water tap in the very compound where they lived Chike said this was i his first finger on his tongue and pointing it to the sky Chike was too thrilled for words So he would no longer wake up early in the e streah and stony, and sometimes children fell and broke their water-pots In Onitsha Chike would be free from all those worries Also he would live in a house with an iron roof instead of his mother’s poor hut of mud and thatch It all sounded so wonderful

But when the time actually caan to cry His sisters cried too, and even his ns of tears in her eyes She placed one hand on his head and said, “Go well, my son Listen to whatever your uncle says and obey hierous people and kidnappers Therefore do not wander about the city In particular do not go near the River Niger; et drowned there every year…”

She gave Chike many other words of advice He nodded his head and sniffed because his nose was running Chike’s nose always ran when he cried

“Stop crying,” said hisboys don’t cry”

Chike wiped his eyes with the back of his hand Then he took up his sht from James Okeke, the local carpenter Inside it were his few clothes and schoolbooks

“Let us go,” said his uncle who had been waiting patiently “If we don’t hurry noe shall miss the lorry” [1]

Chike set the box on his head and followed his uncle They were going to the main road half a e to Onitsha It was a very old lorry called Slow-and-Steady It always had great difficulty going up any hill Whenever it got to a steep hill the driver’swooden wedge Soers were asked to climb down and help push the lorry The forty-mile journey to Onitsha took Slow-and-Steady more than three hours Soht take a whole day or more

Chike was, however, lucky on the day he ood form and did not break down at all It only stopped after every hill to take a tin of water

2 Chike in Onitsha