Histories of Witches – Historias de Brujos
From Cuentos Populares en Chile (Chilean Folktales) – by Ramón A. Laval
Part 2 – Myths, Traditions, Things (Mitos, Tradiciones, Casos)
067. The Merchant Transformed Into A Donkey (El Comerciante Convertido En Burro)
Nicolás Fuenzalida, 70 years old, keeper of the National Library, told me this story in 1920, in the presence of several employees of the same Library, that as a young man around 20 years old, he had been a porter for a rich merchant who traveled all over the South with a drove of mules carrying merchandise, and he was one of ten or more men who accompanied him in his service and to guard him from bandits which infested the roads around that time; and that once when they were traveling on a journey, they lodged at the house of a well-off peasant who had several very beautiful daughters. They ate well and went to bed: the owner of the house by himself, in a well-furnished and comfortable room, and they, in the hayloft, taking care of the pack animals. They were to continue on the journey the next day, but the merchant was nowhere to be seen, although no one had seen him leave. They waited for three days and as the merchant did not appear, they gave notice to the deputy-supervisor (Subdelegado), who, in the meantime, took charge of the mules and their transport loads.
Fuenzalida and the other porters each went his own way.
Some years passed by, and Fuenzalida ran into his former employer in Santiago and asked him what had happened to him on that occasion. The merchant told him that the peasant who owned the house where they lodged had caught him in the middle of the night with the youngest of his daughters and, as revenge [punishment], had turned him into a donkey, for he was a sorcerer; that he had kept him there for six months making him work until exhaustion, and every night, before he went to bed, he gave him a thrashing that left him all banged up; that after six months, he then told him: -“I believe you have been properly punished for the lack of loyalty [disgrace] that you showed me in return for the hospitality that I gave you; but if you want to turn back into human form, you will have to sign a deed in which it is noted that I have bought from and paid you for the mules and merchandise that are still under the possession of the deputy-supervisor, and that you will give 10,000 pesos to my daughter as dowry; if not, you will remain a donkey for the rest of your life.” He had no choice but to accept, for if he had refused, he would still be a donkey and be living with hunger and going to bed after a formidable thrashing every night.
—– VOCABULARY —–
Recua – (group of pack animals) drove, train (figurative); (group of people or things) drove
Resguardar – (to shelter) to protect, to shield
Resguardarse – (to find shelter) to shelter, to take shelter; (to safeguard oneself; used with “de”) to protect oneself, to defend oneself
Alojar – (to give housing to) to accommodate, to house, to put up (in someone’s house)
Alojarse – (to be lodged) to stay, to be housed; (to be stuck) to get lodged
Cómoda – (furniture) chest of drawers; bureau; dresser
Pajar – hayloft; haystack; barn; stack
Rendido – (tired out) exhausted, worn-out; (unconditional) devoted; (surrendered) submissive
Propinar – (to deliver) to give, to deal
Propinarse – (to get) to treat oneself to
Derrengado – (very tired) exhausted; (not straight) bent, twisted
Lealtad – (faithfulness) loyalty, allegiance
Escritura – (technique) writing, handwriting; (system of signs) script, writing; (legal) deed; (religious) scripture
Constar – (to be clear) to know for a fact, to be sure; (to be present; used with “en”) to appear on, to be noted in, to be recorded in, to be stated on; (to comprise; used with “de”) to consist of, to be made up of
Previo – (preceding) prior, previous, preliminary; (cinema) playback