A Study of the Logbara Ma di Language

Grammar and Vocabulary J. P.

Crazzolara
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 LINGUISTIC SURVEYS OF AFRICA

Volume 4

A STUDY OF
THE LOGBARA (MA’DI) LANGUAGE
 A STUDY OF
THE LOGBARA (MA’DI) LANGUAGE
Grammar and Vocabulary

J. P. CRAZZOLARA
First published in 1960 by Oxford University Press
This edition first published in 2018
by Routledge
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and by Routledge
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© 1960 International African Institute
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ISBN: 978-1-138-08975-4 (Set)

ISBN: 978-1-315-10381-5 (Set) (ebk)
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ISBN: 978-1-315-10708-0 (Volume 4) (ebk)

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 A STUDY OF THE
LOGBARA (MA’DI)
LANGUAGE
Grammar and Vocabulary

BY

J. P. CRAZZOLARA, F.S.C.J.
(VERONA FATHERS)

Published fo r the
INTERNATIONAL AFRICAN IN ST ITU T E
by the
OXFORD U N IV E R S IT Y PRESS
LONDON NEW YORK TORONTO
i 960
Oxford University Press, Am en House , London E .C .4
GLASGOW NEW YORK TORONTO MELBOURNE W ELLINGTON

BOM BAY CALCUTTA MADRAS KARACHI KUALA LUM PU R

CAPE TOWN IBAD AN N AIROBI ACCRA

© International African Institute i q 6o

PRINTED IN GREAT BRITAIN

 I NTRODUCTI ON

I n introducing this Grammar and Vocabulary a few preliminary

notes on the linguistic and ethnological relationship between the
Logbara and their nearer and remoter neighbours m ay be o f some
interest.

1. First o f all then: T h e Logbara people live between, roughly,

2° 30' N . 30° 30' E. and 30 30' N . 3 10 30' E. extending from the
west bank o f the N ile, about 50 miles north of Lake Albert, inland
and westwards across the political boundary into the Belgian
Congo. T h e y number about 250,000 to 280,000.
2. T h e Logbara language belongs to the M a ’di1 group of lan­
guages, just as, say, Acooli belongs to the L w oo12 group. T h e
name ‘Logbara’ was introduced into general use by the white
colonizers, probably first by the Belgians. H ow this term originated
cannot be definitely determined. There is in the Aringa area a tribal
group called Logbara as well as a clan group called Logbâarà—
quite small groups. T h e name may have come to the ears o f some
early traveller or government official in the area, who probably took
it to comprise the whole tribe; the name has since remained as
the collective name for this division. A ll Logbara agree, however,
that they are of the M a’di nation, that they are M a’di. T h e y are
called M a ’ di by the A luur of Okööro, their immediate neighbours,
in Bunyoro and Buganda.
3. T h e M a’di and Lw oo peoples: their age and relationship are
pertinent matters. T h e M a’di are entitled to lay claim to the
title of ‘ancestors’ o f at least a considerable section of the Lwoo.
T h e dissociation of the two peoples takes us back to a period not
m uch later than a .d . 1000 when, we must infer, the Lw oo partly,
or possibly wholly, came into being, i.e. started their separate
existence.3 T h e M a’di appear to be infinitely older than the Lwoo.
T h e important historic fact in this regard is that the large M a’di
nation, up to about a .d . 1000, were the occupants of the territories

1 Or, to be more exact, Ma’df.

2 Lwoo is a branch of the Jii group of languages.
3 The manner of this separation and the origin of the Lwoo has been touched
upon in The Lwoo, Part III, published by the Missioni Africane, Verona, 1954.
on the east and west of the Nile, from about the Mongalla area
in the north to about Lake Albert in the south. T h e greater part
of the people, however, lived towards the north and west, w hile
in the vicinity of Lake Albert, if they reached it at all in those early
times, the M a ’di population was less dense. T o the east of the M a’di
lived, almost in their entirety, the even larger L a g o nation. T h e
‘W estern L a g o ’ occupied almost the whole of present-day A cooli
country, reaching the Nile only at about W adelai (Wod-Lei) and
to the south as far as Lake Albert, and from that longitude on,
occupying present Aluur country also. But in this region the L a g o
and M a’di lived side by side, more or less intermixed, from very
early times. T h is was the state o f things up to about a .d . i ooo .
4. A t that period, or not much later, the M ongalla region o f the
M a’di country experienced a forceful invasion b y strong ‘Eastern-
L ag o ’ tribal groups. T h e first wave o f invasion appears to have been
by the Pàdzùlü. T hese were later followed b y the Low i or L o o i
(commonly nicknamed Kakoâ), who fought the aboriginal M a ’di
and the previous Pàdzùlü invaders (the latter apparently even m ore
savagely) and occupied part o f the country. T h e n a third w ave
arrived, another Eastern-Lago division, nowadays known as the
Bari.1 It was probably the Low i who ravished the country the more
violently and before whom various M a’di groups, mixed with frag ­
ments of Pàdzùlü, chose to retire in practically every direction to
remoter regions. W e may conclude from various traditional sources
that the removal to new areas apparently did not take place all at
one time, but probably continued over the centuries. T h e whole
movement was, overall, a withdrawal to the nearer or farther peri­
phery of former M a’di-occupied territories as w ell as a considerable
extension o f the periphery in various directions, in particular at
the expense largely of the ‘W estern-Lago’ . T h e invaders— the
Eastern-Lago— thus came to form a large wedge-shaped enclave
in M a’di-land, remaining almost completely surrounded by M a ’di
divisions, such as the Mörö, Àvokàyâ, Kàliko, Logo, Lôgbàrà,
M à’di-M oyo, and M à’di-Opari (Nilotic Sudan). T h e M lsâ-
M ondô and Màkàràkâ appear as larger groups among the Logo.
T h u s it appears that the M a’di have lived on the Nile from
immemorial times.
5. N ow to come back to our Logbara in particular: the origin
o f their present-day existence as a distinct, separate, and indepen­
dent people, goes back to that time o f invasion, shifting, and migra-
1 This was not their original name.
tion. It is important to appreciate the fact that the routes b y which
they came to their present country followed no single pattern. T h e
Logbara of today, as a whole, came from three different main
directions :
(a) It would seem, though there is no real evidence to support
it, that a first and large group came from, broadly speaking, the
region o f Y e i via modern Aba, roughly along the present Belgian
Congo border, and entered the W est N ile district o f Uganda,
penetrating in an easterly direction for about io miles. T hese were
the ‘ South-eastern M a ’di’ group of the W est-M a’di.
(b) Large groups of M a’di, coming from the north to the east
or west of the Nile, had left to invade W estern-Lago territories,
or modern Acooli-land. One gets the impression that the refugee
M a’di who reached the area of the upper Onyama and Ayugi
plateau (modern Patiko) were so numerous that they themselves
considered the territory too narrow to contain them all comfortably.
Hence various groups at different times set out in a westerly
direction towards the Nile. One such group, a large one (from
modern Acooli-land, so the people themselves insist), probably
the first in this region, reached the Nile, crossed it at about Rhino
Camp, and moved inland for a distance of 30 to 40 miles to ’Bs Ëtl1
in the region of Terego. B y separating and spreading from here
(Tercgo) the greater part o f modern Logbara country was occupied
as far south as Ofâkà, Logîrr, and the Belgian Congo as far as Arjal.
T hese belonged to the Eastern-M a’di group.
(c) A third group came from the north, passed Lom ule (Nimule)
and, south o f Rhino Camp, crossed the N ile to the west and
occupied the mainly flat land of Olepi, Okolo, and, most probably,
a considerable part o f present-day Aluur-land, extending even into
Bunyoro. T hese were the M à’df-N dri or, as they are called in
A luur— the M a’di-D yel (lit. ‘G oat-M a’di’) and, in Bunyoro— the
Abatem buzi (supported by the N yoro ‘ aristocracy’). T hese were
the southern section o f the Eastern-M a’di.
6. W hat are nowadays called the Logbara were thus, on arrival
in their present country, a motley collection o f groups fleeing from
different parts o f the country and having different social and
political affiliations— refugees in search of a new home. T h e y were
far from being ‘ one’ nation and, apparently, never felt themselves
to be a united people : they hardly do so even now. T h e two last

1 Arabic Jebel Woti.

mentioned (those who came to Terego and O lepi) were possibly
two separate tribes, and to some extent, even now , feel themselves
to be (and w ith reason, it would appear) each a distinct tribal unit.
T h e remaining Logbara (those from the Y e i region) probably
represent quite a number of fragments— disparate groups, coming
only roughly from one direction (the north-west) but as distinct,
detached groups fleeing towards the unknown, in search of a new
home: in the end they met by chance in w hat is now Logbara
country.
T h e main tribal groups of present-day Logbara country are : in
the north (W est-Nile, Uganda)— the Ramogi, O ’dupi, Odravo,
Ariqga, A ’upi, Omugo, Rigbo (these are L ow i), Ulivu, Iyi’ba,
Iyiidu; in the centre— the Terego, Maratsa, Ofode, Mundru, Olovo,
Kidzomoro, Ewadri, Oredzini, Otsodri, Oreeko, Oleevo, Aivu,
Oluko, Adziia, Aripi, Pàdzùlü, M itsu, Adöm i, Vura, Otsoko,
A rivu; in the south— the M a’di-N dri, Ofaka, L ogirr; in the Belgian
Congo— the Awozak, Aluuru, Kaliko, Luu, Otso, Dïïo.
T h e number and variety of dialects in the different parts of the
country serve but to reflect the very nature o f the origin of the
people.
7. Existing conditions, resulting from the past history of L o g ­
bara, have made it difficult to decide which dialect of the language
to choose for purposes of this analysis. In deciding upon the
dialect spoken around Arua, the district headquarters of the W est
N ile (Northern Province), i.e. the dialect of the A ivu and Pàdzùlü,
as a basis for this Grammar and Vocabulary, the author has allowed
considerations of practicability alone to influence his choice and
has disregarded such criteria as— which is the ‘authentic’ or ‘proper’
or ‘best type o f’ Logbara, since such claims are, in his opinion,
untenable when applied to any one of the existing dialects.
T h e Grammar as a whole, in its general features, details or rules,
is common to all parts of the country. T h e Vocabulary, however,
differs considerably from one part to another. T h e region of the
Tersgo-Om ugo forms a major language-group having a more or
less uniform, distinctive dialect; whereas the larger, further distant
areas, such as Logirr, Adömi, &c., have, in their turn, their own
distinctive peculiarities. T h e most distant dialect is apparently
that of the M a’di-N dri (also called Màdé) of the Olepi-Okolo area.
T h e Vocabulary here given, as a rule, registers not only A ivu-
Pàdzùlü words, but numerous terms from other dialects have also
been included for purposes of comparison; only in exceptional
 cases, however, are M a’di-N dri terms given, otherwise we might be
led too far afield. M any terms belonging to individual dialects
may in time become general, since intercommunication between
the different groups nowadays is unhampered. Several of these
‘special’ terms are not in common use at present, but by and large
are understood by everybody. T o include these words, while it
might serve to expand the Vocabulary, would, at this stage, prob­
ably only confuse the student.
8. Another important factor, connected with the M a’di, is formed
by the linguistic traces of M a’di found in the Jii languages generally,
and more particularly in those of the Lwoo. History seems to give
plain hints as to how the two peoples came into contact, or how
M a’di elements came to be introduced into the Jii (Nueer, Denka,
Lwoo) languages.
W hen the M a’di as a whole had to abandon their home and the
movement of dispersion started, one larger group, or possibly a
number of groups, moved north-west along the N ile and eventually
reached and settled in modern Atwot country or thereabouts,
which was the home of the Lwoo, and where the M a’di at that time
were incorporated with them. These M a’di groups joined the Lwoo
as well as the Denka and the Nueer.
M a’ di influences in the Jii languages though not numerous are
evident. T h e manner, period, and degree of this influence has yet
to be investigated in detail ; such a study may eventually lead to very
interesting results. T h e traces of M a’di found in LuN yoro, Lu-
Ganda, &c., go back, essentially, to the same early period of
migratory movement.
9. Particular M a’di traces in the Aluur, Acooli, &c., languages go
back to a more recent past. As mentioned above, when the Lwoo
arrived they found the respective countries largely in the hands of
M a’di tribal groups, side by side, perhaps, with no less considerable
L ago groups. It was probably the rather unsettled state of affairs
under such entangled conditions that favoured, or rather, was
responsible for, the arrival of the neutral Lwoo and their installation
as unprejudiced rulers in the country, and the adoption of the Lwoo
language and customs by both the M a’di and L ago tribal groups.
It is not difficult to understand how numbers of useful M a’di and
L ago words came to be retained in the new language— evidence of
old times and events.
10. The Logbara language. T h e present Grammar and Vocabu­
lary.
 Logbara, as has been shown, is one of the M a ’di languages. It
differs considerably from the M a ’di spoken in the neighbouring
north-eastern regions b y the M oyo and Opari and from that o f its
western neighbours, the Logo and Kaliko, with all o f whom contact
is easy. O n ly a short time, say about a month, is necessary in the
neighbouring region to pick up, more or less, the other’s language
without m uch difficulty. T h e languages of the Avokaya and the
Mörö, in the farther north-west N ilotic Sudan, no doubt have less
in common w ith Logbara.
T h e following features are characteristic o f Logbara and, to a
great extent, of the other M a’di languages :
1. Tone plays an extremely important part in the composition
and the distinguishing o f words.
2. T h e large number of monosyllabic root-words, especially
verbs. T h e y consist of an open syllable, i.e. consonant (or con­
sonant combination) plus vowel: C + V . A few consist of a single
vowel only, or a vowel preceded b y a glottal stop.
3. Am ong the consonant sounds, the velar-labials g b , k p , g g b ;
the labio-velar-labial m ijg b , and the ‘glottal’ sounds 9 before
vowels and in ’b, ’d, ’w , ’y are characteristic.
4. There is no grammatical gender.
5. T here are no true articles.
6. T here is no declension for cases ; ‘case’ relationship is shown
b y position o f words in the sentence, or else b y means of post­
positions.
7. In the genitive construction the Possessor (genitive or nomen
rectum) w ith the postposition m à (expressed or implicit) precedes
the Possessed (nomen regens); w ith the other postpositions the
Possessor follows the Possessed.
8. T h e adjective as attribute follows its noun.
9. T here is no conjugation o f any form : the verb is invariable
except for intonation. T h e personal pronoun or any other sub­
ject is sim ply placed in front o f the verb; some change occasionally
takes place in the tone-pattern of the verb.
10. T here is no passive voice; the third person plural of the verb
is often used in an impersonal passive sense.
11. T h e prefixes a-, e-, o- appear as Verb Formatives to express
special meanings.
12. T h ere is a general tendency to place constructional particles
(such as relative pronouns, prepositions or postpositions, con­
junctions, See.) after the term they refer to, or towards the end of
the sentence.

13. T h e terms for the different parts of the body are used as
postpositions or, more especially, as a kind o f auxiliary noun in
colloquial phraseology.

N o te: O f the above features, Nos. 1, 4, 5, 6, (7), 8, 10, 13 are

common to the Logbara and Acooli (or L w oo); Nos. 2, 3, (7), 9,
i i , 12, are peculiar to the Logbara (or M a’di).
Orthography : T h e orthography adopted in this book, which has
been worked out b y the author as a result of his own field researches,
differs in some respects from that recently adopted for schools and
official publications. Forms used in the present study are listed
first, those used by schools, &c., follow in brackets: a or ä (a);
e or e (e) ; ë or 1 (i) ; i (i) ; 9 or o (o) ; ö or u (u) ; d z (j) ; t s (c) ;
gb or m g b (g b ) ; k p (kp) ; g g (n g ) ; double vowels (not used).
J. P. C.
Catholic Mission
Lira, Uganda
28th September, 1953
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

A f t e r two unsuccessful attempts, in 1937 and 1939, to make a

study o f the Logbara language, in 1950 1 was charged by the diocesan
authorities of G ulu with the task of providing a book on the lan ­
guage. T h e credit for this last definitive enterprise must go to the
persistence o f the Rev. Fr. C . Tupone, Diocesan Secretary o f
Education.
I enjoyed m y study of the language, but m y health often failed,
and I am afraid the work suffered because o f this. I was especially
conscious of the need for a thorough revision o f the English text o f
the book, and I am very much obliged to the International A frican
Institute for having undertaken this very necessary work on the
manuscript.
I gratefully acknowledge the part of the U ganda Government in
providing the necessary funds for this publication, through the
kind interest of M r. R. M . Bere and M r. E. C . Powell-Cotton,
Provincial Commissioners, Northern Province. I should also like to
thank the Secretary of the Languages Board, M r. J. D . Chesswas,
for his assistance throughout, and all those others who have helped
me in any way.
J. P. C .
C.C. Lira
16 th November, 1958
 CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION. . . . . Page v

ACKNOW LEDGEM ENTS . . . . xii

C hapter i . SOUNDS . . . . . i

I. Alphabet. Orthography § i . . . . i
1. Vowels. §§ 2 -1 1 . . . . . I
2. Diphthongs. §§ 12-14 . . . . * 3
3. Consonants. §§15-32 . ■ . . < 4
Tone marks. §§ 33-34 • • • •7
II. Sound Changes. §§35-42 . . . 8

C h a p t e r 2. I N T O N A T I O N § 43 . . . .9
Intonation and Verbs. §§ 44-52 . . . .1 0
Number of Tones, §§ 53-57 . . . . . 1 1
Inter-tonic Reaction. §§ 58-61 . . . .1 2

C h a p t e r 3. M O R P H O L O G I C A L N O T E S : A Summary,
§§ 62-77 . . . . . . . 13

P A R T ONE: G R A M M A R
G e n e r a l R u l e s f o r L o g b a r a . §78 . . 17

C h a p t e r 4. N O U N §79 . . . . .17
I. Number. §§ 80-89 • • • • .17
II. Case. §§90-119 . . . . . . 20
III. Gender. §§120-30 . . . . .24

C h a p t e r 5. A D J E C T I V E S § 131 . « . * 2 7
G e n e r a l R u l e s f o r A d j e c t i v e s . § 132 . . . 27
I. Epithet or Attributive Use. §§133-8 . . * 2 7
II. Predicative Use. §139 . . . . .2 8
C l a s s i f i c a t i o n o f A d j e c t i v e s § 140 . . . 28
1. Primary or Original Adjectives. §§141-6. . . 28
2. Derived Adjectives. §§147-55 • • • 30
C o m p a r i s o n . §§ 156-66 . , . . - 3 4
C h a p t e r 6. N U M E R A L S . . . . . 3 7
I. Cardinal Numbers. §§ 167-72 . . . * 3 7
II. Ordinal Numbers. §§ 173-7 . . . .4 0
III. Distributive Numbers. § 178 . . . .4 1
IV. Multiplicative Numbers. § 179 . . .4 1

C h a p t e r 7. P R O N O U N S §180 . . . . 4 2
I. P e r s o n a l P r o n o u n s . . . . 4 2
A. Absolute or Full-form. §§181-97* . . .4 2
R. Short-form Personal Pronouns. §§ 198—205 . . 45
II. R e f l e x i v e P r o n o u n s —E m p h a s i z i n g P a r t i c l e s § 206 47
A. Emphasizing Particles. §§ 207-16 . . .4 7
B. Reflexive Pronouns* §§ 217-19 . . .4 9
III. P o s s e s s i v e P r o n o u n s . §§220-41 . . *5©
IV. D e m o n s t r a t i v e P r o n o u n s §§ 242-52 . . 54
V. R e l a t i v e P r o n o u n s §§ 253-6 . . * 5 6
A. Clauses with Relative Pronoun as Subject. §§ 257-62 . 57
B. Clauses with Relative Pronoun as Direct Object. §§263-6 58
C. Clauses with Relative Pronoun as Indirect Object.
§§ 267-8 . . . . . 59
VI. I n t e r r o g a t i v e P r o n o u n s § 269-71 . . 60
I. À ’dï? §§ 272-5 . . . . . 61
IL À ’do? §§ 276-80 . . . .6 2
III. À ’doko? §§281-4 . . . . .6 2
IV. ttg à pi. iïéàï?§§ 285-9 . . . .6 3
V . JÖg6? and its compounds. §§290-2 . . .6 4
VII. I n d e f i n i t e P r o n o u n s and A djectives §§293-8 . 65

C h a p t e r 8. T H E C O P U L A §299 . . . .6 6
I. The Predicate: an Adjective or a Noun. §§ 300-5. .67
II. The Auxiliary Verbs a ’ä, avö, adri. §§ 306-9 . . 68
III. A d ri (or a ’ä, ovö). §310 . . . . 6 9
IV. T sf— Yo. §311 . . . . . . 7 0
V. ‘To have’, and how it is rendered in Logbara. §§ 312-16 . 71
C h a p t e r 9. V E R B §317-20 . . . . 72
S c h e m e o f C o n j u g a t i o n . §§321-7 . . .7 3
Coalescence of vowels in the Conjugation. §§ 328-30 . 74
T he L o g b a r a S y s t e m o f S e n t e n c e S t r u c t u r e §§331-2 74
I. C o n s t r u c t i o n o f I n c o m p l e t e d A c t i o n ( C I A )
§§ 333 • • • • • - 7 5
1. Characteristics of the CIA. §§334-51 . . 75
2. The Extensional Use of the CIA. § 352 . 78
A. The Infinitive. §§ 353-8 . . . * 7 9
B. The Present Indicative. §§ 359-61 . . 80
C. The Future Tense. §§ 362-8 . . .8 1
II. C o n s t r u c t i o n o f C o m p l e t e d A c t i o n — (C C A )
§ 369 . . . . . .8 3
1. Characteristics of the CCA. §§ 370-9 . . 83
2. Extensional Use of the CCA § 380 . . *8 5
A. The Past Tense. §§ 381-6 . . *8 5
B. The Imperative. §§ 387-93 . . -8 7
C. The Hortative Mood. §§ 394-407 . . 88
1. The Form of the Hortative. §§ 394-402 . 88
2. Use and Constructional Forms of the Hortative.
§§ 403-7 • • • .9 0
D. Special Cases. §§ 408-9 . . . .9 2
The Negative Sentence. §§ 410-11 . . 92
R e d u p l i c a t i o n o f V e r b s . §§ 412-19 . . * 9 3
T he R e f l e x i v e V e r b . §§ 420-5 . . 95
S t r e s s i n g o f V e r b s . §§426-30 . . . . 9 6
S p e c i a l V e r b a l F o r m s : Participle, Gerund, &c., Verbal
Noun §§431-6 . . . . . .9 8

C h a p t e r 10. C O N J U N C T I O N S § 437-8 . . .9 9
Co-ordinating Conjunctions. §§ 439-46 . . .100
S u b o r d i n a t e C l a u s e s i n L o g b a r a § 447
. . 102
1. Adverbial Clause of Time (-condition). §§448-57 . 102
2. Ka, kàni . . ., Adverbial Clause of Condition. §§ 458-67 . 104
3. Clause of Unreal Condition. §§ 468-71 . . . 107
 4. Adverbial Clause of Concession or Contrast. §§ 472-5 . 108
5. Correlative Conjunction kàni . . . àânï; n àsi . . . §§ 476-7 108
6. The General or Introductory Conjunction kèni/kéni § 478 109
7. Subordinate Clause of Reason: . . . -ri si. §§ 479-80 . 109
8. Subordinate Clause of Purpose: . . . -z6 (-ri). §§ 481-6 . no
The Negative Clause of Purpose. §487 . . .112

C h a p t e r i i . P O S T P O S I T I O N S . §§488-526 . . 113

C h a p t e r 12. A D V E R B S §§ 527-8 . . . . 124

1. Adverbs of Time. §§ 529-34 . . . . 124
2. Adverbs of Place. §§ 535-8 . . . . 128
3. Adverbs of Manner. §§539-45 . • . . 130
4. Other Common Adverbs. §§546-51 . . . 136

C h a p t e r 13. I N T E R J E C T I O N S . §§552-3 * . 139

A P P E N D I X § 554 140

I. N ï: Its Various Forms and Uses §§ 555-7 . . 14°

1. The asserting ni. §558 . . . . 141
2. The possessive-reflexive ni. § 559 . . , 141
3. The dative case postposition nf. § 560 . . 142
4. The stressing nï. §§561-71 . . . 142
II. -rïrï. § 572 . . • • -145
, A. -R i §§ 573-4 ' • • * • I45
B. -R i-a -ing. §§ 575-83 . . - • ^45
C. -R i as an Adjectival or Relative Particle . . 148
1. Adjectives; Verbal Derivatives; Relative Clauses
§§ 584-9 • • • . . 148
2. The Relative Clause. §§ 590-3 . . . 149
3. Adjectives -ri/-’di, ’dii. §§ 594-5 • • • J5°
III. The -zà form of Verbal Adjectives §§ 596-601 . • 151
IV. -rö, the Predicative Suffix of Complement §§ 602-5 . 153
V. Impersonal Constructions: Auxiliary Nouns §§606-8 . 154
 VI. The Auxiliary Nouns in Logbara § 609 . . . 155
A. D ri. §§ 610-24 • . . • .156
B. T i. §§ 625-36 . . . . .158
C. A s i. §§ 637-40 . . . . . 159
D. Bbilé. §§ 641-2 . . . . . 160
E. M ile. § 643 . . . . . 160
F. Rüä. §§ 644 . . . . . 161
G. . . . m à tà m ba. § 645 . . . .161
V II. T he V e r b . . . . . . 162
A. Root of Verbs, and Prefixes. §§ 646-54 . . 162
B. The Parts of a Sentence and their Relative Position.
§§ 655-8 . . . . . .164
C. Multiplicity of Verbs. §§ 659-61 . . . 165
D. Auxiliary Verbs. §§ 662-6 . . . . 166
E. Notes on Some Special Tenses and Moods : Té. §§ 667-70 167
F. Special Verbal Constructions §§ 671-80 . . 169
Adverbials § 681 . . . . . 172
Note on Verbal Tones: Exceptions. § 682 . .172

PART TW O. V O C AB U LA RY 173
 SOUNDS

I. Alphabet
Orthography
1 . The orthography adopted in this book follows that of the Rejaf
Language Conference (1928) and its suggestions ; and also the explanations
contained in D. Westermann and Ida C. Ward, Practical Phonetics for
Students of African Languages, London, 1933.
The/central’ type of vowel for the o-sound considered at the Rejaf con­
ference is represented by the symbol Ö, and, by analogy, for the marking
of other vowels of the same type, the diacritical mark " (diaeresis) is
employed, thus avoiding special symbols.

I. Vowels
2 . General notes. (1 ) Special vowels, as distinct from the ordinary ones,
are represented by special symbols (e, 0) or the diacritical mark “ ; in addi­
tion, the mark of nasalization ~ (tilde) is occasionally used. All other signs,
above the vowels or consonants, serve to indicate intonation.
(2) All vowels may be short or long or of intermediate length. Long
vowels are shown by doubling the symbol, and similarly with long con­
sonants.
It is often very difficult to determine the length of a sound or even the
quality of a vowel; for the Logbara, in running together the words of a
perhaps rather complicated sentence, elide many of the vowels. This gives
the impressioi^ that Logbara speech is careless or slipshod. Furthermore,
the influence and variety of dialects, strongly felt everywhere, encourages
vagueness on questions of pronunciation. Even natives themselves are
often found discussing the pronunciation of a word or its vowels. Some­
times these discussions end in unanimity ; at other times they refrain from
committing themselves, agreeing that various districts have different
pronunciations. As a result of such vagueness, the present book will
sometimes show up differences in transcribing a word ; this reflects the
actual state of things rather than a lack of consistency. The student should
not forget this circumstance.
(3 ) The ordinary vowels have the Italian values.
3 . The single vowels. (A) i and Ï: respectively cardinal i and central
Ï, roughly as in Engl, ‘see’ and ‘bit’. Many words, in Logbara, are dis­
tinguished only by these two different types of i-sound. Central ï is
B
apparently more frequent, and Logbara pronunciation seems to tend in ­
stinctively towards it. In a good number of words the ï is quite clear, in
other crises it is not ; in cases where no difference of meaning results, it may
not matter if no distinction in writing is made.
4 . Examples:
bi to bend down bi to catch
bbl eary leaf ’bi(ka) feather
dzi to bring dzi to sharpen
si toothy point si hailstone
si to fit si to tear; with
ti cow ti in vain
5. (B) e, e, ë. Logbara has three distinct e-sounds. The close or
central ë is very marked, it tends towards ï ; these two are often difficult
to distinguish. In the case of gèri or giri (way) both pronunciations are
actually in use, ë = L The general tendency is ë = ï, as ’aléâ or ’aliâ
(in). The open E largely prevails in Logbara. A medium quality between
E and ë does also exist, as in the personal pronouns é thouf è you, èi they,
but generally the fluctuating character of the language often makes it
difficult to decide which is correct, e or e. Apparently, however, the differ­
ence of E and e does not serve to distinguish words. One might well adopt
the convention that, with the exception of ë, the Logbara e-sound can be
pronounced as e, as a rule, and, with this understanding, the symbol E
could be abolished.
Future practice might decide in favour of these three symbols : i, ï (= ë),
e (= e). The present book keeps to the distinction : i, ï/ë, e, e.
6. Examples:
bbl èdo lobe of ear èdrè to set upright
fè to give lè to like nè to see
kénà all kèni says that èdü dense
àmvé outside mèëri the Nile edzi left
kérèa small calabash mbèlè quickly Dêèyèggéyè Nile pike
H,âreki target meenôa a termite
7. (C) a, ä. Open a, as in Engl, ‘path’, and dull ä with a tendency
towards E. This ä is quite distinct from the former a in ordinary pro­
nunciation. However, what is pronounced in one district with ä may be
pronounced with a in another area, though this is not usual.
ma, â I y me à, àma weyus
màarf gourd-blowing instrument màârf loany debt
kàméè spoon kàmi lion pâti àgaf side of tree
gârâma branch gäri rainbow dàâli depressed (ground)
8. (D) o, o, ö. We have here almost a parallel to the above-mentioned
three e-sounds. The open o (cf. aw in ‘law’) is the most frequent of the
o-sounds and next to this in frequency is the close Ö. The middle or normal
o is less frequent and on account of its unstable nature (in Logbara
speech) is often difficult to delineate. The symbols o (= «>), ö might
suffice.
9 . Examples:
alofe bridge as6 bean asa to pierce
ado oily fat ôm stoney rock öbirö or äbiö rhinoceros
6su bow fÔ to go out fa to itch
èndzà lie endzô a shrub andzi bad
5pi chiefy king 5 ko woman, wife öku old (of the past)
10 . (E) u, as in Engl. ‘food’,
m u to go m v u to drink öm vu nose
i)gürû wild beast (of prey) rü name
àvù to bow down àvo a corpse
Special symbols
11 . (i ) Nasalization. Nasalization is not a common feature in Logbara.
When it occurs it is found in the diminutive suffix -a, and marked in this
book with the sign -a. The vowel preceding this suffix takes over
nasalization too. It seems, however, that many people do not trouble
about nasalization in this case ; this may be due to the influence of foreigners
who, in most cases, do not even bother about its existence. Examples :
èv6 a basket èvôoâ (or simply èvoôa) a tiny little basket

2. Diphthongs
12. (i) Of the ordinary type of rising diphthongs (or union of vowels
forming a single syllable) consisting of semi-vowel plus vowel, the common
forms with w and y do exist. Thus : if to w and y (and, for that matter,
to any consonant) any of the vowel sounds used in Logbara is added,
a full-formed verb is obtained, or, to a lesser extent, a noun.
Combinations of consonant + w or y do not exist with the unimportant
exceptions of hwe, hw i.
(2) Examples:
w aa vn. to swim; be clean, be fresh (milk) ; to jump; to stop (raining)
we to swim; to sweep
w i (wï) vn. to grow; to pinch off, to skin; to ripen; to dry; to split
N.B. W i very often has the alternate form uu/wu (cf. vocabulary),
w uu vt. to collect; to skin, to bark
ya vt. /vn. to move, tremble; to knock; to besprinkle, to till
ye vt. to do, make
y ï to throw away
yo/ya to bask; to assuage; to speak; there is not
yuu av. lukewarm
 (3) To root words of this kind prefixes (a, e, o) or other syllables may
be added to form other words.
Vowel plus w or y combinations are practically non-existent.
13. As to pronunciation, w and y of Logbara correspond roughly to
English w in ‘will’, or y in ‘yes’ .
(1) W is a weak o-glide rather than an u-glide.
(2) Y is generally difficult to perceive before i. In some districts the
y-glide before i is definitely perceptible, in others not. Natives have taken
to writing yi in place of double ii, e.g. Ïyï-Ïyï in place of if-M (leisurely),
or iyl for ii (water) : it may be more practical. As far as pronunciation goes
this can be interpreted either as a prolonged i or as a very soft y-glide
plus i ; it is not the strong y of Engl. ‘year’.
14. Ordinary vowel combinations, giving the impression of diphthongs,
do occur in Logbara, but they must be considered as separate syllables.
Examples :
ai to scatter àô to cry à’bôà banana rùâ body

3. Consonants
15. While the Logbara and their south-eastern Lwoo neighbours have
an approximately identical system of vowels, the former have, however,
a distinctive system of consonants, by which it at once becomes evident
that the Ma’di and Lwoo represent two distinct types of language. Logbara
has a greater variety of consonants and consonant combinations.
16. Vowel-consonant pronunciation. While in Logbara, as has been
mentioned already, vowels are, onè might almost say, generally pronounced
in a leisurely or vague way, eventually with complete suppression (as is
short 1 among consonants), the consonants are commonly pronounced
with considerable force, thus creating the impression of being doubled.
(In this book they are occasionally written doubled.)
17 . The consonants and consonant-combinations of Logbara are these :
b, ’b, d, ’d, dr, dz, f, pf, g, gb, \ h, k, kp, 1, m , m b-m v, m ggb, n,
nd, ndr, ndz, gg, n,, p, r, s, t, tr, ts, v, w , ’w, y, ’y, z
18. The following consonant symbols have the English sound values:
b, f, p, v e.g. bâkâ rope; pâ leg; fàlâ(ké) bone; vàâ on the ground
g, h, k e.g. ga to fill, to cut ; hwèe to burst ; ka to shine
m , n e.g. m a I ; àm a we ; nna three ; nè to see
s, z e.g. sö barb; z (as in Engl, ‘zeal’) zâ meat
i)g ( = n g as in Engl, ‘finger’) e.g. i)ga to rise
H, (= ny) (as -gn in French ‘Boulogne’) e.g. éx\äpolenta ; ài\,â corn
The Terego group uses n forîf, regularly; D (= ng as in Engl, ‘sing’) is
not in use. pf (bilabial) is occasionally heard in place pf f, as pforöpförö
easily crumbled.
 19 . Special consonants : d and t are dentals (or almost interdentals) as in
English ‘this* and ‘thick’. Examples :
di to forge tib l savoury
20. the glottal stop, i.e. a momentary stopping of the breath-current
bringing the vocal chords together, an analogy to the guttural stop for
g or k.
(a) It is used as an ordinary consonant and may occur before any vowel
and before the consonants b, d : ’b, ’d ; or before the semi-vowels w and y :
’w, ’y. Examples:
’alé inside ’é (= ’yé) arrow
'tpi proprietor ’a ( = ’ye) to do
’bâ ’dà that man ’bà to put ’be to throw
’d6 eleusine ’de to die de to finish
dà to pour ’da to insult ’w ï to dry
w ï to pinch off, skin ’ya to speak ya there is not
(b) This glottal stop often serves to distinguish words otherwise alike,
cf. the examples above and the Vocabulary. Consonants preceded by
a glottal stop have also been called ‘implosive’ consonants. T o the
author in the two sounds *ba and gba we have two essentially equal
‘explosives’ : the one being preceded by a glottal stop Çba) the other by
a guttural or velar stop {gba).
{c) Verbs consisting of a simple vowel only, e.g. ’a and ’i, but with a
variety of shades and meanings, are mostly preceded by the glottal plosive ’.
21 . As this * is a consonant, it functions, of course, as such in the
following ways :
(a) It obviates a hiatus and, because of it vowels which would otherwise
meet, are never contracted: e.g. dz6 ’aléa in the hut.
(b) Before verbs composed of * plus a vowel, the shortened forms of
personal pronouns (e, a) are used, as is the case before other consonants,
instead of the full-form ones which have to be used before a vowel. Cf. :
é ’i ndrf âséa ! fasten the goat (to something) in the grass
m i 5 ’i ti litsöa ! fasten the cozes in the pen (5 ’i pi. form of ’Ï).
22 . Here as elsewhere the glottal plosive is not always clearly perceptible.
It is often almöst absorbed, one might say, in a ‘careless’ chain of speech
although, when otherwise similarly spelled words— with and without
such a glottal plosive— are put side by side natives will insist stubbornly
on the particular difference. Their way of pronouncing this plosive is
mostly very delicate or light, but their sense of perception is very sharp ;
this is, of course, the effect of natural training since earliest youth. For
foreigners who are not familiar with this peculiarity, at least not with so
pronounced a variety, it requires a conscious effort to imitate the native.
With a few exceptions, this practice has not been observed among foreign
educationalists— to the detriment of the language. Even official advisers
on general orthography, who have visited Arua more than once, have
failed to make themselves heard on this point as on others.
23 . 1 is, as a rule, a flapped consonant in Logbara, sometimes strong,
as before i, e.g. lï to cut, sometimes less so. The tip of the tongue is turned
backward (behind the alveoli) and pressed lightly against the front part
of the palate to stop the current of breath ; on releasing the breath suddenly
the tip of the tongue flaps back, e.g. alazà crosswise ; 1e to like ; 51i the wind.
24 . r in Logbara is strongly rolled, with a number of taps so that it
suggests a double or triple r. This is especially so in the dr or tr com­
binations or when between vowels, as in irri two ; dr à to die ; tra to gather ;
dri to warm ; tri to anoint ; drfa all ; tr t full ; dro to pile up ; tro to undo.
25 . Combination of consonants is an important feature of Logbara.
dr and tr are frequent and ordinary (see § 24).
26 . dz, ts, and ndz are likewise of frequent occurrence, ts is the
equivalent of German z as in ‘Zeit’ ; dz being the voiced counterpart of
it.1 Lwoo have c and j (with the English pronunciation as in ‘chair’ and
‘jealousy’ ), but the Ma’di and Logbara have dz and ts. A Logbara speaks
of A tsooli and PaDzule for Acooli and Pajule, and vice versa, -d z pre­
ceded by n, i.e. ndz (not nj) is a frequent sound in Logbara. Examples :
dzE to buy edzl to bring àdzü spear tsa to reach
tsé truly tsi is tsürü ’d5 now ndzE to take out
andzi children èndzo lie
27 . nd, ndr: nd as in ‘kind’, and ndr with strongly rolled rrr are
common and present no difficulty. Note that n of ndr forms an indepen­
dent syllable and often has a distinct tone. Examples :
ndà to seek ndè to surpass àndè to be tired
ndrf goat ândrâ or lidrâ of old andrii mother
28. gb, kp labio-velar plosives ; the breath current is simultaneously
obstructed by closed lips and the tongue pressed against the soft palate ;
the stops are also simultaneously released, thus producing the peculiar
voiced or unvoiced sound of gb or kp. It needs some practice. Examples :
gb h to blow gbé egg gbi to shoot ègbè cold
kpà to snatch kpsre as far as kpii straight kp5 to hide
29 . m pgb. By adding m before gb we obtain m gb or, actually,
m ggb, not easy to pronounce. Note initial lip-closing of m . It may be
1 Competent phoneticists have repeatedly stressed the existence of the two
sound combinations dz and tz in Logbara, as Dr. A. N. Tucker in Eastern
Sudanic Languages, p. 104. Unfortunately ts and dz exist as initial consonants
neither in English nor in Italian ; English and Italian educationists have, therefore,
with Dr. Tucker as linguist adviser, combined to introduce c (instead of ts) as
represented in Engl. cAair or Ital. dnque and j (instead of dz) as represented in
Engl, ‘jealousy’ or jtal. giotno, in Logbara literature, and English and Italians
generally pronounce it in their own (not the Logbara’s) way.
easier to try to pronounce simultaneously m gb, which would automati­
cally become m ggb. Examples :
àm ggbakà hyena èm ggbèlèkè chimpanzee m p g b ï in line
N.B. I) does not occur alone in Logbara, but is frequent in the com­
binations i)g, i)gb, or, to be more exact, m(i))gb. Examples :
ijgaâ yà? where? m ijgb àrï real, true
m g g b ü all boggô cloth
30. m b and m v are common combinations; lip-closing points to
initial m : thus no nb or nv spelling can replace them. Examples :
m b â month em bâ to teach mbèlè quickly m bo to jump
m v â child ânxvii sister m v i to go back m v u to drink
31. The letters c, j, q, x do not occur in Logbara.
32. Consonants occurring in Logbara.

Laryngeal
dental

^8
Alveolar
dental

{Inter-)

Palatal
•«S
Labio­

é ^

Velar
■31
ü »

p, b t, d k, g kp> éb >
Explosive ., .. ..

Affricate . . . . .. ts, dz . . .. . . ..

Nasal m, mb m v ,. n, ndz *1 oê m ggb ..

Rolled, ,. .. tr, dr r .. . . , . ..

flapped 1
Fricative Pf f, V . * s, z .. . . • . h
Semi-vowel w y

Tone Marks
33 . The tone of a syllable will be shown on vowels (or consonants) by
means of the conventional marks given below. The tone of a syllable may
be simple (level) or combined (kinetic). (See also § 53.)
(a) Marks for simple tones :
high tone (h.t.) ti cow; éwâ beer; ti m v â cow calf
mid tone (m.t.) 1 ; àzèa rain; è’dà to show; ti mouth
low tone (l.t.) ' ; lè to like; si with
(b) Marks for combined tones (unbroken ascent or descent from one
level to another by combination of the simple tones) :
high-low tone * ; tî zâ beef; épî ni the chiefs
high-mid tone 4 ; âdrii (or ädri) brother ; âti father
mid-high tone v ; ozo or ozèé rain
mid-low tone h ; tsâ-tso to strike
low-mid tone 4 ; f z he gives
low-high tone v ; la they read (past)
intermediate tones : see § 53, p. ii.
 34 . General notes, (i ) A double vowel or vowel combination with level
tone is marked with a single tone mark on the first vowel, as ’dâalé there,
’àléa in.
(2) No mark on a syllable, whether simple or composite vowel, indicates
mid-level tone: e.g. ovö to be; if another tone is added to a middle tone,
both tones must, of course, be marked : e.g. ozà 5 rain.
For further details see Intonation, § 43 sqq.

II. Sound Changes

35 . In Logbara (unlike some of the other languages, such as Jii), word­
linking does not, generally speaking, postulate change of sounds. T h e
two following cases, however, are slight exceptions to this statement.
36 . (1) Before the locative suffix ~â, and to some extent before - ti,
open vowel-sounds (c and o) tend to become close. A typical, one might
almost say unique, instance is ’ale {inside): ’alé-â {in the inside) becomes
’aléa or ’aléa or even ’alia. D z 5 -â becomes dzôa {in the hut). Similarly,
dzô-ti {hut's opening, door) is generally pronounced dzôti or, more
commonly, dzôtilé.
37 . (2) The adjectival formative suffix -rö tends to be -ru after i, o or u
in a preceding syllable.
N.B. Both these ‘exceptions’ to the general simple rule may be dis­
regarded without danger of inconyenience or ambiguity, though in
speaking the Logbara keep to them. This book will mostly reflect them.
38 . A more widespread sound-change— consisting of vowel-elision—
is an important feature of spoken Logbara. This is important in the sense
that its use permeates the language, so much so that it requires some
ability and experience for a foreigner to understand Logbara people when
they speak naturally. Logbara is unusual in, respect of the marked degree
to which words are contracted in speech, at the expense of vowels.
In writing and in literature, on the other hand, the educated native is
familiar only with the language based on etymology and writes it in full,
quite unaware of the ways of current speech : for this reason this book will
ignore the contracted forms of the spoken language.
39 . In the spoken language, the following is normal usage:
When an end vowel of a word meets with the initial vowel of a following
word, their connexion is an extremely close one in speech, i.e. there is no
pause between one word and the next. Example :
àm a e’da èrï-nï é’dâ becomes àm e’dfcrinii’dâ we showed him a
picture
40 . Elision takes place, especially in colloquial speech, when even an
utterly ‘mutilated’ word is immediately recognized in context. In some
cases, in a word consisting of v -c -v , both initial and terminal vowel may
be dropped leaving only the consonant.
Another random document with
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The Project Gutenberg eBook of A pound of
prevention
This ebook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States
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Title: A pound of prevention

Author: G. C. Edmondson

Illustrator: Richard Kluga

Release date: October 13, 2023 [eBook #71870]

Language: English

Original publication: New York, NY: Royal Publications, Inc, 1958

Credits: Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed

Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net

*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A POUND OF

PREVENTION ***
A POUND OF PREVENTION

By G. C. EDMONDSON

Illustrated by RICHARD KLUGA

They knew the Mars-shot might fail, as

the previous ones had. All the more
reason, then, for having one good meal!

[Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from

Infinity April 1958.
Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that
the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.]
Without his hat General Carnhouser was just a tired old man. Three
men sat at the other side of the table. "No use trying to gloss it over,"
he said.
The young men nodded. If this shot failed it might be a hundred
years before Congress could be conned into another appropriation.
The three young men had an even better reason not to fail. They
were going to be in the rocket.
Hagstrom spoke. "There were no technical difficulties in the previous
shots."
"Right," the general said. "Take-offs proceeded according to
schedule. Orbital corrections were made; then everybody settled
down for a four-month wait. When deceleration time came the shot
was still in the groove."
"We know," van den Burg said tiredly. He worked a microscopic
speck of dirt from under a fingernail. There was a loud snap as he
snipped the nail off. He stared at the general, a lean forefinger to one
side of his ascetic nose.
"I'm no expert," the general said wearily. "When you reach my age
they turn you into an office boy."
Hagstrom lit a cigarette. "It's tomorrow, isn't it?"
The general nodded. "They're loading now."
The third man's slight build and bushy black hair belied his mestizo
origins. "I still don't think much of those rations," he said.
Hagstrom laughed suddenly. "You aren't going to con me into eating
pickled fire bombs for four months."
"If I lived on prune soup and codfish balls I'd make no cracks about
Mexican food," Aréchaga grunted. "You squareheads don't
appreciate good cooking."
"You won't get any good cooking in zero gravity," the general said.
They got up and filed out the door, putting on their caps and military
manners.

Outside, trucks clustered at the base of a giant gantry. Aréchaga

shuddered as a fork lift dropped a pallet of bagged meat on the
gantry platform. The meat was irradiated and sealed in transparent
plastic, but the habits of a lifetime in the tropics do not disappear in
spite of engineering degrees. All that meat and not a fly in sight, he
thought. It doesn't look right.
Multiple-stage rockets had gone the way of square sail and piston
engines when a crash program poured twenty-two mega-bucks into
a non-mechanical shield. Piles now diverted four per cent of their
output into a field which reflected neutrons back onto the pile instead
of absorbing them. Raise the reaction rate and the field tightened.
Those sudden statewide evacuations in the early years of the
century were now remembered only by TV writers.
A liquid metal heat exchanger transferred energy to the reaction
mass which a turbine pump was drawing from a fire hydrant. Since
the hydrant was fed from a sea water still there was no need for
purification.
The last load of provisions went up and an asepsis party rode the
gantry, burdened with their giant vacuum cleaners and germicidal
apparatus.
"They'll seal everything but the control room," the general said.
"When you go aboard there'll only be one compartment to sterilize."
"I still think it's a lot of hog-wash," Aréchaga said.
"They can't have us carrying any bugs with us," van den Burg said
tiredly.
"The Martians might put us in quarantine," Hagstrom added sourly.
"If there are any Martians—and if we get there," Aréchaga groused.
"Now boys," the general began.
"Oh, save it, Pop," Hagstrom said. "Let's be ourselves as long as the
public relations pests aren't around."
"Anybody going to town?" van den Burg asked.
"I am," Aréchaga said. "May be quite a while before I get another
plate of fried beans."
"Checkup at 0400," the general reminded.
Hagstrom went to B.O.Q. Van den Burg and Aréchaga caught the
bus into town and lost each other until midnight when they caught
the same bus back to the base.
"What's in the sack?" Hagstrom asked.
"Snack," Aréchaga said. "I can't stand that insipid slop in the B.O.Q.
mess."
"Looks like a lot of snack to eat between now and daybreak."
"Don't worry, I've got quite an appetite."

At 0345 an orderly knocked on three doors in Bachelor Officers'

Quarters and three young men made remarks which history will
delete. They showered, shaved, and spat toothpaste. At 0400 they
walked into the Medical Officer's door. A red-eyed corpsman reached
for a manometer and the three men began taking their clothes off.
Fifteen minutes later the doctor, a corpulent, middle-aged man in
disgustingly good humor for 0400, walked in with a cheery good
morning. He poked and tapped while the corpsman drew blood
samples.
"Turn your face and cough," he said.
"You think I'm going to develop hernia from riding a nightmare?"
Hagstrom growled. "You did all this yesterday."
"An ounce of prevention," the doctor said cheerfully.
"A pound of bull," van den Burg grunted.
"Now boys, what if that got in the papers?" asked a voice from the
doorway.
"Damn the papers!" they greeted the general.
"Do we get breakfast?" Aréchaga asked.
"You'll take acceleration better without it."
"Tell my stomach that."
"Bend over the table," the doctor said.
"Oh, my aching back," Hagstrom moaned.
"That's not the exact target, but you're close. And awaaaay we go,"
the doctor chanted as he drove the needle home.
Each man received an injection of antibiotics and drank a paper
cupful of anise-flavored liquid.
"Don't we get wrapped in cellophane?" Aréchaga asked.
"You'll be pure enough when that purgative goes through you."
They dressed and rode in the general's staff car to the base of the
gantry. As the car stopped, the general said, "Well boys, I hope you
don't expect a speech."
"We love you too, Pop," van den Burg said. They shook hands and
stepped aboard the gantry platform. Hagstrom muttered and they
faced a telescopic TV pickup with mechanical grins until the rising
platform shielded them.
Each had his own control board and each was prepared to take over
another's duties if necessary. They took off the baggy coveralls and
tossed them into lockers. Aréchaga's made an odd clunk. He hitched
up his shorts and turned quickly. They checked each other's
instruments and settings, then went to their couches. A clock with an
extra hand ticked the seconds off backward.
"We're ready," van den Burg muttered into a throat mike.
"So're we," a speaker answered tinnily.
The second hand began its final revolution in reverse. With blastoff it
would begin turning in its proper direction. There was a clang as the
water hose dropped its magnetic nipple. The rumbling became
louder and the G meter climbed to 3.5. After several minutes the
needle dropped suddenly to 2. Aréchaga tried to lift his head but
decided it wasn't worth the effort. The rumbling stopped and he knew
the sudden panic of free fall.
He made the adjustment which controlled arc flights and free fall
parachute jumps had taught him and unstrapped. The speaker's
tinny voice read off numbers which they transmuted into turns of two
wheels with axes at right angles. Since the weight of the remaining
reaction mass could not be calculated with exactitude they spun by
trial and error the last few turns until a telescope parallel to the thrust
axis zeroed on a third magnitude pinpoint whose spectroscope
matched the tinny voice's demands.
"Why such a razzy speaker?" Hagstrom groused as he spun a
wheel.
"A paper cone gets mush-mouthed in 3 G's," van den Burg grunted.
Aréchaga set the pump for 1.6 seconds at four liters. He nodded.
Hagstrom pulled the rods. Weight returned briefly; then they floated
again. Van den Burg belched. The tinny voice approved, and
Hagstrom dropped the cadmium rods again. "Anybody for canasta?"
Aréchaga asked.

The first day nobody ate. Overtrained, blasé—still, it was the first
time and the stomach had yet to make peace with the intellect. The
second day Aréchaga broke the pantry door seals and studied the
invoices. He gave a groan of disgust and went back to sleep. With
something solid strapped in on top it was almost easy.
On the third day van den Burg put bags of steak and string beans
into the hi-fi oven and strapped himself into a chair. He used
chopsticks to snare the globules of soup and coffee which escaped
from hooded cups despite all precautions.
"How is it?" Hagstrom asked.
"It'd taste better if you'd come down and sit on the same side of the
ship."
Human Factors had recommended that table and chairs be situated
in one plane and resemble the real thing. The sight of one's fellow
man at ease in an impossible position was not considered conducive
to good digestion.
Hagstrom dived across the room and in a moment Aréchaga joined
him. Aréchaga sampled the steak and vegetables and turned up his
nose. He broke seals and resurrected pork, beef, onions, garlic, and
sixteen separate spices. There was far too much sancoche for one
meal when he was through.
"What'll you do with the rest of it?" Hagstrom asked.
"Eat it tomorrow."
"It'll spoil."
"In this embalmed atmosphere?" Aréchaga asked. He sampled the
stew. "Irradiated food—pfui!" He went to his locker and extracted a
jar.
"What's that?" van den Burg asked.
"Salsa picante."
"Literal translation: shredding sauce," Hagstrom volunteered.
"Guaranteed to do just that to your taste buds."
"Where'd you get it?" van den Burg asked.
"Out of my locker."
"Not sterile, I presume."
"You're darn tootin' it ain't. I'm not going to have the only tasty item
on the menu run through that irradiator."
"Out with it!" van den Burg roared.
"Oh, come now," Aréchaga said. He poured salsa over the stew and
took a gigantic bite.
"I hate to pull my rank but you know what the pill rollers have to say
about unsterilized food."
"Oh, all right," Aréchaga said morosely. He emptied the jar into the
disposal and activated the locks. The air loss gave the garbage a
gradually diverging orbit.
He began cranking the aligning wheels. When the stars stopped
spinning, he threw a switch and began reading rapidly into a mike.
Finished, he handed the mike to Hagstrom. Hagstrom gave his
report and passed it to van den Burg.
Aréchaga rewound the tape and threaded the spool into another
machine. He strapped himself before a telescope and began
twiddling knobs. Outside, a microwave dish waggled. He pressed a
trigger on one of the knobs. Tape screamed through the transmitter
pickup.
"Make it?" Hagstrom asked.
"It began to wander off toward the end," Aréchaga said. He switched
the transmitter off. The temperature had risen in the four minutes
necessary to squirt and the sunward side was getting uncomfortable
even through the insulation. Hagstrom began spinning the wheel.
Aréchaga fed tape into the receiver and played it back slowly. There
was background noise for a minute then, "ETV One. Read you loud
and clear." There was a pause; then a familiar voice came in, "Glad
to hear from you, boys. Thule and Kergeulen stations tracked you for
several hours. Best shot so far. Less than two seconds of corrective
firing," the general said proudly.

Hagstrom and van den Burg returned to their books. Aréchaga

snapped off the player and went into the pantry. The light dimmed
and brightened as the spin exposed and occulted its accumulator.
He filed the information subconsciously for his revision list and
glared at the provisions.
Shelves were filled—meats, vegetables, fruits, all held in place by
elastic netting. The skin-tight plastic was invisible in the dim light.
Aréchaga began to feel prickly as the lack of ventilation wrapped him
in a layer of steam. All that food right out in the open and no flies. It
just isn't right, he thought. He shrugged and picked out three apples.
"Keep the doctor away?" he asked as he swam back into the control
room. Hagstrom nodded and caught one.
"Thanks, I'm not hungry," van den Burg said. He put his book under
the net and began taking his own pulse.
"Something wrong?" Aréchaga asked.
"Must have been something I ate," he grunted.
Hagstrom eyed his half-eaten apple with distaste. "I must have eaten
some too." He threw the apple into the disposal and belched.
Aréchaga looked at him worriedly.
Two days passed. Hagstrom and van den Burg sampled food
fretfully. Aréchaga evacuated the disposal twice in six hours and
watched them worriedly. "Are you guys thinking the same thing I
am?" he asked.
Van den Burg stared for a moment. "Looks that way, doesn't it?"
Hagstrom started to say something, then dived for a bag and
vomited. In a moment he wiped his mouth and turned a pale face
toward Aréchaga. "This is how it started with the others, isn't it?" he
said.
Aréchaga began talking into the recorder. He killed spin long enough
to squirt. In a few minutes the razzy speaker again made them part
of Earth. "—and hope for the best," the general was saying. "Maybe
you'll adjust after a few days." The voice faded into background
noise and Aréchaga turned off the player.
"Any ideas?" he asked. "You know as much medicine as I do."
Van den Burg and Hagstrom shook their heads listlessly.
"There's got to be a reason," Aréchaga insisted. "How do you feel?"
"Hungry. Like I hadn't eaten for two weeks."
"The same," Hagstrom said. "Every time I eat it lays like a ton of
lead. I guess we just aren't made for zero grav."
"Doesn't seem to be hitting me as quickly as it did you two,"
Aréchaga mused. "Can I get you anything?" They shook their heads.
He went into the library and began skimming through the medical
spools.
When he returned the others slept fitfully. He ate a banana and
wondered guiltily if his salsa had anything to do with it. He decided it
didn't. The other crews had died the same way without any non-
sterile food aboard. He floated back into the pantry and stared at the
mounds of provisions until the mugginess drove him out.

Three more days passed. Hagstrom and van den Burg grew steadily
weaker. Aréchaga waited expectantly but his own appetite didn't fail.
He advanced dozens of weird hypotheses—racial immunity,
mutations. Even to his non-medical mind the theories were fantastic.
Why should a mestizo take zero grav better than a European? He
munched on a celery stalk and wished he were back on Earth,
preferably in Mexico where food was worth eating.
Then it hit him.
He looked at the others. They'll die anyway. He went to work. Three
hours later he prodded Hagstrom and van den Burg into wakefulness
and forced a murky liquid into them. They gagged weakly, but he
persisted until each had taken a swallow. Thirty minutes later he
forced a cup of soup into each. They dozed but he noted with
satisfaction that their pulses were stronger.
Four hours later Hagstrom awoke. "I'm hungry," he complained.
Aréchaga fed him. The Netherlander came to a little later, and
Aréchaga was run ragged feeding them for the next two days. On
the third day they were preparing their own meals.
"How come it didn't hit you?" van dan Burg asked.
"I don't know," Aréchaga said. "Just lucky, I guess."
"What was that stuff you gave us?" Hagstrom asked.
"What stuff?" Aréchaga said innocently. "By the way, I raised hell
with the inventory getting you guys back in condition. Would you
mind going into the far pantry and straightening things up a little?"
They went, pulling their way down the passage to the rearmost food
locker. "There's something very funny going on," Hagstrom said.
Van den Burg inspected the stocks and the inventory list
suspiciously. "Looks all right to me. I wonder why he wanted us to
check it." They looked at each other.
"You thinking what I'm thinking?" Hagstrom asked.
Van den Burg nodded. They pulled themselves silently along the
passageway back to the control room. Aréchaga was speaking softly
into the recorder, his back to the entrance. Hagstrom cleared his
throat and the black-haired little man spun guiltily. Van den Burg
reached for the playback switch.
"It's just a routine report," Aréchaga protested.
"We're curious," Hagstrom said.
The recorder began playing. "—I should have figured it right from the
start. If food is so lousy the flies won't touch it, then humans have no
business eating it."
"What's the food got to do with it?" Hagstrom asked.
"Quiet!" van den Burg hissed.
"—got by all right on Earth where there was plenty of reinfection, but
when you sealed us in this can without a bug in a million miles—"
Aréchaga's voice continued.
"If food can't rot it can't digest either. Irradiate it—burn the last bit of
life out of it—and then give us a whopping dose of antibiotics until
there isn't one bug in our alimentary tracts from one end to the other.
It's no wonder we were starving in the midst of plenty."
"Wait a minute. How come you didn't get sick?" Hagstrom asked.
Aréchaga flipped a switch and the recorder ground to a stop. "I
reinfected myself with a swallow of salsa picante—good, old-
fashioned, unsanitary chili sauce."
A horrible suspicion was growing in van den Burg's mind. "What did
you give us?" he asked.
"You left me little choice when you threw out my salsa," Aréchaga
said. "Why do you have to be so curious?"
"What was it?" van den Burg demanded.
"I scraped a little salsa scum from the inside of the disposal. It made
a fine culture. What did you think I gave you?"
"I'd rather not answer that," van den Burg said weakly.
 *** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A POUND OF
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