Chapter 31
chapter thirty one of the honey lips the legend of brazil by josadja lencar translated by isabel burton this livery box recording is in the public domain chapter thirty one softly sang irasema rocking the hammock to soothe her son the beach sands cracked beneath the strong firm foot of the tabajada brave who came from the sea-border with an abundance of fish the young mother crossed the fringes of the hammock that the flies might not tease her sleeping babe and went forth to meet her brother cowby will return to the mountains of the tabajadas she said gently the warrior's brow clouded over irasema sends away her brother from her that he may not see the sorrow that fills it aracain had many sons in his youth some were carried off by war and they died like braves others chose wives and begot in their turn numerous offspring aracen had but two children of his old age irasema is for him like the dove which the hunter has stolen from its nest alone remains with the old pag the warrior kalbi to sustain his bent frame and to guide his tremulous steps
caubi will depart when the shade shall leave the face of irasema as lives the night-star so lives irasema in her sorrow only the eyes of her husband can banish the darkness from her brow go in order that his sight may not wax dim at the sight of caubi irasema's brother will depart to please her but he will return every time the casueta flowers to fill in his heart the child of her bosom he entered the cabin irasema took the child from the hammock and both mother and son remained pressed to the heart of caoui he then passed through the door and soon disappeared amid the trees irasema dragging along her trembling steps accompanied him for some distance till he was lost to sight on the skirts of the forest then she stopped when the cry of the jandaia accompanied by the infant's wail recalled her to the cabin only the cold sand upon which she had sat kept the secret of the tears which it had drank the young mother gave her child a breast but the babe's moan was not hushed the scanty milk refused to flow
the blood of the unhappy girl had been thinned by the ever-flowing tears of which her eyes had not wearied and none came to her bosom where the first nourishment of life is formed she dissolved the white cariman and prepared over the fire the mingau to nourish her son when the sun gilded the mountain crests she set out towards the forest carrying on her bosom the sleeping child in the thickness of the wood was found a layer of the absent the pups still small were whining and rolling over one another the beautiful tabajara crept softly up to it she made for her child the cradle of a soft bough of the maracujá and sat down near it she took one by one into her lap all the pups of the irada and abandoned to their famished mouths her bosom beautiful as the red pitanga which she had anointed with the honey of the bee the hungry young ones fastened upon it and greedily drained her breasts irasema felt pain hitherto unknown to her they seemed to exhaust her life
at last however her bosom began to swell and the milk still tinged with the life fluid of which it is formed gushed forth the happy mother cast away the little iratus and full of joy appeased the hunger of the babe he is now doubly moasir the son of pain once born of irasema and secondly nourished by her the daughter of araken at last began to feel that her veins were drying up and with all her life embittered by sorrow rejected the nourishment which might have restored her strength tears and sighs had alike banished the smile and the appetite from her beautiful mouth chapter thirty one
