Kulyennyingi, by M.B. Nsimbi, Chapter 4, Part 2

Note: This passage contains a good example of tricky numeral concords in Luganda. "olunyiriri n'aluddamu emirundi egiwera esatu oba ena, n'afunayo kilo eziwera essatu oba ennya." "Hours" (emirundi) is in the noun class mu-/mi- so the numbers three and four are spelled "esatu" and "ena." "Kilos" (kilo) is in the n-/n- noun class, so the numbers three and four are spelled "essatu" and "ennya." The spelling change reflects a difference in pronunciation. This difference only occurs with the numbers 1-5, and also the word "how much."

At the start, Kulyennyingi and Kiggundu felt that they did not fit well in the company of Fadul and his other friends because they had little money, but Kulyennyingi soon came up with a plan to get some. He started to buy sugar at Kiggundu's father's store and sell it on the black market. Now during this time when he was going to sell on the black market, he was changed by a shortage of cloth. He seemed to be buying at the government price for plantation workers. Sometimes this is how people "planted" for him: the sun would be going down, and they went to dig clay.

Kulyennyingi would buy a kilo of sugar for 7 shillings and sell it for 25 or 30 shillings. As Kiggundu was planting rows, he would give his friend a look, signaling to come back to this row in three or four minutes, and pick up three or four kilos. The money Kulyennyingi got in selling blackmarket goods and in other ways soon enabled him to buy himself rich clothes like his friends'.

Kulyennyingi came to see that selling sugar on this kind of black market entailed not giving the buyer all the things he or she desired to have. Thus he started to [okumutudanga ?] and then mix maize flour into the sugar. He began with four kilos of sugar Kiggundu bought for him. He took eight small bags, and in each one he put one kilo of sugar and half a kilo of flour. Then he filled each the rest of the way with sugar.

In Kampala and neighboring regions there were many places where people of all kinds convened. To one of these places Kulyennyingi started to bring his sugar mixed with flour, and started to call out to buyers "Kawolo, Lugazi [Ugandan sugar plantation regions]. Get it before it's gone!" On that very day they bought all his stock and he went home and celebrated. His trick earned him a lot of money because every day he mixed sugar and flour and brought it to a new place where they did not know him. From his money he took out a little bit and gave it to Kiggundu to thank him and enable him to purchase more sugar.


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Okusooka, Kulyennyingi ne Kiggundu baawuliranga nga tebagya bulungi mu kkampuni ya Fadul ne banne abalala kubanga bo ensimbi balina ntono naye Kulyenyingi yazuula mangu amagezi ag'okuziweza. Yatandika okugulango sukaali mu dduuka ya kitaawe wa Kiggundu n'agenda amutunda ku magendo anti mu kiseera ekyo yali afuuse wa bbula ng'ebikooyi. Lw'alabise, ng'okumugula ku muwendo gwa Gavumenti aba wa kusimbira nnyiriri. Oluusi ng'abantu bamusimbira omusana ne gubaggweerako, ne bavaayo ng'ogusima ebbumba.

Kilo ya sukaali Kulyennyingi gye yagulanga Shs. 7- yagitundanga Shs. 25/- oba 30/- Kiggundu bwe yabanga y'asimbizza olunyiriri, ng'attira ku munne eriiso, olunyiriri n'aluddamu emirundi egiwera esatu oba ena, n'afunayo kilo eziwera essatu oba ennya. Ensimbi Kulyenningi ze yafuna mu kutunda amagendo ne mu ngeri endala zaasobozesa mangu okwegulira engoye ezz'ekigagga ng'eza banne.

Kulyennyingi yagenda okulaba ng'okutunda sukaali mu magendo ag'engeri eyo tekumufunyisa bintu byonna bye yal yeegomba okuba nabyo. Kyeyava atandika okumutudanga ng'amaze okumutabulamu obuwunga bwa kasooli. Ekyo yakitandikira ku kilo za sukaali nnya munne Kiggundu ze yamuguza. Yaddira obusawo munaana nga buli kamu kagyamu kilo ya sukaali emu, n'abussaamu obuwunga kimu ekyokubiri ekya kilo. Bwe yamala ekyo, buli kasawo n'akayiwako sukaali ne kajjula.

Mu Kampala ne mu miriraano mulimu ebifo bingi ebikuŋŋaanirwamu abantu aba buli ngeri. Mu kimu ku bifo ebyo Kulyennyingi gye yasooka okutwala sukaali we alimu obuwunga, n'atandika okukoowoola abaguzi nti "Kawolo, Lugazi. Amwagala ayanguwe." Ku olwo lwennyini lwe baamugula ne bamumalawo n'addayo eka ng'asanyuse. Amagezi ago gaamufunyisa ensimbi nnyingi kubanga buli lwe yatabulanga sukaali n'obuwunga ng'amutwala mu kifo kiggya gye baabanga batamumanyi. Ku nsimbi ze yafunanga yatoolangako entonotono n'aziwa Kiggundu okumwebaza n'okumwongera amaanyi ag'okumuguza sukaali omulala.