This chapter is particularly about the "day of sacrifice" for the great god Tano.Pokuwaa in her daily routine went to the river to fetch water, she was particularly excited because it was the day of sacrifice for the great god Tano so she woke up very early in the morning to do her daily house chores and prepares for bathing. As she scooped the water over her body, the water was a bit chilly "she should have heated it" she thought but nevertheless it saves her more time because on this day Tano's house was always filled up with people who also render their sacrifice. People would bring yams, sheep, goat, eggs, cowries. What a person had to sacrifice depended on their requirement, in some cases people were asked to bring cows.
How lucky is Pokuwaa she was asked to bring a black hen and eggs though it was difficult for her to get the black hen. In this chapter 1 it was all about the black hen, her sacrifice, Pokuwaa and the fetish child.Pokuwaa had traveled over six miles to buy the black hen which cost her two hundred cowries, she put a single bed for identification and tied it up only for her to return from the river and discovered it no longer there, so she had to go in search of it because she can't risk missing this sacrifice known as fofie which came once in every six week.
It is believe on this day that gods and goddess moved among men to feast and grant people's request. In the cause of her search for the black hen, Pokuwaa came upon some children playing in a lane.'Children', she pleaded, have you seen a black hen here?' one of them started running immediately she asked the question — 'why' she called 'come back! I want you to help me find my black black hen'. One of the children volunteered an explanation "he is running because he has been throwing stones at a black hen ". 'where? Come with me and show me' Pokuwaa addressing the little boy.He looked younger than his seven years and had a bushy hair with cowries and shells tied in it. She looked at the boy and showed sympathy for him, she knew such children should not be harshly treated, let alone beaten for if they were beaten the fetish would take them away. Soon the boy took her to a mango tree and said "This was where I first saw the hen".Pokuwaa was getting impatient she looked at the rising sun in the crimson sky and knew that if she was to get to Tano's home in time, she would have to hurry.' oh God, she groaned who could have set the hen free? Who?.They were almost at the bush outside the village, there was nothing to do but to enter it and search it. "what a world, when you find the hoe, you can't find the stick, and when you find the stick you can't find the hoe' she cried out oh, Adwoa Pokuwaa! Am in a tight lane'. They were getting into denser bush when her eyes fell on a shiny black back, through a range of thorny stem, she injured her hand when she thrust through the thorn without caution. She was fascinated by the redness of her blood and she was certainly young enough to have a child — she thought.Why was the hen so still? Was it dead? she broke off a branch and began to push the thorns aside to make an opening before she knew it the fetish child had ran the other side towards the black hen in the bush beyond. Pokuwaa had noticed that a black snake had been trying to swallow the hen.

Source : https://lectportal.net/threads/summary-of-a-woman-in-her-prime-chapter-1.99/