Indian Antiquary Vol 11

SR No.: 032503
Original Sutra Author: N/A
Author: Jas Burgess
Publisher: Swati Publications
Publication Year: 1984
Total Pages: 396
Language: English
Classification: Book_English
File Size: 19 MB

Page 371

DECEMBER, 1882.)
FOLKLORE FROM KASHMIR.
341
"If I brought six mans ?" "No, not, six," answered the crafty woodman," let us say
ten."
"Ten mans is an awful lot," sighed the bear.
"There's saffron in the khichri," said the woodman.
The bear licked his lips. “Very well, go home and tell your wife to keep me some of the khichrí. I'll be with you in a trice."
Away went the woodman gleefully to his old wife, and told her how the bear had promised him ten mans of wood for a dish of khichri.
She agreed with him that he had made a good bargain, and so they sat down to dinner with the khichrí in a brass pot between them.
"Remember to leave some for the bear," said the woodman to his wife, speaking with his mouth crammed full.
"Certainly, certainly," said she, helping herself to another mouthful.
Then after a time she said, speaking with her mouth full-“My dear, remember the bear."
"Certainly, certainly," said he, taking another handful.
So it went on, till there was not even a grain of rice left in the pot.
"What's to be done now," said the woodman, “it's all your fault for eating too much."
"I like that," answered his wife," why you ate twice what I did, men always eat more than women."
"No, they don't." “Yes, they do."
"Well, it's of no use quarrelling about it," said the woodman, "the khichri's gone and the bear won't give us wood."
"Let us lock up everything there is to eat in the house, and go and hide ourselves in the garret," said the wife," then the bear may think we have gone out. He'll rampage a little, no doubt, but ten to one he'll leave the wood, because it will be too much trouble to take it away."
So they locked up all the food there was in the house and hid themselves in the garret.
The bear all this time had been toiling and moiling away at his bundle of wood, which
took him much longer to collect then he expected. However, he arrived at last at the woodman's hut, threw down the wood with a crash, and called out-"Here, good folk, is your wood: now give me my khichi."
But no one answered.
"Perhaps they have gone out," thought the bear, “and I shall find the khichri left for me inside."
So he lifted the latch and went in, but never a grain of khichi or anything to eat dil he find, though he poked about everywhere. Only the empty khichri pot, which smelt nice. was there. That was all. The bear flew into a great age, and would have taken his bundle of wood away again, but that it was so heavy.
"I'll take this at any rate," said he, seizing the khichri-pot," for I'll not go empty-handed."
But as he left the house he caught sight of the Lambardár's fruit-trees hanging over the edge of the yard. His mouth watered at the sight of some golden pears, the first ripe ones of the season, so he clambered over the wall and up the tree, gathered the biggest and ripest he could find, and was just going to eat it, when he thought-"If I take these ripe pears home I shall be able to sell them for ever Bo much to the other bears. I can eat the unripe ones just as well. They are not really bad, though somewhat sour."
So he went on gathering, eating the green unripe ones, and putting the golden ripe ones into the Ichichi pot to take home with him, till the pot was quite fall. Now all the while the woodman's wife had been watching the bear through a crevice and holding her breath for fear he might find her out, and she held her breath so long, that, being asthmatic and having a cold in her head, she suddenly gave the most tremendous sneeze you ever heard. The bear thought somebody had fired a gun at him, dropped the khichri-pot, and fled to the forest. As luck would have it, the pot fell into the cottage yard, so the woodman and his wife got the khichri, the pot, the wood, and the Lambarilár's pears, but the bear got nothing but a stomach-ache from eating - ripe fruit.
The man, Anglicemaund' is 40 sets or roughly 80 lbs., 80 6 mans would be 4t ewte. ; and 10 mana which the bear eventually brings would be something over 7 owts. The exaggeration is made palpable thus : an ordinary onmel-load is 4 mans or less than 3 owta., but
camels, if strong, will carry up to 7 mans or 5 ewts. A strong hillman accustomed to the work will carry about 30 sers or 60 lbs. on his back, I have known them carry up 1 man and more, about 100 lbs.-R. C. T.