Indian Antiquary Vol 20

Author(s): John Faithfull Fleet, Richard Carnac Temple
Publisher: Swati Publications

Page 39

JANUARY, 1891.)
FOLKLORE IN SALSETTE; No. 5.
81
that he had come on a very important business. The king came out and offered him a chair, upon which he brought out his golden bench and said with a disdainful air:-"I never sit on chairs, I always carry about my own seat."
The king was, of course, astonished at this, and thought that the fox must be a great personage if he always sat on a golden bench. Preliminaries thus successfully over, the fo began : -"Your Majesty, it is our desire to enter into a bond of relationship between Yor Majesty and ourselves, by asking Your Majesty's daughter in marriage with our son."
The king, who was bewitched at the sight of the golden bench, and took him for a wally great personage, agreed to the proposal, and appointed a day for the celebration of the ausscious festivities. He began at once to make perparations on a very grand scale, which extendd over several days. For he had money and gold and corn, and everything else in abundance
The fox then went homo, told the boy of his success at the palace, and said that must be ready on a certain day. The poor boy was overjoyed, for who would not be the news that he was to be married to a king's daughter ? He too had to make grand preprations, but here was a difficulty ; where were the means? So he had recourse to his friend the fox, who promised to do everything for him.
Now there was a small rivulet running through the town, past the boy's hut and further ou past the king's palace, and the fox went about from house to house and Lected all the rice husks of the village and threw them into the rivulet for several days. When the king saw all these husks, he was astonished and thought within himself: - "My son-ja-law must be a really great personage, as he is evidently going to invite thousands of guests, or why would he grind so much rice P"
There were now only a few days left before the wedding, and the Rx went about collecting all the paträvélisa he conld from the village, and these too he threw in the rivulet. The king was still more astonished to see such a number of patrduelis being already thrown away from his son-in-law's house; for what could it mean, but that his son in-law's guests had already come and were being feasted even days before the wedding P
These tricks were all very well for duping the king, but the bridegroom had to have a befitting dress, and he must also have a large honse, if not a palce, wherein to receive his royal bride, and it was far beyond the comprehension of our hero as to where to get these from. So he again had recourse to the fox. Even these the fox did n/t despair of providing, and one day climbed a high mountain and there began to cry so long and so loud that Isvara and Parbati heard him, and coming up to him asked him what he was crying like that for. The
fox said:
"o Isvara and Parbati, all honour be to you! Hoy shall I tell you of my sorrows ? I was once canght stealing melons, but on promising the ywner to get him married to the king's daughter, I was released by him. I have succeeded ja persuading the king to give his daughter to my benefactor, but the difficulty is to get suitable dress for him, also a befitting house and food and other necessaries requisite for the occasion. I beg of you, therefore, to help me. We want a large house and a pandáls for a day or two, after which I know what to do."
févara and Parbati were much moved, and said:-"Go home, and you will find a large palace most handsomely farnished, and a pandál richly decorated, with tables and bread and all sorts of dishes laid out ready for you, and a handsome dress for the bridegroom !"
The fox went home, and saw to his great pleas are a large palace most handsomely furnished, and a pandál richly decorated, with tables laid out with bread and every requisite necessaFy for the occasion. The dishes and plates were of solid gold and silver, and there also was the bride. groom, most beautifully dressed, and quite a match for the king'a daughter!
• Plates made of leaves. • The shamiana of North India; it corresponds somewhat to the marquee-tent of Europe..