________________
196
THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY.
[JULY, 1893.
BOOK NOTICE. SANTAL FOLKTALES. Translated from the Santalf by Northern India of the demon who chows grains of
A. Caunpbell, Free Church of Scotland, Santal iron and is killed by the hero, while the rascally Mission, Manbhoom. Santal Mission Prese, Pokhuria.
Dôm or Dhobi takes all the credit. Next follows Any fresh collection of Indian folktales is wel
"The King and His Inquisitive Queen," which come, and in particular one made among primitive
corresponds perfectly with the well-known story isolated races like the Santâls, who may be expected
in the Introduction of the Arabian Nights," to be in a great measure unaffected by Hindu where the deus ex machind, who warns the merinfluence, and among whom we know that some
chant, that he is a fool not to thrash his wife, is a really original folklore undoubtedly exists. There cook: here it is a he-goat. Then comes " The is, for instance, the remarkable legend of their Story of Bitarim." Bitlu, Dr. Campbell may be creation from goose which is probably of a glad to know, is good Hindi, as well as Santali, for totemistic character.
a span, and the story of Bittarim, who is known I must admit, however, that Dr. Campbell's as Bittan all over Northern India, is the Oriental collection is somewhat disappointing. Nor has representative of one of the most delightful of he, I venture to think, gone quite in the proper Grimm's Household Tales (No. 37), "Thumbling." way of collecting. Many of these tales display, The only difference is that the Santali Hop-o'-myas may be easily shewn, undoubted traces of Thumb is more of an imp than the touching foreign influence : and this being the case, before creation of the German fancy, in which, too, we we can satisfactorily classify them, it is absolutely find the charming parental tenderness for the necessary to know by whom and under what dear little creature which we miss in the Eastern circunstances they were told and recorded. It form of the tale. "The Story of the Tiger" is would then be, perhape, possible to trace the our old friend the fox, who acts as arbitrator and source by which much undoubtedly foreign folk induces the tiger to go back to his cage to shew lore has come to be included among them. But how he managed to come out. In "Läpi and on this point Dr. Campbell vouchsafes absolutely Lapra" we have the well-known idea of the clever no information whatever. It would again not youngest son who gets the better of his brothers, have been a difficult task to suggest some of the and " Gumda the Hero" is of the Munchausen analogies and parallels to other collections wbich type. In Upper India it appears in the form of appear throughout this collection.
the "Wrestler of the East and the West." The first story, “The Magic Lamp," is an un. Perhaps the most original and characteristic doubted variant of our old friend Aladdin of the of these stories are those about animals. A good "Arabian Nights," which is not part of the one describes the dilemma of the man who had original recension, and has probably reached India to arbitrate daily between the tiger and the in quite recent years from Western sources. In lizard : and here, too, we come across the stupid the second tale, "Jhorea and Jhore," we have old tiger who allows his tail to be fried, who takes several of the familiar drolls known in Northern people about on his back, and is swindled by the India as "The Wiles of Shekh Chilli.” Many of crane who takes one year the root crop and in these, according to Mr. Jacobs, form the basis of the next the leaves, of which we have a German our Joe Miller. In the third tale, The Boy and version in Grimm. In the “ Seven Brothers and bis Stepmother, we have the familiar type of the their Sister" we have the old superstition of cruel stepmother and her stepson, which in India human sacrifice at the foundation of buildings, often takes the form of the malicione saut or on which Dr. Campbell might have given an co-wife, who appears later on in "Sit and Bosont." interesting note. In this third tale it is mixed up with the Faithful It will thus be seen that, to the student of comAnimal" cycle, which, in this case, is represented parative folklore, there is much of interest in this by the protecting cow-a legitimate descendant of collection. We can only express the hope that in the Kamadhenu of Hindu mythology. Here, too, another series Dr. Campbell will give us more of we have a well-known incident of the lovey who the really indigenous folktales, and ruthlessly finds the golden hair of the princess floating down discard those which are obviously of foreign the stream. The common Northern India version origin: and he would do more justice to his work of this is given by Mr. Mark Thornhill in the if he would send it outequipped with analysis,
Princess with the Golden Hair" and in Major notes and illustrations of parallel plots and inTemple's “Wonderfal Ring."
cidents, without which any collection of folklore, In the fifth tale, “Kara and Guja," we have intended for serious students, is of comparatively another well-known incident popular all over little value.
W. CROOKE. 1 Dalton Descriptive Ethnology, p. 209 f. Indian Fairy Tales, p. 86. Wideawake Stories, p. 201.
