________________
SEPTEMBER, 1893.]
during the whole day. At the close of the day, when it was near time for the rúnkhas to return, the girl again transformed him into a fly, and stuck him up on the wall. Thus matters continued for several days.
FOLKLORE IN SALSETTE, No. 16.
249
One day the prince told the girl to ask her father, the rakhas, in what his life lay. Accordingly, in the evening, when the rankhus returned, and she was shampooing his limbs, she said: -
"Father, tell me in what lies your life?"
The rankhas replied:
"Why are you so anxious about knowing in what my life lies?" "Father," said she, "if I am not to be anxious about your life, who should be? Every day you go in quest of food, which consists generally of animals. Should any accident happen to you, how could I know it, and what shall I do in the event of your death?"
But the rankhas replied: " Cast off your fears and anxieties, for there is no likelihood of my ever dying. However, to calm your fears, I may tell you as regards my life, you know the three brab-trees11 standing near our house. Should any person cut one of the trees with one stroke, I shall get a strong attack of fever; and if he succeeds in cutting the other two also with one stroke, there will be an end to my life. So long, therefore, as the trees are safe I am safe also. You see, then, that you have no cause for anxiety about me."
He then fell asleeep. The following day, when the rankhas was gone, the girl, after transforming the prince, told him everything she had heard from her father. Our hero now looked about and caught sight of the rankhas' sword hanging on the wall. He took it, and, having sharpened it, went out, and, with one stroke, cut off one of the brab-trees. As soon as the tree was cut down, a strong fever came on the rankhas, who now retraced his steps home, but before he could reach it, our hero cut down the other two brab-trees also with one stroke, and with the fall of the trees the rankhas also fell dead.
The prince then lived with the damsel for several days, during which he gathered plenty of the kanbals, which fell from her mouth every time she spoke. He now thought that he had been absent for a rather long time from his foster-parents, who must be becoming anxious about him. So he made up his mind to quit the place taking with him the kambals, which he intended to give to his king. He, therefore, made the damsel of the subterraneous abode acquainted with his intention.
The girl, however, said:-"You have killed my father, and now wish to go away, leaving me alone! What can I do here all by myself? Under whose protection shall I live? Take me with you, and we will be husband and wife, and live together happily."
The prince consented, but the difficulty was how to bring her to land. He then hit upon the following plan. He put her in a box and carried her to the place where his ship was waiting. He then tied the box to the chain, but alas! so soon as the khalásís felt the weight of the box they pulled up the chain, and to their astonishment saw that a box was tied up with it!
"Where is the boy?" they thought. "From whence comes this box? What can have become of him? We have, however, acted up to his orders and are not to blame. Let us now return home; but let us, in the first place, see the contents of the box."
Thus saying, they proceeded to open the box, but to their utter embarrassment they heard a voice coming from inside:- "Hold! Be cautious what you are about. Do not open the box. Any one, who dares to do it in spite of my remonstrances, will be plagued with worms."
11 [This is an exceedingly interesting instance of the local survival of an old forgotten Anglo-Indian word, the last previous quotation for which is 1909, so far as I know, the earliest being 1623. Brab is a corruption of Portuguese brava, and stands for the tree'otherwise known as the toddy palm, the palmyra, and the fan-palm = Borassus flabelliformis.-ED.]
