Part 1

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TRANSCRIBER'S NOTE

The Contents are placed after the Introduction, as in the original.

Italic type is marked with _underlines_ and bold with *asterisks*. Footnote references are marked with [brackets] and the texts have been placed at the end of each story.

Changes to the original publication (possible typographic errors or inconsistencies) are listed at the end.

Laos Folk-Lore of Farther India

Laos Folk-Lore of Farther India

BY Katherine Neville Fleeson

With Illustrations from Photographs taken by W. A. Briggs, M. D.

NEW YORK CHICAGO TORONTO Fleming H. Revell Company Publishers of Evangelical Literature

Copyright, 1899 by FLEMING H. REVELL COMPANY

Introduction

These Folk-Tales from the Laos country, a part of the kingdom of Siam, in addition to their intrinsic merit have the charm of complete novelty. Until the translator of this volume collected these stories, they were even unwritten, with a single exception which was found in a Laos manuscript. They are orally preserved in the provinces which constitute the Laos country, just as they have been handed down from generations of ancestors, with slight variations in words or incidents. The elders among the people tell the stories at their merrymakings around the camp-fires and within their primitive houses, to amuse and instruct the youth and children.

Living among the Laos in the friendly and intimate relation of a missionary, the translator has had the advantage of long residence and unrivalled opportunity for understanding the history, customs, religious ideas and aspirations of this interesting people. Aptness in use of their colloquial speech gave her special facility for gathering the stories with exactness, as they fell from the lips of the narrators in her hearing; and for the delicate additional task of translating them into English. The scholar, who is a student of the world's Folk-Lore, may be assured that he has here, the Laos tales unobscured, just as they are told to-day.

Reflecting, as they do, thoughts, desires and hopes common to our humanity, these stories at the same time exhibit, in a pathetic way, the need in Laos of the uplifting and transforming power of the Christian religion.

Willis G. Craig.

McCormick Theological Seminary, Chicago.

Contents

PAGE

I. Tales of the Jungle 13 1 A Child of the Woods 15 2 The Enchanted Mountain 17 3 The Spirit-Guarded Cave 20 4 The Mountain Spirits and the Stone Mortars 23

II. Fables from the Forest 25 1 Right and Might 27 2 Why the Lip of the Elephant Droops 29 3 How a Dead Tiger Killed the Princess 32 4 The Monkeys and the Crabs 33

III. Nature's Riddles and their Answers 35 1 The Man in the Moon 37 2 The Origin of Lightning 38 3 Why the Parrot and the Minor Bird but Echo the Words of Man 41 4 The Fatherless Birds 44

IV. Romance and Tragedy 47 1 The Lovers' Leap 49 2 The Faithful Husband 51 3 The Faithful Wife 57 4 An Unexpected Issue 60

V. Temples and Priests 63 1 The Giants' Mountain and the Temple 65 2 Cheating the Priest 67 3 The Disappointed Priest 69 4 The Greedy Priest 71 5 The Ambitious Priest 73

VI. Moderation and Greed 75 1 The Wizard and the Beggar 77 2 A Covetous Neighbor 80 3 A Lazy Man's Plot 83 4 The Ungrateful Fisherman 84 5 The Legend of the Rice 85

VII. Parables and Proverbs 87 1 "One Woman, in Deceit and Craft, is More than a Match for Eight Men" 89 2 "The Wisest Man of a Small Village is Not Equal in Wisdom to a Boy of the City Streets" 93 3 "To Aid Beast is Merit; to Aid Man is But Vanity" 95

VIII. The Gods Know and the Gods Reward 99 1 Love's Secrets 101 2 Poison-Mouth 103 3 Strife and Peace 105 4 The Widow's Punishment 107 5 Honesty Rewarded 109 6 The Justice of In Ta Pome 111

IX. Wonders of Wisdom 113 1 The Words of Untold Value 115 2 A Wise Philosopher 119 3 The Boys Who Were Not Appreciated 122 4 The Magic Well 126

X. Strange Fortunes of Strange People 129 1 The Fortunes of Ai Powlo 131 2 The Fortunes of a Lazy Beggar 135 3 The Misfortunes of Paw Yan 139 4 An Unfortunate Shot 141

XI. Stories Gone Astray 143 1 The Blind Man 145 2 "Heads, I Win. Tails, You Lose" 148 3 The Great Boaster 149 4 A Clever Thief 151 5 Eyeless-Needle, Rotten-Egg, Rotten-Banana, Old-Fish and Broken-Pestle 152

List of Illustrations.

A Group of Laos Girls _Frontispiece_ Types of the Laos People _Facing page_ 15 A Laos Forest-stream " " 28 The Laos Governor's Wife at her Embroidery Frame " " 57 A Group of Buddhist Priests } The Interior of a Buddhist Temple } " " 66 Monastery Grounds at Chieng Tung, Laos " " 72 At Work in the Rice Fields " " 86 The "Chow" and his Palace " " 96 Laos Feast } A Street in a Laos Town } " " 136

I Tales of the Jungle

A Child of The Woods

Deep in the forest of the North there is a large village of jungle people, and, among them is one old woman, who is held in reverence by all. The stranger who asks why she is honored as a princess is thus answered by her:

"Verily, I have much _boon_,[1] for I am but a child of nature. When I was a young maiden, it fell upon a day that my heart grew hot with anger. For many days the anger grew until it filled my whole heart, also were my eyes so red that I could see but dimly, and no longer could I live in the village or among my own people, for I hated all men and I felt that the beasts of the forest were more to me than my kindred. Therefore, I fled from the face of man into the jungle where no human foot had ever gone. All day I journeyed, running as though my feet would never weary and feeling no pangs of hunger. When the darkness closed about me, I was not afraid, but lay down under the shelter of a tree, and, for a time, slept peacefully, as peacefully as though in my own home. At length, I was awakened by the breath of an animal, and, in the clear light of the moon, I saw a large tiger before me. It smelled of my face, my hands and my feet, then seated itself by my head and watched me through the night, and I lay there unafraid. In the early morning, the tiger departed and I continued my journey. Quieter was my heart. Still, I disliked my own people but had no fear of the beasts or the reptiles of the forest.

During the day I ate of the fruit which grew wild in abundance, and at night I slept 'neath a tree, protected and guarded by fierce, wild beasts which molested not my sleep. For many days I wandered thus, and the nights were secure; for the wild beasts watched over and protected me. Thus my heart grew cool in my bosom, and I no longer hated my people; and, after one moon had gone, I found myself near a village. The people wondered to see me approach from the jungle, dreaded as being the jungle of the man-eating tiger. When I related my story, the people were filled with wonder and brought rich gifts to me. For a year and a day I abode there, and no more the wild beasts molested their cattle.

But my heart yearned to see the face of my kindred again, so, laden with silver, gold and rich garments and seated in the howdah[2] of an elephant, the people escorted me to my own village, and here have I abode in content these one hundred years.

1: Merit.

2: The car placed on the back of elephants.

The Enchanted Mountain

The hunters who are continually going about from place to place, climbing up high hills, descending into deep ravines and making ways through jungles in search of the wild bison and other game, tell strange tales of an enchanted place away on the top of a lofty mountain. There, is a beautiful lake, which is as bright and clear as a drop of morning dew hanging on the petal of the white water-lily, and, when you drink of it, you are no longer aweary; new life has come into you, and your body is more vigorous than ever before. The flowers on the margin of this enchanted lake are more beautiful than those that grow in any other spot, and, such is the love of the cherishing spirits for it, that they care for it as for no other place in this world. Bananas of a larger growth than can be found in the gardens of man, and oranges, sweeter to the taste than those we ever eat, are there. The fruits of all trees, more beautiful to the eye and richer than man can produce, are there, free to those who can find them. All the fowls usually nurtured by man and flocking about his door are there, and they are not affrighted by the presence of the hunter but come at his call. Should the hunter wish to kill them, his arrow cannot pierce their charmed bodies to deprive them of life, but the arrow falls harmless to the ground, because the spirits protect them and their lives are sacred. Great fields of rice are about this place, and the hunter marvels at the size of the grains and at the strength of the stalks. No field cared for by man has seen grain like that which the spirits nourish.

Many men, on hearing of this wonderful mountain-top, have sought it, but all have returned unsuccessful to their homes, saying, no such place is on this earth. Only the hunter, who has chased the game through the jungle, o'er the streams and up the steep mountain-sides, when tired and discouraged because the coveted prize has gone far beyond his reach, is rewarded for all his labor, when he finds himself in the garden of fruit, or on the margin of the enchanted lake, whose waters give renewed vigor to his wearied body.

Often, when the hunter desires to eat of the flesh of the fowls, he endeavors to kill the fowls, but no effort of his can take their life, as the spirits hold them in their care. No mortal can harm them. Nor can the hunter take any of the fruit away, for, as he leaves the spot, no matter how he may hold it, it vanishes from his hand. Thus, no man, who has not seen the place, has eaten of the fruit nor drank of the water; so, many doubt their existence, for such is the heart of man that he must touch with his hands, see with his eyes, or taste with his tongue, ere he can believe. Nevertheless, on the top of the lofty mountain there is the lake with the cool waters, clear and beautiful, where the fowls swim on its surface, or drink from its margin, and the grain and the fruit ripen for those who are loved of the spirits, and are led by them to this cherished spot where they may rest and be refreshed, and then return to their wives and children and tell them of the care of the spirits. The little ones, who have hearts free from guile, believe.

The Spirit-Guarded Cave

When the people of the far north[3] were molested by their foes and were in continual fear, they consulted together, saying, "Our lives are spent in trying to escape from our enemies and no joy can be ours. Let us flee to the south country[4] where, if the people make slaves of us, we can, at least, know that our lives will be spared, and life, even in slavery, is better than this constant fear of our enemies destroying both ourselves and our dwelling-places and taking our cattle for their own." Therefore, they gathered together all their household goods, secreted their money and jewels about their persons, and, loading their cattle with rice, they commenced their toilsome journey through the narrow jungle paths and across the high mountains on their way to the south, where they hoped for peace and safety. The way was long and difficult, and the rice was all eaten and the cattle killed and consumed before they had nearly reached their journey's end. Then the fugitives commenced to use their money to buy food that they might have strength for the journey, and they whispered one to another that the people looked with covetous eyes on their hoard of money and jewels, and they feared they would be slain because of the greed of the people.

One man, wiser than the others, said, "Why do we endanger our lives for our possessions? Can we not find some secret place in which to leave our money and jewels, and when brighter days come to us we can return and find them even as we left them?"

All the people cried, "Your words are wise. Let us do accordingly," and as these people were loved of the spirits, they were led to a deep cave in the midst of a wood where man seldom came, and there they left their possessions in the care of the spirits who promised to guard them until in the days, when life being brighter and more secure, the owners would come and claim them.

The people journeyed on to the south country, and there lived as slaves. Many generations of them lived and died, but they could not escape nor come to claim the vast wealth and jewels which they had left in care of the spirits of the cave.

The story became known, and the inhabitants of all the surrounding countries went to the cave and sought to secure the treasure. But such was the care of the spirits that no man with safety could enter the cave. A light was instantly extinguished, if let down into the deep pit leading into the chamber where the treasure was, for the spirits blew their breath upon it and it was no more. All devices were tried to obtain the treasure, and from all parts of the country the people came to try to overcome the charm which the spirits had placed upon the cave, but no one was able to break it. One man went even into the treasure chamber and filled his hands with the precious stones, but he was overcome by a deadly sickness and was forced to replace the jewels in the treasure chest and flee for his life so as to escape the wrath of the guarding spirits. Even the white, foreign strangers, who have come into the land and placed their strong hands on the elephants and the trees[5] of the forest and claimed them for their use, were baffled and driven back by the faithful spirits when they endeavored to enter the treasure chamber, and for all time this treasure shall remain there, for, if the white foreigner, by his wisdom, or by his craft, fails to obtain it, verily it will remain untouched forever.

3: In China.

4: Siam.

5: Teak-wood.

The Mountain Spirits and the Stone Mortars

The spirits, who lived in the mountains near a large city, upon a time wanted money for some purpose, and they brought down to the people of the city a number of large and heavy stone mortars which they commanded them to buy at an exorbitant price.

The men of the city said, "The price you ask is too great; moreover, we have no need of your mortars, as they are too large for us to use in pounding out our rice, or for any other purpose. Therefore, we do not wish to buy them."

The spirits were very angry because they did not cheerfully agree to pay the money, and answered, "If you will not buy these mortars which we have brought for your use, you shall carry them up to our home on the top of the mountain, for the labor of bringing them down has wearied us."

Not daring to incur the wrath of the spirits, and yet being utterly unable to carry the huge mortars to the high mountain, they paid the price, for, they reasoned, "Is any price too great to risk our falling under the displeasure of the evil spirits?"

The spirits departed with the money, and to this day, the stone mortars are scattered about the streets of that city, and, when strangers ask why they are there and what use is made of them, this story will be told, and all people say it is verily the truth, for do you not see them with your eyes, and how else could they have come here, had not the spirits brought them?

II Fables From the Forest

Right and Might

While a deer was eating wild fruit, he heard an owl call, "Haak, haak,"[6] and a cricket cry, "Wat,"[7] and, frightened, he fled.

In his flight he ran through the trees up into the mountains and into streams. In one of the streams the deer stepped upon a small fish and crushed it almost to death.

Then the fish complained to the court, and the deer, owl, cricket and fish had a lawsuit. In the trial came out this evidence:

As the deer fled, he ran into some dry grass, and the seed fell into the eye of a wild chicken, and the pain of the seed in the eye of the chicken caused it to fly up against a nest of red ants. Alarmed, the red ants flew out to do battle, and in their haste, bit a mon-goose. The mon-goose ran into a vine of wild fruit and shook several pieces of it on the head of a hermit, who sat thinking under a tree.

"Why didst thou, O fruit, fall on my head," cried the hermit.

The fruit answered: "We did not wish to fall; a mon-goose ran against our vine and threw us down."

And the hermit asked, "O mon-goose, why didst thou throw the fruit?"

The mon-goose answered: "I did not wish to throw down the fruit, but the red ants bit me and I ran against the vine."

The hermit asked, "O ants, why did ye bite the mon-goose?"

The red ants replied: "The hen flew against our nest and angered us."

The hermit asked, "O hen, why didst thou fly against the red ants' nest?"

And the hen replied: "The seed fell into my eyes and hurt me."

And the hermit asked, "O seed, why didst thou fall into the hen's eyes?"

And the seed replied: "The deer shook me down."

The hermit said unto the deer, "O deer, why didst thou shake down the seed?"

The deer answered: "I did not wish to do it, but the owl called, frightening me and I ran."

"O owl," asked the hermit, "why didst thou frighten the deer?"

The owl replied: "I called but as I am accustomed to call--the cricket, too, called."

Having heard the evidence, the judge said, "The cricket must replace the crushed parts of the fish and make it well," as he, the cricket, had called and frightened the deer.

* * * * *

The cricket was smaller and weaker than the owl or the deer, therefore had to bear the penalty.

6: Haak--a spear.

7: Wat--surrounded.

Why the Lip of the Elephant Droops

In the days when the earth was young lived a poor man and his wife who had twelve daughters, whom they no longer loved and no longer desired. Day after day the father and mother planned to be free of them, and upon a day, the father made ready a basket; in the bottom he placed ashes, but on the top he spread rice. Taking this basket with him, he called his daughters to come go to the jungle to hunt for game.

When the heat of the day had come, they all sat down to eat, and, after they had eaten, the father gave each daughter a bamboo joint, and bade her get water for him. The joints were so made that they would not hold water, and while the maidens endeavored to make them so they would, the father returned home. In vain did the maidens try to make the joints hold the water and after a time they sought their father, but, lo, the father was gone and only the basket remained! Examining the basket, they found rice but on the top, and on the bottom filled with ashes, so they knew their parents sought to be free of them by leaving them in the trackless jungle. Unable to find their way out, there they slept peacefully, for the wild beasts molest not those who fearlessly stay with them.

As the eye of day opened in the East, the forlorn maidens beheld, as they awakened, a beautiful woman standing near, and of her they sought help.

"Come with me and be companions to my little daughter. Often am I away from home and she is lonely. Come home with me, play with my daughter, and, in exchange I will give you a home," said the beautiful woman.

Gladly the maidens consented and went with the woman to her home far in the jungle. All places save one small garden were they free to enter. And upon a day, the fair woman said, "I go to the jungle and will not return until the eye of day has closed. Do not play in the small garden." Scarcely had she gone ere she returned, but the maidens had not sought the garden.

Again, upon a day, the fair woman said, "I go to the jungle but for a short time. Go not to play in the small garden."

Thinking she would this time be gone all day, the maidens sought the small garden, and lo, it was strewn with human bones! Then they knew the fair woman was a cannibal. Full of fear, they fled, and, as they fled they met a cow.

"Protect us," they cried.

The cow opened its mouth and the maidens jumped in. Thus they journeyed from the cannibal's home. As the cow returned, it met the fair woman seeking the maidens.

"Have you seen twelve maidens pass this way?" asked she.

"No," answered the cow.

"If you do not speak the truth, I'll kill and eat you," cried she.

"I saw them as they made haste in that way," replied the cow.

The cannibal woman pursued that way.

After the cow left them, the maidens hastened on and as they hastened they met an elephant and begged it to save them from the cannibal.

The elephant opened its mouth and the maidens jumped in, but so slowly did one jump that an edge of her garment hung out of the mouth. As they journeyed the cannibal overtook them.

"Did you see twelve maidens hastening toward the city?" asked the cannibal.

"No," answered the elephant.

"From this time forth forever the lip of thy mouth shall hang down as a garment," cursed the cannibal, for she had seen the edge of the maiden's garment hanging out of the elephant's mouth and knew it was protecting the twelve maidens. And to this day doth the lip of the elephant hang down like a garment.

How a Dead Tiger Killed the Princess