In a certain country a greatly-poor man dwelt, it is said. The man
having prayed to a friend of his [for assistance], received from
his friend a calf. In order to sell the calf for himself, having set
out from the village at which he stayed, and come and descended to
the road, at the time when he was going along driving it he met with
three young men of yet [another] village.
At the time when the three young persons saw this poor man, they spoke
together in this fashion. The speech indeed was, "Having cheated the
man who is going driving this bull, let us seize the bull," they said.
Having spoken to the man, when they asked him, "Will you give us the
goat?" the poor man who is going driving the bull, says, "Friends,
I am not taking the goat; it is a bull," he said.
Then the men who were cheating him began to say, "Why, O fool, when
you have come driving the goat, are you trying to make it a bull? We
recognise goats, and we recognise bulls. Don't make fun [of us]. Having
given us that goat, and taken a sufficient amount, go away," they said.
Having said and said thus, when these three persons began to make an
uproar [about it], the poor man who is driving the bull, having made
the bull the goat, and spoken to the three persons, says, "It is good,
friends. Taking this goat that I brought, and having fixed a sufficient
price, give [me it]," he said.
When he said thus, those three enemies say, "What are you saying? The
full value of a goat is five rupees; this one is worth three rupees,
but we shall not do in that manner to you. To you we will give four
rupees," they said.
Having said thus, and given that poor man four rupees, "Now then,
you go away," they said.
When they said thus, that man who went driving the bull having spoken
[to himself]: "I will do a good work for these three persons," says,
"Ane! Friends, except that I have a thought that I also having joined
you three persons [should be] obtaining a livelihood, for what purpose
should I go to my village? It is not the fact [that I think of going
there]. It is my thought to live joined with you," he said.
When he said this, those thieves say, "It is good. We also are much
pleased at your living joined with us," they said.
The two parties speaking thus, the man who came driving the bull
stayed near those men who cheated him. Having stayed thus, after
about eight days or ten days had gone, he said, "I will do a thing
for their having cheated me and taken the bull"; and making a hat
which had three corners he put it on his head.
While he is there [after] thus putting the three-cornered hat on
his head, those three persons ask, "What is it, friend? Where did
you meet with a hat of a kind which is not [elsewhere]? This is the
first time we saw such hats," they said.
When they said thus, the man says, "Ane! Friends, if you knew the
facts about this hat you will not speak in this way," he said.
"Because of what circumstances are you praising this hat?" they asked.
This poor man says, "By this hat I can obtain food and drink while
at any place I like. Moreover, by the power of this hat I can also
do anything I think of," he said.
When he said thus, those three persons say, "Ane! Friend, will you
give us that hat?"
When they asked him, he says, "Having shown you the power which there
is in my hat, I can give you the hat also for a sufficient sum,"
he said.
They said, "If so, show us the power that is in your hat. We having
looked at the power of the hat, we will give you the whole of the
goods that there are of ours, and take the hat."
Having said, "It is good. I will show you to-morrow the power of my
hat," that day evening he went to the eating-houses that are in that
village, and spoke to the persons who are in the eating-houses: "We
four persons to-morrow are coming for food. When we have come you must
promise to treat us four persons well. Take the money for it to-day."
Having given the money, and also having gone to the place where
they eat during the [mid]day, and the place where they drink tea,
and the place where they eat at night, speaking in that manner he
gave the money.
On the following day he says to those three persons, "I will show you
the power of my hat. Come along." [182] Summoning them, and putting
on that hat, at the place where he came and gave the money first he
went in, together with the three friends.
Having taken off the three-cornered hat, when he lowered his head the
men who were in the eating-house say, "It is good. Will you, Sirs,
be seated there?" Having placed and given them chairs, and made ready
the food, they quickly gave them to eat, and when they had finished,
gave them cheroots.
Having been talking and talking very much, the Three-cornered Hatter
says, "Now then, we must go, and come [again]."
When he said it, the men of the eating-house say, "It is good; having
gone, come [again]. Should you come [this way] don't go away without
coming here."
When they said it, the Three-cornered Hatter says, "Yes; should we
come, we will not go away without coming here."
Having gone from there, and walked there and here, and at the time for
the [mid] day rice having gone to the place where he gave the money,
in that very manner they ate and drank. Having also gone to the tea
drinking place, and in that very way having drunk, after it became
night they went to the place where he gave the money for the night
food, and ate.
From the time when they came back to the place where they dwell,
those three persons speak [together], "This hat is not a so-so [183]
hat. To-day we saw the power there is in the hat. What are the goods
for, that we have? Having given the whole of our goods, let us take
that hat." Speaking [thus], and having spoken to the Three-cornered
Hatter, they say, "Friend, taking any price you will take, give us
this hat."
When they said it [he replied], "Ane! Friends, having made the bull
the goat, even should you [be willing to] take it, I cannot give this
hat. My life is protected by that hat."
When he said [this, they replied], "If so, it is good. Taking the whole
of the goods that there are of us three persons, give us the hat."
When they said [this], the Three-cornered Hatter says, "It is
good. Because you are saying it very importunately, [184] and because
up to this time from the first [I have been] the friend of you three
persons, taking the hat give me the goods."
Having said [this], tying all the goods belonging to the three persons
in bundles, the Three-cornered Hatter says, "Now then, I am going. I
gave you the hat that I had for the protection of my life; you will
take good care of that hat." Having said it, the Three-cornered Hatter
bounded off and went away.
On the following day after that, those three persons made ready to go
in the first manner, for eating. One putting on the hat, they went,
and sitting in the eating-house they ate and drank.
Having finished and talked, when they said, "We are going," [185]
[the people of the eating-house] ask, "Where is the money?" When they
said, "Having given the money, go away," where have these three got
money to give?
When they did not give it on the spot, the men who are in the
eating-house, seizing them and having beaten them, put them out of
the eating-house.
When they put them out, these three persons are quarrelling along the
road. [One of them] said, "Because, indeed, they did not see that you
went [after] putting on the hat, we two also ate blows. I will see
[about it]; I will put it on and go. Give me it here."
This one, taking the hat from that man, and having gone [after]
putting it on, to the place where they eat during the [mid] day,
they ate and drank in the first manner. Having been there talking and
talking for a little time, they say to the men of the eating-house,
"Now then, we are going."
When they said it, the men of the eating-house say, "Having gone,
no matter if you should come again. For what you ate to-day we want
the money. Give the money, and having gone, come [again]."
When they said [this], these three persons, except that they ate in
order to look at the power of the hat, whence are they to give the
money? While they were there without speaking, they said in the very
first manner, "Thrash these three thieves for the money," and there
and then also seizing the men, beat them.
When they had put them to the door, having descended to the path on
the journey on which they are going, the man who did not put on the
hat says, "[The people] not seeing you two [wearing it] and your
putting on of that hat, can you go and look at the power of the
hat, stupids both? If you want, you can look for yourselves [this]
evening. Give me that hat. In the evening, at the place where they
eat food I will show you the power of the hat."
Having said [this], the man having gone in the evening [after] putting
on the hat, to the place where they eat food, in the very first manner
they ate and drank. Having been talking and talking, they say, "Well,
we are going."
When they said it, "Having given the money for what you ate, go,"
they said.
Then these three persons, whence are they to give the money? Many a
time (bohoma kalak) having asked for the money, while they were there
without speaking, the men having well beaten these three persons put
them out of the eating-house.
The three persons that day's day having eaten blows three times, in
much distress each one comes to his own house. In not many days, on
account of these blows that they ate, and through sorrow at the loss
of their goods, the end of the lives of the three persons was reached.
The Three-cornered Hatter having gone away taking the goods of these
three persons, and having eaten and drunk in happiness, [at last]
he died. For their making the Three-cornered Hatter's bull the goat,
taking the goods of these three he also destroyed the lives of the
three persons.
Western Province.
In the Hitopadesa, a well-known form of the first incident
occurs. Three rogues, seeing a Brahmana carrying home a goat on
his shoulder for sacrifice, sat down under three trees at some
distance apart on the road. As the man came up, the first rogue said,
"O Brahmana, why dost thou carry that dog on thy shoulder?" "It is
not a dog," said the Brahmana, "it is a goat for sacrifice," and he
went on. When the second rogue asked the same question, the Brahmana
put down the goat, looked at it, returned it to his shoulder, and
resumed his journey. When the third man inquired in the same way,
the Brahmana threw down the goat and went home without it, the rogues
of course taking it to eat. This story is given in the Katha Sarit
Sagara (Tawney), vol. ii, p. 68, with the difference that first one
man spoke to the Brahmana, then two men, and lastly three.
In Indian Nights' Entertainment (Swynnerton), p. 106, when a foolish
man was passing through a village driving a buffalo that he had bought,
some men asked him where he got the ram; and as the whole of them
insisted that it was a ram he left it with them through fear of his
brother's anger at his buying a ram instead of a buffalo.
In Folk-Tales of the Telugus (G. R. Subramiah Pantulu), p. 61, it is
repeated with the variation that the Brahmana had four or five goats
which he was leading. Four Sudras (men of low caste) who wished to get
them, in turn asked him why he was taking a number of mad dogs. The
last Sudra suggested that it was unsafe to release them, so he tied
them to a tree, whence the four men removed them when he had gone.
In the Arabian Nights (Lady Burton's ed., vol. iii, p. 200), a thief
promised another that he would steal an ass that a man was leading by
a halter. He went up to it, quietly took off the halter and placed
it on his own head without the ass-owner's observing it, and his
friend led away the ass. When he had gone off with it, the haltered
man stood still, and on the ass-owner's turning to look at his ass,
told him that he was really the ass, and that he had been transformed
into it because of his mother's curse when he went home drunk and beat
her. She had now relented, and as the result of her prayers he had
taken his original form once more. The ass-owner apologised for any bad
treatment meted out to him, went home, and told his wife, who gave alms
by way of atonement, and prayed to Heaven for pardon. Afterwards, when
the owner went to purchase another ass he saw his own in the market,
and whispered to it, "Doubtless thou hast been getting drunk again
and beating thy mother! But, by Allah, I will never buy thee more."