r
came back. At evening the brothers returned from hunting, and heard
what had happened. They were very distressed and told their wives
to look after the baby while they went in pursuit. They followed as
hard as they could and caught up the Jogi on the banks of a river;
then they tried to shoot him, but their arrows were powerless against
him, and he by magic turned the seven brothers into stones.

So the Jogi carried off the woman to his home. He was a Raja in his
own country and he had a big garden; and an old woman who looked
after it used to make garlands every day and bring them to the Rani,
and the Rani used to pay their weight in silver for them. In the
course of time the child who was left behind grew up and when he
used to play with his fellows at pitch and toss and there was any
dispute about the game his playmates would say "Fatherless boy,
you want to cheat!" So he asked his aunts whether it was true that
he had no father and they told him that the Jhades jogi had carried
off his mother, and how his father and uncles had gone in pursuit and
had never returned. So the boy decided to go in search of his mother
and he set off, and first he met some goatherds and he sang to them:--

"Ho, Ho, goatherds
Have you seen the Jhades Jogi
On this road?"

But they could tell him nothing. And then he met some shepherd boys,
and he sang to them:--

"Ho, Ho, shepherds,
Have you seen the Jhades jogi
On this road?"

But they could tell him nothing. Then he met some boys tending
buffaloes and he sang;--

"Ho, ho, buffalo herds,
Have you seen the Jhades jogi
On this road?"

But they could tell him nothing. Then he came to a thorn bush, with
a number of rags fluttering on it, and he sang:--

"Ho, ho, plum bush,
Have you seen the Jhades jogi
On this road?"

And the plum tree said "The Jhades jogi brought your mother this way,
and I did my best to stop them. If you don't believe me see the rags as
a proof." And he put his hand on the tree and went on. And then he came
to a squirrel which was chattering in a banyan tree, and he sang:--

"Ho, ho, squirrel,
Have you seen the Jhades jogi
On this road?"

And the squirrel said "I have been calling you since yesterday. The
jogi brought your mother this way, go on and you will overtake
them. And your father and uncles also came this road." The boy was
cheered by this news and he put his ha