sharp knives and tied them on to the trunk of the
palm tree: and when the Rakhas came back and tried to climb the tree,
he was so badly cut by the knives, that he fell down to the ground with
a thud and lay there groaning. Then the monkey cautiously descended and
the Rakhas begged him to cure his wounds; the monkey answered that he
would cure him if he gave him complete outfits for the children. The
Rakhas said that he would give them directly he was cured. So the
monkey applied some medicines and recited the following spells:--

"Rustling, rustling sesamum,
Slender sesamum:
Tell your grandfather,
Tell him of seven waist strings.

Rustling, rustling sesamum,
Slender sesamum:
Tell your grandfather,
Tell him of seven dhotis."

And in succeeding verses, he mentioned seven coats, seven pair of
shoes, seven hats, seven swords, seven horses, and seven hogs; and as
he repeated the incantation he blew on the Rakhas, and he was healed.

The Rakhas was to give the things mentioned in the incantation, but
when seven hogs were mentioned he objected and wished only to give one,
and in the end the monkey agreed to be content with two; so the Rakhas
departed and the next day appeared with seven waist strings, seven
dhoties, seven coats, seven hats, seven pairs of shoes, seven swords,
seven horses and two hogs. Then the monkey rigged the children out in
this apparel and mounted them on the horses; and the monkey and the
Rakhas mounted on the two hogs,--the Rakhas having faithfully promised
not to eat the children or their parents,--and they all set out for
the children's home. When the mothers saw the cavalcade come jingling
along, they were frightened at first; but when they recognised their
children they were delighted, and they gave the monkey and Rakhas a
good dinner. Then the monkey made over the children to their parents
and gave up his post as nurse, and left amid the good wishes of all.

LXXVII. The Wife Who Could Not Keep a Secret.

Once there was a man of the Goala caste, who looked after the cattle
of a rich farmer. One day a cow dropped a calf in the jungle without
the Goala knowing, and at evening the cow came running to join the
others, without the calf. When they got home the cow kept on lowing
and the master asked whether she had had a calf; the Goala had to
confess that the calf had been left in the jungle; the master scolded
him well, so he took a rope and stick and