So the first _ojha_ felt her pulse and smiled and said nothing, and
the second _ojha_ felt her pulse and smiled and said nothing, and
when the father-in-law asked them if they knew what was the matter,
they answered that the illness was very serious and medicines must be
applied; the father-in-law said "Yes; but you must get the medicines
or tell me exactly what is wanted and I will arrange for it;" this
conversation took place before the woman; the _ojhas_ said "Very well,
we will do what you want but before applying the medicine we shall
have to do some incantations;" the father-in-law answered "Do whatever
is necessary to make a good job of it. Don't spare anything; try and
get everything ready by to-morrow: for we are in great difficulty; I
do not like to leave the patient alone in the house and yet I cannot
spare anyone to look after her;" the _ojhas_ promised and got up
and went out with the father-in-law, and in the village street they
told him that laziness was all that was the matter with the woman,
but that they knew a medicine which would cure her; so they went
to the jungle and dug up two very big tubers of the _tirra_ plant,
as big as pumpkins, and in the evening they went to the man's house
and told him that they had found the medicine, and that the whole
household was to come to the cross roads at the end of the village
very early the next morning with the patient and they would exorcise
the disease and apply remedies.

At cockcrow the next morning the two _ojhas_ brought the two tubers
and put them down at the end of the village street, and then went to
the house where the sick woman lived and awoke the inmates, and they
borrowed a pot of water and some vermilion and an old winnowing fan
and then they all went to the place where the tubers had been left,
and the _ojhas_ made the patient sit on the winnowing fan facing the
east and painted her with vermilion; then they waved pig's dung round
her head and tied the two tubers round her neck and told her to walk
up and down the village street three times; and that would remove
the spell that was on her. So the woman began to walk up the village
street and every one laughed at her and the children ran after her
and smacked her and jumped and shouted for joy and the _ojhas_ called
out to her "You must not take off the tubers until you are cured."

The woman walked up and down twice, but then she was so ashamed at
being laughed at that she threw away the t