their sister very much and begged for a little delay. Out of
pity the others agreed; but almost at once one of the brothers fell
ill and was like to die. Medicines were tried but had no effect;
then they called in an _ojha_ and he told them that the _bonga_ to
whom they had made the vow while out hunting had caused the illness
and that if they did not fulfil the vow their brother would die. Then
they all went to the sick man's bedside and poured out water on the
ground and swore that they would fulfil their vow; no sooner had they
done so than the sick man was restored to health.

So the very next day they arranged to go and level the field near
their pond and they told their wives to send their sister to them with
their breakfast. When the time came the girl took out their breakfast
and put it down by them and they sent her to draw water for them from
the pond but when she put her water pot down to the surface it would
not sink so as to let the water run in. The girl called out to her
brothers that the pot would not fill; they told her to go a little
further into the water; so she went in till the water was up to her
thighs but still the pot would not fill: then they called to her
to go in further and she went in waist deep but still it would not
fill; then she went in up to her neck and still it would not fill;
then she went in a little further and the water closed over her and
she was drowned. At this sight the brothers threw away the food which
she had brought and hastened home.

Some days later the body rose and floated to the bank and at the place
where it lay a bamboo sprang up and grew and flourished. One day a
Dome went to cut it down to make a flute of; as he raised his axe
the voice of the girl spoke from within the bamboo "O Dome, do not
cut high up; cut low down." The Dome looked about but could not see
who it was who spoke; however he obeyed the voice and cut the bamboo
close to the ground and made a flute of it. The sound of the flute
was surpassingly sweet and the Dome used to play on it every day. One
day he was playing on it at a friend's house and a Santal heard it
and was so taken by its sweet tone that he came at night and stole it.

Having got possession of it he used to play on it constantly and
always keep it by him. Every night the flute became a woman and the
Santal found her in his house without knowing where she came from and
used to spend the night talking to her but towards morning she u