n him and ate him up. The _muni_, when Lita did not come back,
knew that something must have happened to him so he sent a crow to
see what was the matter. The crow came back and said that one _bel_
fruit had been picked but that he could not see Lita. Then the _muni_
sent the crow to bring him the droppings of the Rakshasas. The crow
did so and from the droppings the _muni_ restored Lita to life. The
_muni_ reproved Lita for his failure and told him that if he wished
to make a second attempt he must remember his behest to pick only the
biggest _bel_ fruit. Lita promised and the _muni_ turned him into a
parroquet. In this form Lita again flew to the _bel_ tree and picked
the biggest fruit on the tree. When the Rakshasas saw the parrot
making off with the fruit they pursued him in fury; but the _muni_
turned the parrot into a fly so small that the Rakshasas could not
see it, so they had to give up the chase.

When they had departed Lita recovered his own form and went to the
_muni_ with the _bel_ fruit and asked what more was to be done in order
to find the princess. The _muni_ said that the princess was inside the
fruit; that Lita was to take it to a certain well and very gently break
it open against the edge of the well. Lita hurried off to the well and
in his anxiety to see the princess he knocked the fruit with all his
force and split it suddenly in two. The result of this was that the
princess burst out of the fruit in such a blaze of light that Lita
fell down dead. When the princess saw that her brightness had killed
her lover she was very distressed and taking his body on her lap she
wept over him. While she was doing so a girl of the Kamar caste came by
and asked what was the matter. The princess said: "My lover is dead,
if you will draw water from the well I will revive him by giving
him to drink," but the Kamar girl at once formed a wicked plan. She
said that she could not reach the water in the well. Then said the
princess: "Do you hold this dead body while I draw the water." "No,"
said the Kamar girl, "I see you mean to run away leaving me with
the dead body and I shall get into trouble." Then said the princess:
"If you do not believe me take off my fine clothes and keep them as
a pledge." Then the princess let the Kamar girl take off all her
jewellery and her beautiful dress and went to draw water from the
well. But the Kamar girl followed her and as the princess leant over
the edge she pushed her in, so that