] daughter disappeared. All the people
in the locality searched for it, but in vain. The datu called for
volunteers to find the lost ring, and he offered his daughter's hand
as a prize to the one who should succeed. Suan's mother heard of the
proclamation. So she went to the palace and presented Suan to the datu.

"Well, Suan, to-morrow tell me where the ring is," said the datu.

"Yes, my lord, I will tell you, if you will give your soldiers over
to me for to-night," Suan replied.

"You shall have everything you need," said the datu.

That evening Suan ordered the soldiers to stand around him in a
semicircle. When all were ready, Suan pointed at each one of them,
and said, "The ring is here, and nowhere else." It so happened that
Suan fixed his eyes on the guilty soldier, who trembled and became
pale. "I know who has it," said Suan. Then he ordered them to retire.

Late in the night this soldier came to Suan, and said, "I will get
the ring you are in search of, and will give it to you if you will
promise me my safety."

"Give it to me, and you shall be safe," said Suan.

Very early the next morning Suan came to the palace with a turkey in
his arms. "Where is the ring?" the datu demanded. "Why, sir, it is in
this turkey's intestines," Suan replied. The turkey was then killed,
and the ring was found inside it.

"You have done very well, Suan. Now you shall have my daughter's hand,"
said the datu. So Suan became the princess's husband.

One day the datu proposed a bet with any one who wished to prove
Suan's skill. Accordingly another datu came. He offered to bet seven
cascos [4] of treasure that Suan could not tell the number of seeds
that were in his orange. Suan did not know what to do. At midnight
he went secretly to the cascos. Here he heard their conversation,
and from it he learned the number of seeds in the orange.

In the morning Suan said boastfully, "I tell you, your orange has
nine seeds." Thus Suan won the whole treasure.

Hoping to recover his loss, the datu came again. This time he had
with him fourteen cascos full of gold. He asked Suan to tell him
what was inside his golden ball. Suan did not know what to say. So
in the dead of night he went out to the cascos, but he could learn
nothing there. The next morning Suan was summoned into the presence
of the two datus. He had no idea whatever as to what was in the ball;
so he said scornfully, "Nonsense!"

"That is right, that is right!" shouted a ma