Chapter X: Strange Fortunes of Strange People

The Fortunes of Ai Powlo

Once upon a time a father and mother had a wicked son whose name was Ai Powlo. One day, while in the rice fields together, the father sent the son to his mother with a message. Instead, however, of delivering the message, Ai Powlo said his father had been eaten by a tiger. Leaving his mother in great distress, he returned to the rice fields and told his father that both his mother and the house were burned, and, for three days, did the father mourn for his wife, as he lay in the watchhouse.

While the father was mourning, Ai Powlo moved his mother and the house to a new place and then sought his father, saying, "I saw a woman in a new house by the stream who resembles my mother. Would you like her for a wife?"

"If my son seeks her for me, I would be thankful," replied the father.

Going to his mother, Ai Powlo said, "I have a man who would make thee a good husband. He would work in the rice fields. Will you take him for a husband?"

Thinking of the work, the mother said, "I will. Go, bring him to me, my son."

Lo, when the father and mother met, they recognized one another, and they knew their crafty son had deceived them!

As Ai Powlo fled from the wrath of his mother and father, he journeyed many days, and, upon a day it happened he stole some pork from a Chinaman. Taking the pork, he sought the rice fields and there he saw an old man at work. Running up to him, he called, "Father, do you not hunger for some pork? I have some to share with you."

"I do, my son," replied the old man.

Together they went to the watchhouse to cook the pork, but found no pot there.

"Whilst I make a fire, go thou, my son, to my house and ask my wife for a pot."

"Your husband wants you to give me all the money in the house, as he has heard of an elephant which he can buy now," said Ai Powlo to the wife.

The wife refused to give it to him and Ai Powlo called to the husband, who sat by the watchhouse waiting for the pot, "She will not give it to me." The old man called back, as he was hungry for the pork, "Give it to him. Make haste," and receiving all their store, Ai Powlo fled into another province.

Upon a day, as Ai Powlo walked by the highway, he saw four bald-headed men pouring water on their heads to cool themselves. Running up to them, he said, "I know a medicine which will make the hair grow. Rub your heads until the skin is broken, whilst I make the medicine."

Taking some red peppers, he pounded them to a soft paste, put some salt in it, and then handed it to the four simple-minded old men, who had already rubbed their heads until they bled.

Having used the medicine, they suffered great pain and would have killed Ai Powlo, but he fled and took refuge with the chow, to whom he said, "I saw four old men on the way, who butted their heads together, trying to see which could overcome the other. All have much strength, and their heads are scratched and bleeding." Even as Ai Powlo spoke to the chow, the chow espied the men, and, when they came up, he commanded them, saying, "If you are able thus to wrestle for your own pleasure, you can wrestle for my pleasure." Not daring to disobey the command of the chow, the men painfully wrestled. While they struggled, Ai Powlo, fearing their wrath, fled, and as he fled, he fell into a deep stream and was drowned.

* * * * *

Many years after, two fishermen were fishing in the stream, and as they drew in the net, they found not a fish, but a skull, and lo, the skull both laughed and mocked!

As the fishermen talked together of the curious skull, a man with a boat-load of goods approached, and they called to him, asking, "Did you ever see a skull which laughed and mocked?"

"Never did I see such a skull, nor ever will I believe there is such a thing," replied the man.

"If we show you such a skull, what will you give unto us?" asked the fishermen.

"All the goods in my boat," laughingly answered the man.

On beholding the skull, which, of a truth did both laugh and mock him, the boatman forfeited his goods, but, in his anger, he cut the skull and broke it into pieces, and, of these pieces he made dice with which to gamble, and was it not fitting, as Ai Powlo, whose skull it was, in life had but deceived, and ever done evil?

The Fortunes of a Lazy Beggar

Once upon a time a man lived who was never known to work. When the neighbors grew weary supplying him with food, he sought the forest, and lay down under a fig-tree so the ripe fruit might drop into his mouth. Often, when the food fell out of his reach, he would suffer hunger, rather than make an effort.

It fell upon a day that a stranger passed that way, and the lazy man asked him to please gather some fruit and put it into his mouth, as he hungered. The wily stranger gathered a handful of earth and put it into his mouth, as he lay there with his eyes even closed. Tasting the earth, the lazy man was angry, and he threw figs after the retreating impostor, who ran away mocking him.

Days after, a ripe fig fell into a stream near by and, floating down the stream, was seen and eaten by the daughter of a chow. Delicious to the taste, she grew dissatisfied with all other fruit and vowed that, from henceforth, she would eat of no other fruit, and that the man who had thrown the one beautiful fig should be her husband.

Angered by such a caprice, her father urged her to be guided by his judgment. Unable to restrain her, and, hoping to turn her desire elsewhere, the chow made an elaborate feast and bade all the people of the province to it. But, among all was not the one who had thrown the fig into the stream.

"Is there not yet a man who has not come to the feast?" asked the chow.

"None save the lazy beggar who lies at the fig-tree," they said.

"Bring him hither," commanded the chow, determined to have his daughter see what manner of man she was selecting as her husband.

Too lazy to walk, the lazy man was carried into the presence of the chow and his guests.

Ashamed that his daughter sought such as her husband, and would have no other, as it was supposed that the lazy man alone had thrown the fig into the stream, and he was too lazy to deny it, the chow had a boat built for their use and commanded that they be floated down the stream to the sea. This he did, hoping his obstinate daughter and her lazy husband might be lost to the world forever.

All day long the boat drifted; all day long spake the princess not one word to her husband, nor would she have aught to eat. Fearing she would not live, if she did not eat, the beggar made a fire to cook some rice for her. Lazy as ever, he put but two stones under the kettle, and it tottered.

"I cannot endure your lazy ways. Put three stones under the kettle," cried his wife.

The husband did so, glad she had spoken to him.

And when the boat had drifted many days, it came to a place where once there had been a large rice field and there it remained.

While the princess stayed in the boat, the once indolent beggar labored day after day in the rice fields that they might live; moreover, he had learned to love his princess wife.

When the god, who looks to men's deeds, from his home in the sky saw the man no longer loved his ease more than all else, but would toil for his wife, he said within himself, "the man deserves reward." So he called to him six wild monkeys from his woods, and gave into their care six magic gongs, telling them to go beat them in the rice fields where the husband toiled.

The husband heard the monkeys and the clanging of the gongs, but, at last, unable to endure the noise, finally caught the monkeys and secured the gongs. He then threatened to kill the monkeys, but they plead that they were sent, by the god who looks to men's deeds, with the gongs as a reward for his merit. "Having seen your efforts to provide for your wife, who loves not you, he sends you these gongs. If you strike this one, you will grow beautiful; that one, you will have wisdom. Another gives you lands and servants, and, another, if struck while holding it in your hands, will cause people to do you reverence as though you were a god," they told the man.

Having permitted the monkeys to go, he beat the gong of beauty, and his body grew straight and tall, also his face became most pleasant to look upon. Beating the gong of power, and taking the others with him, he sought his wife. She did not recognize him, and would have done him reverence, but he said, "Do me no reverence. I am thy husband," and he told her of the god's reward. When she heard of the magic gongs, she entreated him to return to her father that he might forgive her for not having heeded his counsel.

Through the magic gongs, had they wealth, power and all benefits the gods could bestow, and the father loved them, and indeed gave his son-in-law power above all the princes in his province. And the once lazy man thought within himself: "In former times the people derided me as a lazy man, because I would not work, now that I am possessed of wealth, they do me reverence; yet behold I am as lazy as ever, for I open my mouth and food is ready for my use. Thus it is, that when a poor man does not work, he is called a lazy beggar, but when a prince, or rich man, does not work, he has power, and people do him reverence."

The Misfortunes of Paw Yan

Upon a day, Paw Yan[22] said to his wife, "Today I shall build a watch-tower in the rice fields."

"You will need four posts about the size of our children here," replied the wife.

Taking the four children with him to the rice fields, Paw Yan dug four post holes and made the children stand in them. Then he packed the earth about their feet to make them firm, took the beams and laid them on their shoulders, tied them in place, and went for more bamboo to finish the watch-tower.

The eye of day had closed in the West, yet the husband and the children returned not, so the wife, in distress, sought them in the fields, and, lo, when she reached them, there stood the four children as posts for the watch-tower.

"Know you not anything? I said take four posts the size of our children," cried the wife.

And upon another day did Paw Yan attempt to build the tower, but so utterly did he fail that his wife said, "While I build the watch-tower you gather the food for the pigs, and, when the eye of day closes, give it to them."

Paw Yan watched until the eye of day was about to close, but forgot to gather the food for the pigs, so he took all the rice, which was the food for the family, and went out to the pigs. He called, "Ow, ow, ow,"[23] and the pigs ran about trying to find the food, but Paw Yan forgot to throw it to them, for, while he stood there, he saw ants running down the trunk of a tree, and he could think of nothing else. "That's an easy way to get down a tree," thought Paw Yan. "I'll try it," and, throwing the rice aside, he climbed the tree, and, head first, started down, but fell to the ground and broke his neck!

22: Paw Yan--a blunderer.

23: Ow--take.

An Unfortunate Shot

There was once a poor man too ill to work, and he had no one to give him food. The chow of the province heard of him and sent for him to come to his house.

When the man reached the house of the chow, the chow gave him a bow and arrow, saying, "Shoot upward toward the sky. When the arrow falls to the earth, if it fall making a hole in the earth, I will weigh the earth which the arrow digs up, and give thee the weight of it in gold. On whatsoever thy arrow falls, that will I weigh and give its weight unto thee in gold. If, in its fall, the arrow should make a hole in the ground six feet long and six feet deep, that earth will I weigh, and gold according to the weight thereof shall be thine."

The poor man was indeed glad, and, shooting with all his strength into the air, the arrow pierced a pomegranate seed, therefore the chow gave unto him gold but the weight of the seed!