Chapter IV: The Clever Thief. 75

In olden times there lived in a hill-town a householder, who married a wife of his own caste. When a son was born unto him, he said to his wife, “Goodwife, now that there is born unto us a causer of debts and diminisher of means, I will take merchandise and go to sea.” She replied, “Do so, lord.” So he went to sea with his merchandise, and there he died.

After his wife had got over her mourning, she continued to live, partly supported by her handiwork, and partly by her relatives. Not far from her dwelt a weaver who was skilled in his art, and who by means of adroitness succeeded in everything. Seeing that he, by means of his art, had become well to do, she came to the conclusion that weaving was better than going to sea, for when a man did the latter, he needlessly exposed himself to misfortune. So she said to the weaver, “O brother, teach this nephew of yours to weave.” He replied, “As that is right, I will do so.” The youth became his apprentice, and in a short time learnt the art of weaving, for he was sharp and quick.

As the weaver wore fine clothes, took good baths, and partook of delicate food, the youth said to him one day, “Uncle, how is it that although you and I are occupied in exactly the same kind of work, yet you have fine clothes, good baths, and delicate food, but I never have a chance of such things?” The weaver replied, “Nephew, I carry on two kinds of work. By day I practise weaving, but by night thieving.”

“If that be so, uncle, I too will practise thieving.”

“Nephew, you cannot commit a theft.”

“Uncle, I can.”

The weaver thought he would test him a little, so he took him to the market-place, purchased a hare there, and gave it to him, saying, “Nephew, I shall take a bath and then return home. Meanwhile, go on roasting this hare.” While he was taking his bath, the youth hastily roasted the hare and ate up one of its legs. When the weaver returned from his bath, he said, “Nephew, have you roasted the hare?”

“Yes!”

“Let’s see it, then.”

When the youth had brought the hare, and the weaver saw that it only had three legs, he said, “Nephew, where is the fourth leg gone?”

“Uncle, it is true that hares have four legs, but if the fourth leg is not there, it cannot have gone anywhere.”

The weaver thought, “Although I have long been a thief, yet this lad is a still greater thief.” And he went with the youth and the three-legged hare into a drinking-house and called for liquor. When they had both drunk, the weaver said, “Nephew, the score must be paid by a trick.”

“Uncle, he who has drunk may play a trick; why should I, who have not drunk, do this thing?”

The weaver saw that the lad was a great swindler, so he determined to carry out a theft along with him.

They betook themselves to housebreaking. Once when they had made a hole into a house, and the weaver was going to pass his head through the opening, the youth said, “Uncle, although you are a thief, yet you do not understand your business. The legs should be put in first, not the head. For if the head should get cut off, its owner would be recognised, and his whole family would be plunged into ruin. Therefore put your feet in first.”

When the weaver had done so, attention was called to the fact, and a cry was raised of “Thieves! thieves!” At that cry a great number of people assembled, who seized the weaver by his legs and began to pull him in. The youth, all by himself, could not succeed in pulling him out; but he cut off the weaver’s head and got away with it.

The ministers brought the news to the king, saying, “Your majesty, the thief was himself arrested at the spot where the housebreaking took place; but some one cut off his head and went away with it.” The king said, “O friends, he who has cut off the head and gone away with it is a great thief. Go and expose the headless trunk at the crossway of the main street. Then place yourselves on one side, and arrest whoever embraces it and wails over it, for that will be the thief.” Thereupon those servants of the king exposed the headless trunk at the crossway of the main street, and stationed themselves on one side. Thinking it would be wrong not to embrace his uncle and moan over him, the other thief assumed the appearance of a madman, and took to embracing men, women, carts, horses, bullocks, buffaloes, goats, and dogs. Afterwards, all men thinking he was mad, he pressed the headless trunk to his breast, wailed over it as long as he liked, and then went his way. The king was informed by his men that a madman had pressed the headless trunk to his bosom, and while he held it there had wailed over it, and had then gone away. The king said, “O friends, this man of a surety was the other thief. Ye have acted wrongly in not laying hands upon him. Therefore shall hands be laid upon you.”

The other thief said to himself, “If I do not show honour to my uncle, I shall be acting badly.” So he assumed the appearance of a carter, and drove a cart up to the spot laden with dry wood. When he arrived there, he upset the cart with its load of dry wood, unyoked the oxen, set the cart on fire, and then went away. The headless trunk was consumed by the flames. The king was informed by his men that the corpse was burnt, and they told him all that had taken place. The king said, “O friends, the carter was certainly the thief. Ye have acted wrongly in not laying hands upon him. Therefore shall hands be laid upon you.”

The thief said to himself, “I shall not be acting rightly unless I take soul-offerings to the burial-place for my uncle.” So he assumed the appearance of a Brahman, and wandered from house to house collecting food. From what he collected he made five oblation-cakes, which he left at the burial-place, and then went his way. The king’s men told him that a Brahman had wandered from house to house collecting food, and had then left five oblation-cakes on the spot where the body had been burnt, and had then gone away. The king said, “O friends, that was really the thief. Ye have acted wrongly in not laying hands upon him.”

The thief thought, “I shall be acting badly if I do not throw my uncle’s bones into the Ganges.” So he assumed the appearance of a Kāpālika, [76] went to the place where the corpse had been burnt, smeared his body with ashes, filled a skull with bones and ashes, flung it into the Ganges, and then went his way. When the king had been told by his men all that had happened, he said, “O friends, this was really the thief. Ye have acted wrongly in not laying hands upon him. In order to bring the matter to an end, do ye let it alone. I will lay hands on the man myself.”

The king had a garden laid out at a spot where the Ganges formed a bay, and he set men to watch on both of its shores. In it he stationed his very beautiful daughter on the shore of the river, giving her orders to cry aloud in case any one tried to touch her. To the watchmen also he gave orders to repair to the park as soon as they heard any sound, and if any man was found there, to seize him and bring him before him. Now the thief thought that he must not allow the opportunity of enjoying the king’s daughter to slip out of his hands. So he took an empty pitcher, went down to the shore of the Ganges, and began to draw water. As he was carrying the first pitcherful, the watchmen came running up, thinking that he was the thief, and hit him a blow, in consequence of which the pitcher was broken. As he was carrying the second pitcherful, his pitcher was broken in the same way. But after this had happened three times, the watchmen came to the conclusion that he was a water-carrier, and paid him no more attention. Then the thief covered his head with a pot, and swam down the stream to the bay. There he came ashore and said to the maiden, “If you utter a single cry you shall die.” In her fright she remained silent. He tarried awhile with her, and then went his way. The watchmen did not know what to do, seeing that she had made no noise while the thief tarried with her, and had not begun to cry till he had satisfied himself and gone away; but they gave the king a full account of what had taken place. The king said, “It is a bad business that he was not caught.”

The result of the thief’s visit was that, after eight or nine months had elapsed, the princess bore a son. When the thief heard of this, he decided that he must not miss his son’s birth-feast, so he assumed the appearance of a courtier [and betook himself to the king’s palace]. As he was leaving the palace he called out to the royal servants, “O friends, by order of the king, plunder the merchants’ quarter!” As the servants thought that the king had given permission for the plundering of the merchants’ quarter in honour of his grandson’s birth, they set to work thereat. In consequence of this a great outcry arose, and the king asked what was the meaning of it. When the ministers had supplied him with a full account, the king said, “If this be so, I also have been taken in by him. Wherefore, if I do not punish him, I shall lose my throne.”

With this idea in view he caused an enclosure to be made, and, after some little time had elapsed, he ordered his ministers to make public through the realm a proclamation to the effect that all men who dwelt in the kingdom were bound to assemble within that enclosure; and that no excuse would avail, but if any one did not appear he should be punished. When the ministers had made this order public, and all the inhabitants of the realm were assembled together, the king gave the boy a wreath of flowers, and told him to give it to the man who was his father; and he gave orders to the watchmen to lay hands upon the man to whom the boy should give the wreath. As the boy walked with the wreath through the assembled crowds and closely observed them, he caught sight of the thief, and, in accordance with the incomprehensible sequence of human affairs, handed him the wreath. The king’s watchmen seized the thief and brought him before the king. The king asked his ministers what ought to be done. They were of opinion that the thief must be put to death. But the king said, “O friends, so little does such a hero of a man deserve to be put to death, that he ought much rather to be carefully watched over.” Thereupon he endowed his daughter with ornaments of all sorts, and gave her to the thief as his wife, and bestowed upon her the half of his kingdom. [77]