Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 20, 1909.djvu/458

396 in love with a beautiful maiden, called Ngai-ti, that is "Loved one," and, as she would not listen to him, he pursued her, and surrounded the whole human race on the top of the Phun-lu-Buk hill. In self-defence her parents had to give the girl over to her insistent lover. The waters of this great flood, running off, (where to is not stated), are held to have cut the deep valleys which form a distinctive feature of these hills. Previous to this, Chhura, a powerful but somewhat dense giant, had beaten down the surface of the earth nice and smooth; in doing this, the head of his mallet flew off, and after travelling several miles fell on the Lingvum hill, where it still lies to witness to the truth of the legend. Near by lies a huge round stone some 18 inches in diameter, one of Chhura's pellets, shot from his pellet bow. Does not Chhura hammering out the earth remind us of Thor? There are many tales about this hero. The following is a literal translation of one which gives some idea of the Lushai style:—

A Story of Chhura.—"Then Chhura went to visit another village. In the house in which he stayed they gave him a crab stew to eat. And Chhura,—"Ah! How tasty, what can it be? I'll make it myself, just tell me how," said he. Then they,—"Why, Chhura, it is only crab stew," they said. But Chhura was very afraid of forgetting the name, and so all the way home he kept on saying,—"Crab stew, crab stew." Then, on a slippery piece of clay from a white ants' nest, he fell down bump, and forgot it. Then he dug away like anything into the earth at the place where he fell down. Presently a Poi trader came along,—"Chhura, what are you looking for,"—said he, he asked. And he,—"Oh Poi, come here! I have lost something, help me to find it!",—he said. Then the Poi,—"What is it? If I don't know what has been lost, how can I find it?",—he said. But Chhura,—"If I knew, would I be looking for it? How foolish you are,"—he said. Then the Poi,—"You simply stink of crab stew,"—said he. Then