Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 3, 1892.djvu/534

 526 is what he used to do; he did nothing else. One day another king came walking along the road to take the air. The lad joined him, and walked a little way with him. Then the king turned to go home. The lad went a little way in his company, and then said: "Now I am going home." The king asked him to come home with him for the night, and the lad went with him. As they went on, night fell. The lad said to the king: "There are many mares grazing in the jungles; let us catch two mares and mount them, and ride home." But the king said: "There are no mares here." Then they went on walking a little way, and the lad said to the king: "You carry me a bit, and I'll carry you a bit," But the king said: "You can't carry me, nor can I carry you." When they had got on, and were near the king's house, the lad said to the king: "Is your guest-house far from your house, or near it?" The king said: "It is near it." When they were close to the house the lad said: "I will stand here, while you go to the guest-house. When you get there, call me, and I'll come." The king went on to the guest-house and called him, and then the lad came to the guest-house, and sat there while the king went to his private house.

Now this king had a grown-up daughter fit for marriage, and she had told her father that she would only marry the man she liked herself. When the king came into his house, his daughter asked him: "Who is that you were talking with?" The king said: "It is some mad youth." The daughter said: "How is he mad?" The king said: "He joined company with me on the road, and when we got to a certain place he said: 'Let us catch the mares that are in the jungle and ride them'; and I said: 'There are no mares here.' Then again he said: 'Either you carry me, or I will carry you'; and I said: 'Neither can you carry me, nor I carry you'; and when we had gone on, he said: 'I will stand here, and do you go on to your guest-house and call me'; so I went on and called him, and now he has come to the guest-house. It is with him I was