Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 4, 1893.djvu/203

 BALOCHI TALES.

VIII.

.

HREE foolish Baloches went out one day to rob. When they came to a distant land, they met a rider. The rider stopped some way off and made a salaam. He thought in his heart: "They are three, and I am one; may be they'll attack me." Then those three men went on their way, and the rider went on his way. The three men on foot began to talk together, and each of them said: "The horseman salaamed to me," and they began to quarrel about it. Then one of them said: "Come on! let us ask the horseman himself to which of us he salaamed." So they started off after the horseman, and he thought they were coming to attack him. So he spurred on ahead, and they followed behind, till he came to a village, and, as soon as he stopped there to exchange greetings, up came the foot-men behind him, and said: "We want only to ask you one question: to which of us did you salaam?" The horseman said: "I salaamed to the biggest fool of you." Then they said: "Let us tell stories of our foolishness, and see who is the biggest fool." The first one said:

THE FIRST FOOL'S STORY.

One night I was sleeping in my house with my wife. I told her to get up and shut the door, and she said: "Get up and shut the door yourself" At last we settled it that the one who spoke first should have to shut the door. Now there was a thief listening to what we said, who had made his way into the house. First he robbed our house, and I see him, and my wife sees him; but