Page:Sagas from the Far East; or, Kalmouk and Mongolian traditionary tales.djvu/178

154 present itself to his mind, and said he would consult his books.

"Till to-morrow I will wait, then, to hear if thy books have any remedy; and if not, then will I die."

The next morning the Lama came again. "I have found one remedy," he said, "but there is only one. The hammer and bag of which your brother is possessed could loose the knots; there is nothing else."

How elated so ever he had been to hear that a remedy had been found, by so much cast down was he when he learnt that he would have to send and ask the assistance of his brother.

"After all that I have said to him, I could never do this thing," he said mournfully, "nor would he hear me." But his wife would not leave any chance of remedying the evil untried; so she went herself to the elder brother and asked for the loan of the sack and hammer.

Knowing how anxious his brother had been to be possessed of such a treasure, however, the brother thought the alleged misfortune was an excuse to rob him of it; therefore he would not give it into her hand. Nevertheless, he went to his brother's house with it, and asked him what was the service he required of his sack. Then he was obliged to tell him all that had befallen, and to show him his knotted nose. "But," said he, "if with thy hammer thou will but loose the knots, behold the half of all I have shall be thine."