s were camping for the
night. So Kara stopped under a tree at a little distance from the
carters and tied his cow to the root. Soon a storm came up and the
carters all took shelter underneath their carts and Kara asked his
cow for a tent and he and the cow took shelter in it. It rained hard
all night and in the morning the carters saw the tent and wondered
where it came from, and came to the conclusion that the cow must have
produced it; so they resolved to steal the cow.

Kara did not dare to make the cow swallow the tent in the day time
while the carters were about, so he stayed there all the next day and
at night the cow put away the tent. Then when Kara was asleep some
carters came and took away the cow and put in its place a cow with
a calf, and they hid the magic cow within a wall of packs from their
pack bullocks. In the morning Kara at once saw what had happened and
went to the carters and charged them with the theft; they denied all
knowledge of the matter and told him he might look for his cow if he
liked; so he searched the encampment but could not see it.

Then he called the village headman and chowkidar and they searched
and could not find the cow and they advised Kara to keep the cow and
calf as it must be better than his own barren cow; but he refused and
said that he would complain to the magistrate and he made the headman
promise not to let the carters go until he came back. So he went to
a Mahommedan magistrate and it chanced that he was an honest man who
gave just judgments and took no bribes, and made no distinction between
the rich and the poor; he always listened to both sides carefully,
not like some rascally magistrates who always believe the story
that is first told them and pay no attention to what the other side
say. So when Kara made his complaint this magistrate at once sent for
the carters and the carters swore that they had not stolen the cow:
and offered to forfeit all the property they had with them, if the
cow were found in their possession.

Then the magistrate sent police to search the encampment and the police
pulled down the pile of packs that had been put round the cow, and
found the cow inside and took it to the magistrate. Then the magistrate
ordered the carters to fulfil their promise and put them all in prison
and gave all their property to Kara. So Kara loaded all the merchandise
on the carts and pack bullocks and went home rejoicing. At first the
villagers did not recognis