nag' floating in the water (a snag is,
you know, a part of a tree or bush which floats very nearly under the
surface of the water); and he held on to this snag, and by great good
luck eventually came ashore some two or three miles down the river. At
the place where he landed he came across a fine fat cow buffalo, and
immediately he jumped on her back and rode home. When the village people
saw him, they ran out in surprise, and said:

'Where on earth do you come from, and where did you get that buffalo?'

'Ah!' said the goldsmith, 'you little know what delightful adventures I
have had! Why, down in that place in the river where you threw me in
I found meadows, and trees, and fine pastures, and buffaloes, and all
kinds of cattle. In fact, I could hardly tear myself away; but I thought
that I must really let you all know about it.'

'Oh, oh!' thought the greedy village people; 'if there are buffaloes
to be had for the taking we'll go after some too.' Encouraged by the
goldsmith they nearly all ran off the very next morning to the river;
and, in order that they might get down quickly to the beautiful place
the goldsmith told them of, they tied great stones on to their feet and
their necks, and one after another they jumped into the water as fast
as the could, and were drowned. And whenever any one of them waved his
hands about and struggled the goldsmith would cry out:

'Look! he's beckoning the rest of you to come; he's got a fine buffalo!'
And others who were doubtful would jump in, until not one was left. Then
the cunning goldsmith went back and took all the village for himself,
and became very rich indeed. But do you think he was happy? Not a bit.
Lies never made a man happy yet. Truly, he got the better of a set of
wicked and greedy people, but only by being wicked and greedy himself;
and, as it turned out, when he got so rich he got very fat; and at last
was so fat that he couldn't move, and one day he got the apoplexy and
died, and no one in the world cared the least bit.

The Enchanted Wreath

[Told by a Pathan to Major Campbell.]

Once upon a time there lived near a forest a man and his wife and two
girls; one girl was the daughter of the man, and the other the daughter
of his wife; and the man's daughter was good and beautiful, but the
woman's daughter was cross and ugly. However, her mother did not know
that, but thought her the most bewitching maiden that ever was seen.

One day the man called to