148 



SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS 



VOL. 123 



SO he came back and found his bed and went 

 to sleep. That demon then came and stood 

 outside the door under the wall waiting for 

 food to eat. 



His wife said to him, "Let me stand chop- 

 sticks up for you (in divination)." He re- 

 plied, "I am willing to die. I will not permit 

 anybody to stand up chopsticks for me." 



The demon was more hungry, and waited. 

 He waited for five days, and could not endure 

 to wait longer. The demon said, "In this case 

 it will be better for me to ask some other 



people, then it will be all right. Otherwise 

 in this manner I cannot bear it." 



The demon used another plan. He caused 

 the man's stomach to swell and ache as if one 

 wanted to have a movement of the bowels. 

 The man was then unable to endure it, and 

 ran out of the door beside the toilet. The 

 demon dien took off his head band, and 

 the man had no more pain. The man came 

 back and said, "Water and rice are small 

 matters, but you should not allow the demon 

 to get accustomed to this sort of thing." 



LOVE STORIES 



Lot'esic\ (340) 



When the leaves of the ba ma ts'ao (a high 

 coarse reed) grow, die stalks develop into 

 sticks. When the mao bat develops its leaves, 

 it cannot become a hook. 



When Tso Jao's (silk yes) mother gave 

 birth to her, she was one foot and five inches 

 long. When Hmong Long Yang Seo ^ was 

 born, he was also one foot and five inches 

 long. After three years, Tso Jao had grown 

 up. After six years, Yang Seo had also grown 

 up. When the two were young, they loved 

 each other very much. Yang Seo would not 

 leave Tso Jao, and Tso Jao (sometimes pro- 

 nounced Yao) would not leave Yang Seo. 

 They ate rice from the same bowl and drank 

 wine from the same cup. At night they slept 

 on the same pillow. Yang Seo could not get 

 enough with sitting with her. Tso Jao could 

 not get enough of sleeping with him. 



One day a distant rich Miao arrived carry- 

 ing a bundle on his back and carrying an 

 umbrella. Her father gave his daughter to 

 this man in marriage. Her mother also prom- 

 ised her to him, and so married her into a 

 distant place. 



Afterward Tso Jao lived there three years 

 but was unable to return home (to visit her 

 parents). She lived there six years longer, 

 but the family was unable to let her come 

 home. This made the young man Yang Seo 

 so sad that he became ill. He did not care to 

 eat, and tea had no flavor for him. The 

 color of his face was white, and he was with- 

 out blood or pulse. The skin of his face was 

 yellow like dark clay, and he was lean like 

 a person with malaria. He was yellow as 

 though he were about to die, and lean as dry 

 firewood. 



One day he went forth and secretly made 

 enquiries. He fortunately met the mother of 



^ Said to indicate kindly, affectionate, good 

 looking. 



Tso Jao. The girl's mother opened her mouth 

 and asked him, "At the time when my daugh- 

 ter was at home, your face was like a peach 

 blossom, and your form was as fat as good 

 growing rice. Now you are pale (yellow) as 

 though you were about to die, and thin as if 

 you were about to perish." 



Then he answered, "You married your old- 

 est daughter into a distant place. The road 

 to that place is long and still longer, and dis- 

 tant and still more distant. After three years 

 and six years more, she is still unable to come 

 back. So when I drink tea it is not fragrant, 

 and when I eat food it is flavorless, and it has 

 caused me to be yellow like dark clay, and 

 (to be) as if I were about to perish, and to 

 think of her until I am truly about to die." 



Her mother said, , "You may go home and 

 eat food and drink tea and nourish your body 

 well. Nourish the color of your face back 

 again and wait. I will quickly send a letter 

 and bring my daughter Tso Jao back again." 



In a few days the daughter Tso Jao came 

 back. Yang Seo then went and said to her, 

 "Why did you go away three years and six 

 years more and not return?" Tso Jao then 

 answered him, "Now my arms carry the chil- 

 dren of another man. On my back I carry his 

 young son. I have feet to go, but not to come 

 back. It was truly hard to leave. Now if you 

 have silver, weigh out 3 ounces, and if you 

 have gold, weigh out 3 grams more. If any 

 (unmarried) girl comes, you can get her. If 

 three guests and four friends come, you can go 

 and seek somebody as you wish. You must 

 use silver to get your own servant (wife). 

 Then you will have your own wife." 



A Handsome Mati Married a Lazy Wife (292) 



When the sky is clear and the flowers 

 bloom, then there are many flowers. When 

 some fruits are ripening, some flowers are 

 still beautiful. 



