NO. I 



CH UAN MIAO SONGS AND STORIES — GRAHAM 



257 



and seven nights, with wine and meat and 

 invited guests. After a while the groom be- 

 came drunk and walked into the open court 

 (heavenly well) of the palace. There a sheet 

 of red cloth was spread out. The princess 

 said to him, "Be careful. Do not step on tiiat 

 red cloth or you will fall down below the 

 earth." 



He did not heed her, but stepped on the 

 red cloth, falling down below the earth. In 

 that region there was neither day nor night. 



It was always like tlie time of yellow dusk. 

 The orphan walked toward the place where 

 it was lightest. 



After some time he arrived beside a stream. 

 He saw there a person who had caught three 

 fish, and he bought the three fish to eat. 



On die fish there was some sand from the 

 stream. He therefore took the fish to die 

 stream to wash them. When he put them 

 in the water they quickly swam into the 

 middle of die stream and sang diis song — 



He remembered this song, and followed 

 along the shore of this river. He walked until 

 he arrived at a large flat (big bank). He was 

 very hungry, so he was about to lie down on 



the ground. Then he thought of the statement 

 of the fish that it (or they) would come 

 and save him, and sang this song — 



When he had sung this there were set 

 before him nine big bowls of food. After he 

 had eaten enough he again proceeded. Every 

 day it was this way. When he was hungry 

 he sang this song and nine bowls of food 

 were placed before him, and when he had 



eaten enough he again proceeded. In this 

 way he went along for three years. 



After he had fallen down through the hole 

 there was a continuous drought on earth, 

 and a great crack appeared in the ground. 

 Through this big crack he crawled back onto 



