198 BUEEAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 30 



At once the boy started on a run toward the place whither they 

 had taken this girl and presently came upon her walking toward the 

 monster very slowly. When she heard some one walking up to her 

 she turned round and saw the boy. She said, "Where are you going?" 

 Said he, "Where are you going?" "Oh! my father has given me to 

 this seven-headed monster, and that is where I am going." Then the 

 boy said, "Don't go there. You better go back with me." She kept 

 going along closer and closer to the monster's place and seemed to go 

 slower and slower. 



By and by they saw the man with his seven heads sticking out of 

 the den. lie began to laugh when he saw them and said, "I thought 

 I was going to have only one girl to eat, but I am also going to have a 

 fat, plump boy." The boy answered, "You are going to have me to 

 eat, are you? You and I will fight first." Then the monster laughed 

 again and said to him, "Do 3"ou see all of those bones around there." 

 Human bones lay all around. "And 3^ou think you can fight me." 



After that they began fighting. The boy had a knife made of ob- 

 sidian (in). He was very quick and could walk all over his opponent 

 because the latter was slow and clumsy, so he finally cut oft' three of the 

 monster's heads. Then the boy said, "Let us sit down for a minute 

 and rest." They did so, and, after a while the monster said, "I am 

 strong now, stronger than I have ever been." But the boy answered, 

 "You had seven heads and I cut oft" three, leaving you but four, yet 

 you say that you are stronger than before. You may be stronger, 

 but you are too slow." The girl stood near by looking on. Then 

 they started fighting once more, and the boy cut off the monster's four 

 remaining heads for he was slower than ever. 



Now they went home to the boy's father, and, when he told him 

 what had happened, his father felt very proud of him. The boy 

 wanted to marry the chief's daughter, and, although his people were 

 poor, the chief consented willingly. 



52. THE JP:AL0US UNCLE « 



A high-caste man had a l)eautiful wife of whom he was very jealous. 

 He had also four sisters well married in dift'erent villages, all with 

 sons. One morning the eldest of these sisters said to her husband, 

 ' ' I want to go to see my brother. I believe he would like to see our 

 son." Her husband was willing, because he wanted to see the nian 

 hiniself. When they arrived there, the woman's brother pretended 

 that he thought a great deal of his nephew, but really he did not want 

 to see him for fear his wife would take a liking to him because he was 

 handsome. He told the 3^oung man, however, that he was going .to 

 take him everywhere with him. His mother felt very happy to think 



a This is expressed in a rather unusual manner, and may have been modified perhaps by white influ- 

 ences, but the main plot is entirely native. 



