402 Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal. [November, 1906: 
slave girl returned with the news to her mistress. The mistress: 
said, “Go back and tell him that I will send him his supper.” 
The negress did so.. In the evening the lady sent him, by the 
hand of the negress, a cake of bread, four sets of sheep’s trim- 
mings, and a bowl full of soup, saying to the negress, ‘When 
you deliver these, say to him ‘My mistress says the moon is full, 
the sea is at high tide, and the stars are four.” Off went the 
bowl of soup. He said to the negress, “‘ Tell thy mistress, that the 
moon was eclipsed, the sea was at an ebb, and the stars were three.” 
The negress returned and gave this message to her mistress.. 
Then said the mistress to her slave, ‘Thou hast stolen the stran-- 
ger’s supper.” “I have not,” said the negress, ‘How is it,” said 
the mistress, “that he only received three sets of trimmings when. 
IT sent four? I sent a whole loaf of bread and a full bowl of soup,. 
and only half of them reached him?’’ Then the mistress got up 
to that negress and beat her—and when I left the house she was- 
still beating her.! ~ 
Il. THE STORY OF THE STUPID TURK. 
There was a Turkish garrison in Mecca, which at the end of 
three years was relieved. The new reliefs knew not their way 
about the city, so people used to guide them. 
w one day one of the soldiers went to the meat market to 
buy meat and vegetables. In the market he bought what he: 
wanted. As he i 
the market, bought some more me : 
; . at, and cooked his breakfast— 
and when I left him he was still at his breakfast but he did not 
invite me to share it. 
| fll. STORY OF THE FOOLISH FATHER. 
: man once married and had an only son. His wife thew 
rs: = father took pains ‘in rearing the boy till he reached 
ge of eight years. Now the father was poor. One day he 
The narrator nea 
l 
of # like wake tly always closes his stories with some personal remark. 
