Vol. Ill, No. 10.1 Some Folk-Tales from Hazramaut. 653 



[N.S.] 



persons were sitting together talking. One of them said, "Any- 

 one who goes to such and such a pass, as far as the rock-pool, and 

 comes back — to him I will give four dollars." One of liis hearers 

 said, *' I'll do it." The other returned, " But on one condition. 1*11 

 give you a sheep : you must take this sheep to the pool, kill it 

 there and skin it ; and having killed and skinned it^ you must 

 roast it ; and afterwards hring it back whole, no portion of it beino- 

 missing. If you hring it back whole — well, it is only a matter of 

 four dollars to me. Til pay them to you gladly and ungrudgingly. 

 But if you go and return with the meat deficient, or if any mishap 

 befall you, mark my words, I have nothing to do with it, nor 

 will I be held lesponsible in any way." The man said, '* If any- 

 thing happens to rae, you are not responsible : this I say before So- 

 and-so and So-and-so." " Very well," said the other, "* I will now 

 go and fetch you a ram as agreed upon." *' Go and bring it," 

 returned the other. So he went and brought the ram ; and the man 

 took the ram from him and led it off. When he reached the pool, 

 he killed the ram and skinned it ; and having lighted a fire, be 

 began i^oasting it. When he had finished, there appeared befoie him 

 three females of the Jinn, a mother and two daughters, who said 

 to him, " Divide it" When they said, " Divide," he was filled with 

 fear and died on the spot. 



The man with whom he had made the wager and his other 

 friend were waiting for his return, and kept on saying to them- 

 selves, '* Now he will return, now he will return," until morning. 

 Getting no news of him, they wended their way to the pass to see 

 what had happened, and there they found him dead ; so they bore 

 him away and bui'ied him. As to the meat, they, found not a 

 trace of it. The next night, another man came and said, *' O So- 

 and-so, you laid a wager with So-and-so and he died in such and 

 such a pass. Now, I will lay a wager with you." The other 

 replied, '* Look here ! you will meet with just the same fate ns 

 So-and-so." " It is no affair of yours," returned he. " Very well," 

 said the other, "but on the same conditions that were between So- 

 and-so and me, and these men present are our witnesses." 

 " Right," replied he. So the man went and brought a ram, and 

 the other took the ram from him and led it off. As soon as he 

 had reached the pool he was seized with fright and returned at 

 once, bringing back the ram alive. He came to where the company 

 was sitting, and said to the owner of the ram, '' Take your ram, 

 and here are four dollars as agreed upon." So the man 

 took the four dollars, and also the ram. The third night, yet 

 another man came and said, " O So-and-so, you laid a wa^rer with 

 So-and-so and So-and-so; the first died and the second brought 

 back the ram alive. Now I'll bet with you; either you will win 

 from me four dollars, or 1*11 win four dollars from you."'* The 

 other replied, " Look here ; So-and-so died, and So-and-so went half 

 way and came back with the ram alive ; now I think that you, too, 

 will either die or bring back the ram alive." The man 

 said, "If I bring back the ram alive, you shall have four 

 dollars ; and if I die, you are not responsible ; this in the presence 



