218 Religion &c. among the Karens. [No. 4, 



the children of men, Unlike the Naiads of classic antiquity, they 

 never take the forms of females, but always appear as men. 



One girl, who had been deceived and had taken an inhabitant of the 

 water for her husband, was told that she might ascertain his true cha- 

 racter by watching him privately when he bathed. She did so, and 

 6aw him in the water change to a monster dragon, with a crest as 

 large as seven wide mats. He threw up the waters to the heavens, 

 which descended in heavy rain. 



A water spirit called Mau-lau-kwie figures largely in the Karen 

 myths. A girl is represented as having formed an acquaintance with 

 this personage, and as holding clandestine meetings with him, when 

 6he went down to the stream to draw water. Standing on the bank 

 she sung : 



" Mau-lau-kwie, come, let us bathe together. 

 Mau-lau-kwie, come, let us wash our faces together. 

 Mau-lau-kwie, come with beads and rings ; 

 Come, come, as thou art wont." 

 " Mau-lau-kwie came, and they washed their faces together, and 

 combed their heads together." 



This occurred frequently, and the girl's parents wondered at her 

 long absence, when she went to draw water ; so they sent the younger 

 children to see, and they came back with the report that their sister 

 had a meeting with Mau-lau-kwie. Her father then sent her off to 

 help her grandmother, and in the interval he went down to the water 

 and called Mau-lau-kwie, as his daughter had done. He came at the 

 call, when his father-in-law cut off his head with a sword, and split 

 open his head with an axe. 



When the girl returned from her grandmother's, she went down to 

 the banks of the stream, and called her lover as usual ; but instead of 

 Mau-lau-kwie, there came a long procession of tadpoles, crabs, cray- 

 fish, shrimps, prawn, fish and crocodiles. She asked : " What does 

 all this mean ? Where are you going ? 



" A crocodile replied ; ' Mistress, we are going to weep at the fu- 

 neral of Mau-lau-kwie, 



His father-in-law cut off his head, 



Split open his skull ; 

 Mau-lau-kwie is dead, is dead." 



"She answered : ' I will go with you.' 



