1565.] Reliyion &c. among the Karens. 227 



" He was accompanied to the jail by his dog, liis cat, and his rat ; 

 and he ordered them to go and fetch his gold ring from the Brahmin 

 that night, and to he sure to be back before morning. Away they 

 Avent at once. The dog swam across the sea, and the cat and rat rode 

 on his back. 



" When they arrived at the Brahmin's, they found him asleep under 

 wire mxisquito curtains. The cat told the rat to gnaw a hole through 

 the curtain, which it did large enough for the cat to get in. They 

 both went in, and the cat said : ' Rat, smell about, and tell me where 

 my master's ring is.' The rat replied : ' I smell the ring in his mouth.' 

 The cat then said*: ' I will bite him in the throat, and if he vomits 

 up the ring seize it quickly.' The rat replied : ' Perhaps our master 

 will think we killed the Brahmin, and then he will kill us. To make 

 him throw the ring out of his mouth, I will put my tail up his nostril 

 and tickle him till he sneezes, and then he will throw the ring out of 

 his mouth ; and then you must snatch it up immediately.' 



" The plan succeeded. They obtained the ring and both ran out of 

 the house to the dog, that was waiting for them outside. He asked, if 

 they had gotten the ring ; and on being told they had, he said : ' Give 

 it to me, you cannot carry it safely.' So they gave it to him, and he 

 put it in his mouth. 



u The whole three returned then across the sea, as they came ; but 

 when half way back, the dog saw a pack of otters in the water and he 

 barked at them, when the ring was thrown out of his mouth into the 

 sea, where it was swallowed by a fish. 



" The cat said : ' This is hard. The ring is lost, and our master will 

 be killed in the morning.' The rat said : ' The otters were the cause 

 of this misfortune. Dog, go bite them on the rocks.' The dog leap- 

 ed on the rocks, and bit an old otter, saying : ' It is on your account 

 that we have lost the gold ring into the sea, and our master will be 

 killed in the morning.' The otter replied : ' Do not kill me, I will 

 get the fish for you.' So he plunged into the water, brought up the 

 fish that had swallowed the ring ; and the cat ripped it up and took 

 the ring out of its belly. They then continued their journey, and 

 arrived with the ring without further accident, which they delivered 

 to their master ; who then delivered himself from prison, and brought 

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