1838.] On the Customs and Superstitions of the people. 101 



thrown into the same fire, the body of the person so burnt would become 

 gold. Any of his limbs might afterwards be taken away without the body 

 sustaining any diminution for the parts so taken, would always restore 

 themselves. It happened one day, that this jogi whilst following a 

 flock of goats, observed a red goat eating of the very grass he was so 

 anxious to procure. He immediately rooted it up, and desired the shep- 

 herd who was near, to assist him in procuring firewood. When he had 

 collected the wood, and kindled a fire, into which the grass was thrown, 

 the jogi, wishing to make the shepherd the victim of his avarice, under 

 pretence of its being necessary, desired him to make a few circuits 

 round the fire. The man however suspecting foul play, was beforehand 

 with him, and watching an opportunity, seized the jogi himself, and 

 threw him into the fire where he left him to be consumed. The next 

 day when he returned to the spot, great was his astonishment at behold- 

 ing the golden figure of a man lying amongst the dying embers. He 

 immediately chopped off one of the limbs, and hid it. The next day, he 

 returned to take some more, when he found to his surprise, that 

 another limb had replaced the one he had taken off. In short, in this 

 way the shepherd soon become wealthy, and afterwards revealed the 

 secret of his riches to the king Lakeh, who by the same means, accu- 

 mulated so much gold, that every day, he was in the. habit of giving 

 1,25,000 rupees, in alms to fakirs. 



The country of Cutch taken possession of by the men of Sammdh. 



Many of the men of Sammdh emigrated to Cutch, the ruler of which 

 country treated them with kindness and consideration. After some time 

 they represented that they had become a powerful and numerous tribe, 

 able to support themselves without burthening the state, for which pur- 

 pose they petitioned the government for a grant of land, which they 

 pledged themselves to cultivate, and pay tribute and tax, like the other 

 subjects of the country. The king of Cutch with great generosity, 

 bestowed broad lands upon them, and also gave them 500 carts laden 

 with grain, which they promised to repay with the produce of their 

 agriculture. In the course of time, these people made themselves ac- 

 quainted with the affairs of the country, and became ambitious to possess 

 it. With this intent they formed a plot in the first instance to seize the 

 capital, and residence of the king, which was as follows ; they con- 

 cealed armed men in their 500 carts, covering them over with grass, two 

 men in each cart, and one as a driver. Under pretence of selling the 

 grass, they were about to enter the fort, but seated in the porch of the 

 gate, was a brahman, an astrologer, whose business it was to divine the 

 intentions of all who entered the city, and who warned the door-keepers 

 p 



