24 



FOLKLORE OF THE MALAYS. 



burden, it is universally believed that the observance of particular 

 ceremonies, and the repetition of prescribed formulas, are necessary 

 before wild elephants can be entrapped and tamed. Some of these 

 spells and charms (mantra) are supposed to have extraordinary 

 potency, and I have in my possession a curious collection of them, 

 regarding which, it was told me seriously by a Malay, that in con- 

 sequence of their being road aloud in his house three times, all the 

 hens stopped laying ! The spells in this collection are nearly all 

 in the Siamese language, and there is reason to believe that the 

 modern Malays owe most of their ideas on the subject of taming 

 and driving elephants to the Siamese. Those, however, who had 

 no idea of making use of the elephant, but who feared him as 

 an enemy, were doubtless the first to devise the idea of influencing 

 him by invocations. This idea is inherited, both by Malays and 

 Siamese, from common ancestry. 



In the case of the crocodile, again, we find an instance of a dan- 

 gerous animal being regarded by Malays as possessed of ni3'sterious 

 powers, whicli distinguish him from most of the brute creation, and 

 class him with the tiger and elephant. Just as in some parts of 

 India sacred crocodiles are protected and fed in tanks set apart for 

 them by Hindus, so in Malay rivers here and there, particular cro- 

 codiles are considered Icramat (sacred), and are safe from moles- 

 tation. On a river in the interior of Malacca, I have had my gun- 

 barrels knocked up when taking aim at a crocodile, the Malay who 

 did it immediately falling on his knees in the bottom of the boat 

 and entreating forgiveness on the ground that the individual rep- 

 tile aimed at was Icramat, and that the speaker's family would not 

 be safe if it were injured. The source of ideas like this lies far 

 deeper in the Malay mind than his Muhammadanism, but the new 

 creed has, in many instances, appropriated and accounted for them. 

 The connection of the tiger with Ali, the uncle of the prophet, has 

 already been explained. A grosser Miihammadan fable has been 

 invented regarding the crocodile. 



This reptile, say the Perak Malays, was first created in the fol- 

 lowing manner : — 



There was once upon a time a woman called Putrl Padang Ge- 

 rinsing, whose petitions found groat favour and acceptance with the 

 Almighty. She it was who had the care of Sjtt Fatima, the 



