124 MUSANG BERJANGGUT. 
She hid trembling Temenggong on a shelf and let in the new 
comer. But culinary preoccupation stood between him and 
the object of his longing till nine o’clock brought the Bendahara. 
The quaking Manteri was ensconced on another shelf. The 
Bendahara also had to wait till the cakes should be baked. 
But alas, ten o’clock brought the Raja Muda punctual and 
eager. The Manteri was given a spoon and told to pretend to 
be a scullion. But even the Raja Muda had to wait wearily 
till those cakes should be baked, and eleven o’clock saw the 
king at the door. The Raja Muda cursing that “a miserable 
old wretch of a king should tear him from his love” looked 
round for a hiding-place; so the lady handed him a lamp and 
bade him pretend to be a pedestal and hold the lamp above his 
head. The king also was asked to await the baking of those 
eakes: As he sat looking about him, his eyes fell on the 
pedestal lamp: he stared and said to himself, © Tha’ pedestal’s 
the very image of the Raja Muda;’’ words that set the lamp a- 
shaking. At last the impatient king burst into the kitchen, to 
be put off with every kind of excuse till at last in despair the 
poor damsel exclaimed, “ Pardon, a thousand pardons sire 
but a strange longing possesses me to ride on your mayjesty’s 
back and if your majesty love me, carry me but seven times to 
and fro across the room and I will yield to your majesty’s 
wishes.”’ The king consented and getting down on hands and 
knees, took her on his back. Up and down he pranced, and 
sore of knee and weary was nearing the end of his task, when 
sudlenly the Manteri became so thirsty that he crept along his 
shelf till he found a ready husked coconut and seeing by the lamp- 
light the clean-shaven head of the Temenggong mistook it for 
marble and crashed down the nut with all his might. The 
Temenggong yelled. The King leapt up and fled into the night, 
thinking the aggrieved husband had come. The Raja Muda 
dashed down the lamp and took to his heels. All bolted except 
the Kathi who was shut fast in the chest. . He poor prisoner 
prayed his captor to release him but she declared he must await 
her husband’s return. Then she whispered to her husband 
to creep down from his shelf and pretend to have just returned 
from his quest. This he did, knocking at the door and announc- 
Jour, Straits Branch 
