48 THE CANNIBAL KING IN THE "KEDAU ANNALS." 



ministers, moved by papular clamour, warn their master: and he 

 rejecting the warning is expelled from his country, peaceably in the 

 Indian version and taking his sword and cook with him, ignomini- 

 ously in the Malay story after a desperate onslaught on the palace, 

 whence he escapes by a private door. 



In the Indian story, the king after a number of adventures in 

 the jungle is converted from cannibalism by Sutasoma, an incarna- 

 tion of the Buddha in a previous existence — for the " Jatakas " 

 purport to be stories of the Buddha's earlier births: he is brought 

 to Benares a changed man, and is welcomed by the son who reigns 

 in his stead. In the Kedah version, the king mates with a girl of 

 good family in a remote part of the country and, after once more 

 escaping his enraged pursuers, is lost sight of ; but the son of that 

 union is restored to reign in the capital by virtue of the magical 

 sagacity of an elephant in detecting the royal infant and by virtue 

 of the king of Sianrs warrant. 



AVhen it is remembered that in Buddhist countries the '"Jatakas" 

 are known not only to the literate but in popular folk-lore, it be- 

 comes reasonable to infer that the Kedah tale has been borrowed 

 from a Siamese source. Man-eating ogres are usual enough; 

 but in the two tales considered, coincidence of small detail seems 

 to demand explanation more particular than the common uniform- 

 ity of the human mind in the invention of folk-tales. 



For a parallel in Sinhalese legendary history those interested 

 may consult p. 234 of my " Catalogue of European Manuscripts in 

 the India Office Library, vol. I, part 1" 



Jour. Straits Branch 



