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C. Swynnerton —Folktales from the Upper Punjab. [No. 2, 
out doubt, if a customer had not called for his clothes. He seeing the man’s 
condition and bearing of the prophecy, asked to examine his mouth. “ Ah,” 
said he, “ what an idiot are you ? Call you this blood ?” and taking out the 
thread he held it before the weaver’s eyes. The weaver, as a man reprieved 
from death, was overjoyed, and springing to his feet he resumed his work, 
having been rescued, as he imagined, from the very brink of the grave. 
II. The three Weavers. 
There were three weavers, all brothers, who lived in the same village. 
One day the eldest said to the others “ I am going to buy a milch buffalo.” 
So he went to a farmer, paid for the buffalo, and brought it home to his 
house. 
The second brother was quite touched by the sight of it. He viewed 
its heads, its horns, and its teats, and then said “ O brother, allow me to be 
a partner in this beautiful buffalo ?’* Said the elder, “ I have paid for this 
beautiful buffalo twenty-two rupees. If you wish to be a partner in her, 
you had better go to the farmer, and pay him twenty-two rupees too, and 
then we shall have equal shares in her.” 
Shortly after the third brother came in and said, “ 0 brother, you have 
allowed our brother to be a partner with you in this buffalo, won’t you let 
me take a share too ?” “ Willingly,” answered the other, “ but first you must 
go to the farmer and pay him twenty-two rupees as we have done.” So 
the third brother did so, while the farmer chuckled, saying, “ This is a fine 
thing for me getting all this money for my skinny old buffalo !” 
The three brothers now agreed that each one of them should have a 
day’s milk from the buffalo in turn, and that each should bring his own 
pot. The two elder brothers had their turns, but when the third day came, 
the youngest said, “ Alas ! what shall I do ? I have no pot in my house !” 
In this perplexity the eldest remarked, “ This is a most difficult business, 
because you see if you milk the buffalo without a pot, the milk will be spilt. 
You had better milk her into your mouth.” His ingenious solution of the 
problem was at once adopted, and the youngest brother milked the buffalo 
into his mouth. Going home he was met by his wife who asked, “ Well, 
where is the milk ?” Her husband answered, “ I had no pot, so I had to 
milk the buffalo into my mouth.” “ O you did, did you,” cried she, “ and 
so your wife counts as no one ? I am to have no milk ? If I am not to 
have my share, in this house I refuse to remain.” And she went off in 
anger to the house of her mother. 
Then the three brothers went together to the headman of the village, 
and complained, begging him to order the woman to return to her husband. 
So the headman summoned her and said, “ O woman, you may have your 
share of the milk too, just the same as your husband. Let him visit the 
