Story 148 - The Ratemahatmaya’s Presents

A CERTAIN cultivator having gone to his Kaekiri garden, and having seen, when he looked [through it], that a very beautiful long Kaekiri fruit was ripe, presented it to the Chief of that country.

The Ratemahatmaya, being pleased regarding it, presented to him a very valuable young bull.

A man who lives in that country, ascertaining this, thought,

“Should I also bring some present I shall receive a present [in return] in this manner”

(that is, one of much higher value); and he presented to him a valuable heifer from his herd.

Thereupon the Ratemahatmaya, this time being acquainted with the stratagem, presented to the man the Kaekiri fruit which the cultivator gave.

North-western Province.

 

Note:

My friend Mr. C. Tucker, of Harrogate, has been good enough to show me a variant of this story in a work called Lessons of Thrift, by a member of the Save-all Club, published in 1820. It is related of King Louis XI. of France.

A peasant who had ingratiated himself by his services, when the King succeeded to the throne brought him a turnip of extraordinary size as the only present within his power. The King gave him one thousand livres in return. His landlord, a country squire, hearing of it, thought he must profit by this weakness of the King’s, and said to himself,

“If this madman give a thousand livres for a turnip, what will he give me for that beautiful horse in my best stable !”

He took the horse to the Court.

The King was delighted, and said,

“Your noble disinterested present shall be richly rewarded.”

Then the King produced the turnip, with this sarcasm,

“This, you know, cost me a thousand livres, and I give it you in return for your horse.”

In Keightley’s Tales and Popular Fictions, pp. 253 S., there are two Italian variants in which a cat was bestowed by a King as a gift in return for presents of great value.