Chando And His Wife
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Part V.
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Folklore Of The Santal Parganas
Once upon a time Chando went to the hills to fashion a plough out of
a log of wood; and his wife was left at home alone, Chando was so
long in coming back that his wife grew impatient; so she made some
mosquitos and sent them to worry him and drive him home. But Chando
made some dragon-flies and they ate up the mosquitos and he went on
with his work. His wife made various other animals and sent them out,
but Chando des
royed them all. At last she made a tiger and sent it
to frighten him home; but Chando took up a handful of chips from the
log he was cutting and threw them at the tiger and they turned into
wild dogs and chased the tiger away. Ever since that no tiger will
face wild dogs.
Then Chando's wife shut up a locust in an iron pot and when Chando at
last came home she asked him "Why have you been so long? Who is to
give food and drink to all the living creatures if you don't attend
to business." Chando answered that he had fed them all.
"No you have not, you have not fed the locust!"
"But I have" said Chando.
Then she took the lid off the iron pot and showed him the locust
eating grass inside; and Chando had nothing to say.