The Two Brothers, Jhorea, and Jhore.
There were two brothers, whose parents died, leaving them orphans when very young. The name of the elder was Jhorea, and of the younger Jhore. On the death of their parents, the two brothers went to seek employment, which they found in a certain village, far from where their home had been. The elder, Jhorea, was engaged as a farm servant, and the younger, Jhore, as village goat-herd.
After some time, it so happened that one day the brothers had no rice for their dinner, and Jhorea said to his brother, “Go to the owners of the goats you herd, and ask them for the hire they promised you. One will give you a pai, another a pawa, and a third a paila, and so on, according to the number of animals they have in your charge; some will give you more and others less, bring what you get, and cook some for dinner.” The boy went as he was ordered, and entering the first house he came to, said, “Give me a pai.” They said: “What do you want with a pai?” “Never mind what I want with it, give it,” he replied. So they gave him a pai. Then he went to another house and said, “Give me a pawa.” “What do you want with a pawa?” they said. “Never you mind, give it to me,” and they gave him a pawa. He then went to a third house and asked for a paila. “What do you want with a paila?” they enquired. “Never you mind, give it to me,” he replied. Instead of bringing rice he brought the wooden measures, and breaking them into small pieces, put them into the pot to cook. The elder brother was ploughing, and being very hungry, he kept calling out, “Cook the rice quickly, cook the rice quickly.” His brother being impatient, he stirred the contents of the pot with all his might, at the same time exclaiming, “What can be the matter brother? it is very hard.” The elder brother came to see what was wrong, and on looking into the pot saw only pieces of wood. He became very angry, and said, “I sent you to bring rice, why did you bring measures?” To which he replied, “You told me to ask a pai from one, a pawa from another, and a paila from a third, and I did so.”
The elder then said to the younger, “You go and plough, and if the plough catch in a root on the right hand, cut the root on the left hand, and if it catch in a root on the left side, cut the root on the right side, and in the meantime I will cook.” He went and began to plough, and in a short time the plough caught in a root on the right, and not understanding the directions given to him, he struck the left hand bullock a blow on the leg with his axe. The bullock limped along a short distance. When the plough caught in a root on the left, he smote the bullock on the right, wounding it as he had done the other. Both of the bullocks then lay down, and although he beat them they did not get up. He therefore called to his brother, “These bullocks have lain down, and will not get up, what shall I do?” “Beat them,” was the reply. Again he beat them, but with no better result. The elder brother then came, and found that the oxen had been maimed, and were unable to stand, at which he became greatly alarmed, and said, “Why did you maim the oxen? The owners will beat us to death to-day.” He then gave him some parched grain to eat, and sent him to look after his goats. The sun being hot, the goats were lying in the shade chewing their cud. He sat down near them, and began to eat the parched grain. Seeing the goats moving their jaws as if eating, he said, “These goats are eating nothing, they are lying there mocking me,” and becoming enraged, he killed them all with his axe. Then going to his brother, he said, “Oh! brother, I have killed all the goats.” His brother asked, “Why did you kill them?” He replied, “While I was watching them and eating the parched grain which you gave me, I saw them chewing, and as they were eating nothing I knew they were mocking me, and so I killed them all.” The elder brother became greatly alarmed, and calling to the younger to come, they quickly ate their dinner, and then went to where the goats were lying dead. From among them they chose the fattest, and carried it off to the jungle, where they flayed, and cut it into pieces.
Jhore then said, “I shall take the stomach as my share,” but his brother said, “No, let us take the flesh.” Jhore, however, would not agree to that, and at length his brother said, “Well you take the stomach, I shall take the flesh.” So each took what he fancied most, and they set off. After travelling a long distance, they came to a large tree growing on the side of the road, into which they climbed for safety. After they had been some time on the tree, a raja on his way to be married, lay down to rest in its shade, and when he and his attendants had fallen asleep, Jhore let the goat’s stomach fall down on the raja. The raja having his rest thus rudely disturbed, sprang to his feet, and calling out, awoke his servants, who seeing the goat’s stomach, and not knowing what had happened, thought the raja himself had burst. They fled in terror followed by the raja, and did not halt till they were many miles away from the scene of the raja’s discomfiture.
After waiting a little while, the brothers descended, and began to help themselves to the raja’s property. Jhore said, “I shall take the drum.” His brother said, “No, let us take the brass vessels and the clothes.” Jhore, however, insisted, and after considerable wrangling, his brother said, “Well, take the drum if you will have it, I shall take the brass vessels and the clothes.” So each took what pleased him best, and then they went away and hid in the jungle.
While walking about in the jungle, they collected bees, wasps, and other stinging insects, and put them into the drum. Having filled the drum, they emerged from the forest at a place where a washerman was washing clothes. Jhore tore all his clothes into strips, and scattered them about. The washerman went and told the raja that two persons had come out from the jungle, and had destroyed all his clothes. On hearing this, the raja said to his servants, “Come, and let us fight with these two men.” So arming themselves with guns, they went to the tank where Jhorea and Jhore were sitting, and began to shoot at them, but the bullets did them no harm. When their ammunition was exhausted, they said, “Will you still fight?” The brothers answered, “Yes, we will fight.” So they began to fire their guns, and beat their drum, and the bees and wasps issued from it like a rope, and began to sting the raja and his soldiers, who to save themselves, lay down and rolled on the ground. The raja, in anguish from the stings of the bees, exclaimed, “I will give you my daughter, and half of my kingdom, if you will call off the bees.” Hearing this they beat the drum, and calling to the bees and wasps, ordered them all to enter the drum again, and the raja and his people went to their homes. The brothers however, could not agree as to who should marry the princess. One said, “You marry her.” The other said, “No, you marry her.” The younger at length said to the elder, “You are the elder, you should take her, as it is not fitting that you should beg. If I were to marry her, I could no longer go about begging.” So the elder brother married the princess, and became the raja’s son-in-law.
The two settled down there, and cultivated all kinds of crops. One day the elder brother sent his younger brother to bring a certain kind of grain. Taking a sickle and a rope to tie his sheaves with, he went to the field. Arrived there, he found that the grain was covered with insects. So he set fire to it, and while it was burning he kept calling out, “Whoever desires to feast on roasted insects, let him come here.” When his brother knew what he had done, he reprimanded him severely.
Some time afterwards, when the black rice was ripe, he again ordered him to go and reap some, so getting a sickle, and rope to bind his sheaves with, he went to the rice field. On looking about to see where he would begin, he discovered that each stalk of rice was covered with flies. “There is nothing here but flies. How can I reap this?” Saying this, he set fire to the growing rice and burnt it all to the ground. His brother, when he knew what had happened, was very much displeased and threatened to beat him.