THE KING OF THE CROCODILES
King of the Crocodiles—In the original the title is Bâdshâh Ghariâl.
Lying amid the crops—It is commonly said in the Panjâb that crocodiles do so.
Demons of crocodiles.—The word used for demon here was jinn, which is remarkable in this connection.
Henna—Mehndî or hinâ is the Lawsonia alba, used for staining the finger and toe nails of the bride red. The ceremony of sanchit, or conveying the henna to the bride by a party of the bride's friends, is the one alluded to.
LITTLE ANKLEBONE
Little Anklebone—This tale appears to be unique among Indian folk-tales, and is comparable with Grimm's Singing Bone. It is current in the Bâr or wilds of the Gujrânwâlâ District, among the cattle-drovers' children. Wolves are very common there, and the story seems to point to a belief in some invisible shepherd, a sort of Spirit of the Bâr, whose pipe may be heard. The word used for 'Little Ankle-bone' was Gîrî, a diminutive form of the common word gittâ. In the course of the story in the original, Little Anklebone calls himself Giteta Ram, an interesting instance of the process of the formation of Panjâbî proper names.
Auntie—Mâsî, maternal aunt.
Tree that weeps over yonder pond—Ban, i.e. Salvadora oleoides, a common tree of the Panjâb forests.
Jackal howled—A common evil omen.