# Indian Fairy Tales (Stokes, 1879)

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Indian Fairy Tales
COLLECTED AND TRANSLATED
BY
MAIVE STOKES.
One hundred copies privately printed.
CALCUTTA—1879.
To my dear Grannie, Susan Bazely.
PREFACE.
THE first twenty-five stories in this book were told me at Calcutta and Simla by two Ayahs, Dunkní and Múniyá, and by Karím, a Khidmatgar. The last five were told Mother by Múniyá. At first the servants would only tell their stories to me, because I was a child and would not laugh at them, but afterwards the Ayahs lost their shyness and told almost all their stories over again to Mother when they were passing through the press. Karím would never tell his to her or before her. The stories were all told in Hindustani, which is the only language that these servants know.
Dunkní is a young woman, and was born and brought up in Calcutta. She got the stories, she told me, from her husband, Mochí, who was born in Calcutta and brought up at Benares.
Múniyá is a very old, white-haired woman. She has great-grand-children. She was born at Patna, but ​when she was seven years old she was taken to Calcutta, where she was brought up and married. She and Dunkní are both Hindús.
Karím is a Muhammadan and was born at Lucknow. He says that "The Mouse" and "The Wonderful Story" are both Lucknow tales.
The notes to this book were written by Mother, and Father helped her to spell the Native names and words. He also made the Index.
Dr. George King helped us in the Botany; Mr. Tawney and Mr. Campbell of Islay, who saw many of the stories in manuscript, have given us several remarks. So has my uncle John Boxwell.
M. S. H. Stokes.
Calcutta, March 24th, 1879.
CONTENTS.
| | | PAGE |
| I. | —Phulmatti Rani, or the Flower Lady | 1 |
| II. | —The Pomegranate King | 7 |
| III. | —The Cat and the Dog | 15 |
| IV. | —The Cat which could not be killed | 18 |
| V. | —The Jackal and the Kite | 21 |
| VI. | —The Voracious Frog | 24 |
| VII. | —The Story of Foolish Sachuli | 27 |
| VIII. | —Barber Him and the Tigers | 35 |
| IX. | —The Bulbul and the Cotton-tree | 39 |
| X. | —The Monkey Prince | 41 |
| XI. | —Brave Hiralalbasa | 51 |
| XII. | —The Man who went to seek his Fate | 63 |
| XIII. | —The Upright King | 68 |
| XIV. | —Loving Laili | 73 |
| XV. | —How King Burtal became a Fakir | 85 |
| XVI. | —Some of the doings of Shekh Farid | 95 |
| XVII. | —The Mouse | 101 |
| XVIII. | —A Wonderful Story | 108 |
| ​XIX. | —The Fakir Nanaksa saves the Merchant's life | 114 |
| XX. | —The Boy who had a Moon on his forehead and a Star on his chin | 119 |
| XXI. | —The Bel-Princess | 138 |
| XXII. | —How the Raja's Son won the Princess Labam | 153 |
| XXIII. | —The Princess who loved her Father like Salt | 164 |
| XXIV. | —The Demon is at last conquered by the King's Son | 173 |
| XXV. | —The Fan Prince | 193 |
| XXVI. | —The Bed | 201 |
| XXVII. | —Panwpatti Rani | 208 |
| XXVIII. | —The Clever Wife | 216 |
| XXIX. | —Raja Harichand's Punishment | 224 |
| XXX. | —The King's Son and the Wazir's Daughter | 234 |
| | Notes | 237 |
| | Appendix to Notes | 294 |
| | Glossary | 296 |
| | List of books referred to | 297 |
| | Index | 299 |
This work is in the public domain in the United States because it was published before January 1, 1929.
This work may be in the public domain in countries and areas with longer native copyright terms that apply the rule of the shorter term to foreign works.
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