Note 6 — The King who became a Thief

In Folk-Tales of Kashmir (Knowles), 2nd ed., p. 104, a King of Kashmīr and a girl whom he met while hunting made jokes at each other. The King married her and ignored her presence in his harem, so she returned to her parents. After three years she visited Kashmīr, and stayed at the palace, where the King, who did not recognise her, fell in love with her. They exchanged rings, and she got his handkerchief, went home, and bore a son who became an expert thief, stealing an egg out of a hawk’s nest without disturbing the bird.6 He committed many impudent robberies in Kashmīr, getting the high officials into ridiculous positions, and when the King offered his daughter in marriage and half the country if the thief would come forward, he confessed everything and restored the stolen money and goods. His mother came, explained everything and the impossibility of the marriage to his half-sister, produced the ring and handkerchief, and he became heir to the throne.