Once upon a time there was a clever merchant in a village in Kerala. He used to take his goods to a distant market, sell them there, and return to his own village before nightfall. He was thus returning one afternoon when a terrible thing happened. A fierce leopard sprang at him from a nearby thicket, with every intention of making a meal of him. There was no chance of escape. But the merchant, with great presence of mind, caught hold of its tail, and began to run round it, as it tried to attack him. The animal could not get at him, because he was holding fast to the end of its long tail.
This strange circus went on for some time. The merchant had a purse full of money, tied to his waist, but in the struggle it got open, and a large number of coins fell on the ground. A man came along that road, and saw what was going on. “What is this?” he asked the merchant. Why do you go round the beast in this way?”
“Oh, can’t you see?” said the merchant. “This is a magic leopard. It drops gold and silver when
you pull its tail. I got some. Have a try. But I must have what I earned.”
The newcomer, who was a simpleton, jumped at the chance of making some easy money, and received the gift of the leopard’s tail from the merchant with thankfulness. The latter gathered up his rupees and gold coins, and quickly got away.
Illustration: Amrapali Das
Source: Folktales of India, Collected by K.Jacob, edited by P.C. Roy Chowdhury
