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IDEAS AND SUPERSTITIONS
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her a stab with his long needle. The ghûleh thought it must have been the end of a piece of wood that had hurt her, and she therefore moved the sack into a different position. As soon as she started off again with her burden, Uhdey-dûn gave her another dig with his needle, and so on till, by the time she reached her cave, she was bleeding from countless wounds. “Mother!” cried her daughters, when she appeared, “have you brought us Uhdey-dûn for dinner as you promised?” “I did not find him, my dears,” replied the mother, “but I have brought his sackful of wood, and I am now going back to find him and kill him for our dinner.” She put down her load, placed a cauldron filled with water on the fire, and departed. As soon as Uhdey-dûn thought she was beyond recall, he began to make a noise like somebody chewing gum, and said quite aloud, “I’ve got chewing-gum, I’ve got chewing-gum!” “Who are you?” asked the ghûleh’s daughters. “I am Uhdey-dûn, and I’ve got chewing-gum.” “O please, give us some,” begged the little ghûlehs. “Open the sack and let me out,” said Uhdey-din. The little ghûlehs did as he wished, but when he got out he took his hatchet and killed all three of them and cut them to pieces and put them into the great copper cauldron which had been placed on the fire full of water for Uhdey-dûn. Their heads, he hid under a “tabak” or straw tray. Then he left the cave and went home to his house on the great rock.

In the meantime the ghûleh sought Uhdey-dûn in the forest, but in vain. She returned to her cave,