"have been heard or overheard by the writer, as they
were told in the Swatow vernacular by persons who could not read " Their curious connection with each other, for they form part of a romance entitled " The Strayed Arrow," and some of the resemblances to Western folk-lore which we find as we read, make them peculiarly interesting. The Chinese seem, in many ways, so apart from the European races, that such similarities are notable. " Beauty and the Beast" has a variant in the "Fairy Serpent," for instance. Another curious coincidence may be mentioned. Here we have the well-known story of the miser who, persuaded to buy a piece of cheese for the improvement of his own and his son's fare, could not prevail upon himself to eat it. He put it in a bottle, and father and son were content to rub their bread on the outside.
One day the father was absent. He had locked up the bottle in a cup- board, and found his son rubbing his bread on the cupboard door.
"Extravagant dog," he cried, boxing the lad's ears," could you not go without cheese for one day ? " Here is the Chinese variant. The most frugal man in a certain kingdom heard of one who was con- sidered the most frugal in the world. He sent his son to learn of him. The first thing necessary was to make a present. Accord- ingly, he drew a picture of a pig's-head, and put it in a basket for his son to take. The most frugal of men was away, but his son was at home. He accepted the gift, saying that though he could not make any worthy return, he would signify his pleasure by putting into the basket four oranges, which the visitor was to carry home. What he did was to make motions with his fingers as if he were putting oranges in. When the father returned home, the son told him what had happened. "Extravagant wretch !" cried the father, "with your fingers thus far apart you appeared to give him large oranges. Why didn't you measure out small ones ?"
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