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Motifs
- Intemperance in charity. A waste of time to make a bed for a dog who lies down wherever he happens to be tired. Likewise a waste of time to help unappreciative people. J562
- How he would act if he were a hawk. A hawk steals a piece of liver from a trickster and flies away with it. The trickster likewise steals some liver from another man and escapes to a high place with it. He says that he is seeing how he would act if he were a hawk. J1391.4
- The two presents to the king: two poems. A famous poet presented to the king some poems and was richly rewarded. Another poet likewise gave the king some poetry. The king gave him the first poet's verses. J2415.1.2
- The eaten grain and the cock as damages. A trickster has only a grain of corn; this is eaten by a cock, which he demands and receives as damages. Likewise when a hog eats the cock and the ox eats the hog. K251.1
- The double pension. A husband and wife are jointly under a pension from the king. She reports her husband dead and gets the whole pension. He likewise reports her dead and gets the whole money. K441.1
- Fox eats his fellow-lodger: accuses another and demands damages. He spends the night with a cock in a house. He eats the cock but in the morning accuses the sheep of having eaten it. In the next inn likewise he says that the ox has eaten the sheep, etc. In compensation he demands a larger animal each time. K443.7
- Discovery of abbot's (abbess's) incontinence brings permission to monks (nuns) to do likewise. K1274
- Wife repays husband's supposed adultery by doing likewise. T257.7.1
- The fat troll (wolf). A troll eats the watcher's five horses and finally the watcher himself. The master goes to investigate. The troll: "I ate the five horses, I ate the watcher, and I will eat you." Does so. Likewise the wife, servant, daughter, son, and dog. The cat scratches the troll open and rescues all. Z33.4
- Louse and crow make covenant of friendship: louse eats crow despite crow saying, "If I strike you once with my beak you will disappear; how then can you talk of eating me?" Likewise louse eats loaf of bread, she-goat, cow, buffalo, five sepoys, wedding procession with one lakh of people, elephant, tank of water. A sepoy cuts louse in two with his sword and rescues all. Z33.4.1