Story XXXV
ONCE upon a time there was a com merchant whose name was Sambhaka. It so happened that he was obliged to go to a place called Saragrâma on business, and he called at a storekeeper's house. The storekeeper was not at home, but his wife was, and she was not at all disinclined to carry on a flirtation with any man she chanced to meet. Before long the pair were on the best of terms, to such an extent, indeed, that the visitor gave her a ring, as a small acknowledgment of her kindness to him. The time came for him to leave, and then he asked the lady to return him the ring. She looked on the ring as, in fact, a payment for services rendered, and declined to hand it over, so how was he to get it back ? Well, this was the way he went to work. The corn merchant — since he could not get hold of the ring — went to the storekeeper who was in the shop and said: " Give me the 100 measures of seed you owe me." The storekeeper said, " A hundred measures of seed ! what are you talking about ? I don't owe you anything ! " " Oh, yes, you do ! " replied the other, " for when you were away from home, I bought a hundred measures of seed from your wife, and I paid her with a ring which is worth double the amount of seed that I bought." The storekeeper was
