The Case of Stolen Smell
Once upon a time, there was a swagman. He was traveling on foot to a village to find work. He had very little food in his knapsack, only a lump of boiled rice.
The swagman came near a wealty man's house at sunset. The cook was cooking a meal for the evening. It smelt delicious. So, the swagman sat down and ate his rice. He imagined he had very delicious dishes with his rice.
After finishing his rice, the swagman went over to the cook. He complimented her for cooking the delicious smelling meal and asked her for some water to drink. The cook was pleased to hear his compliment and gave him water to drink. The swagman thanked her for the water and again for the smell of the meal she had cooked. Then he was on his way.
The cook served the meal. However, the wealthy man did not like the meal. He said the meal was not good. It was missing something. The cook was afraid of losing her job, so, she told him that a swagman came by and had his rice with the smell of this meal.
The wealthy man got angry. He ordered his men to bring the swagman back to him. The swagman admitted he had eaten his rice while he smelt the food the cook was cooking. The wealthy man accused him of stealing the smell of his meal and demanded compensation. The swagman had only a silver coin. It was all the money he had and he was saving it for emergencies.
The wealthy man took the swagman to see the village chief. The chief listened to the dispute. Then, he called for a bowl of water. He ordered the swagman to put his silver coin in the water bowl. Next, he took the bowl to the weathy man. The wealthy man was pleased to receive a silver coin for the smell of his meal.
"Thank you, Chief! You are indeed fair and just. This is why people around here respect you greatly." As the wealthy man reached out to take the bowl, the chief turned around and told the swagman to take his coin back.
Then, the chief gave the wealthy man the bowl. He said, "Here is your compensation. The swagman took the smell of your meal, so you shall take the flavour of his money. All is now settled!". He then added, "Take the money flavoured water but give me back my bowl!"
Source: This story appears in Thai as a local folk tale, but is likely to have European or American origin. This version is, written in PSE, from a Thai version heard around a camp fire, somewhere in Dreamland.
Vocabulary:
a swagman: a migratory worker; (Australian - from swag=bag, knapsack), a hobo (American - 'hoe boy' or 'ho beau' or 'HOmeward BOund')
a cook: a person who cooks (usually for other people)
a chief: a leader or an elder for a community
compensation: payment of a kind in return for damages caused by a certain action.
Note: The story has a Thai title like 'เกลือจิ้มเกลือ' or 'เพชรตัดเพชร' and in English 'vis a vis' or 'even match' (in adv 'evenly matched') or 'tipsy' (may tip either way, also a little drunk). The main idea is to learn to catch on (quickly) then to catch up very quickly.
By using the word 'hobo' instead of 'swagman' and 'bread' instead of 'rice' the story would have a different flavour.
Questions:
1) What is a common Thai word for 'hobo' or 'swagman'?
2) What was the cook's excuse for the meal?
3) Why did the wealthy man praise the Chief?
4) Do you think the Chief is 'fair and just'?
5) What would the wealthy man do to the cook? And why?
