“That is all,” he replied.

“How much did you pay for the rice?”

“Twenty-five centavos.”

“How much did you receive for it?”

“Twenty-five centavos.”

“Oh, my husband,” cried his wife, “how can you make any gain if you sell it for just what you paid for it.”

The man leaned his head against the wall and thought.  Ever since then he has been called “Mansumandig,” a man who leans back and thinks.

Then the wife said, “Give me the twenty-five centavos, and I will try to make some money.”  So he handed it to her, and she said, “Now you go to the field where the people are gathering hemp and buy twenty-five centavos worth for me, and I will weave it into cloth.”

When Mansumandig returned with the hemp she spread it in the sun, and as soon as it was dry she tied it into a long thread and put it on the loom to weave.  Night and day she worked on her cloth, and when it was finished she had eight varas.  This she sold for twelve and a half centavos a vara, and with this money she bought more hemp.  She continued weaving and selling her cloth, and her work was so good that people were glad to buy from her.

At the end of a year she again spread the mat on the floor and took her place on one side of it, while her husband sat on the opposite side.  Then she poured the money out of the blanket in which she kept it upon the mat.  She held aside her capital, which was twenty-five centavos, and when she counted the remainder she found that she had three hundred pesos.  Mansumandig was greatly ashamed when he remembered that he had not made cent, and he leaned his head against the wall and thought After a while the woman pitied him, so she gave him the money and told him to buy carabao.

He was able to buy ten carabao and with these he plowed his fields.  By raising good crops they were able to live comfortably all the rest of their lives.

Why Dogs Wag their Tails

Visayan

A rich man in a certain town once owned a dog and a cat, both of which were very useful to him.  The dog had served his master for many years and had become so old that he had lost his teeth and was unable to fight any more, but he was a good guide and companion to the cat who was strong and cunning.

The master had a daughter who was attending school at a convent some distance from home, and very often he sent the dog and the cat with presents to the girl.

One day he called the faithful animals and bade them carry a magic ring to his daughter.

“You are strong and brave,” he said to the cat “You may carry the ring, but you must be careful not to drop it”

And to the dog he said:  “You must accompany the cat to guide her and keep her from harm.”

They promised to do their best, and started out.  All went well until they came to a river.  As there was neither bridge nor boat, there was no way to cross but to swim.