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the truth. Who knows if it's God's will, because
there's lots of money," he said. "Two pots are filled
already. The rest is still piled up there," he said.
"Let's go! Let's go, I guess," they said. The elders
went. Since there used to be communal taxes in
former times, he had an awful debt. He hadn't paid
the communal tax.
"Look, I have a large debt outstanding. Take it!"
he told them. He gave a cupful to each of the elders.
It was scooped up with a cup, like corn. He gave it
to them as a present.
It was publicized, it became known. Who knows if
it was the President of Mexico that heard or who.
[Who knows] if the government heard or what. He
was summoned.
"There is a king there. Send him to me!" said [the
President] in Mexico City. "Send him to me!"
"There is a king there. Send him to me!" he said.
As for the people of Zinacantan Center—"Maybe
it's better to have him go or else soldiers will come
to kill us, since there is a lot of money," they said. He
went off. He went on down. God, Zinacantan was
left penniless. All the money went off. He took it
with him. He took it away. Before he arrived in
Mexico City his ring was stolen from him. It was
stolen. Oh, when the ring was lost, God, he didn't
have a single penny of the money left either.
It happened that there was a man who went, went
and swallowed it. He went and swallowed the ring
so that it couldn't be discovered. "Who knows now
where it went," said [the king]. "But who took it? It
must be you who stole it," he said.
[And the king added], "Who knows what [the
thief] did with it, maybe he swallowed it. Maybe he
swallowed the ring. Come on, we'd better talk to the
mouse about it, have him cut the seat of [the man's]
pants. Have him gnaw a path for it. Let's see if when
[the man] strai—ns, let's see if there's a way for it to
come out," said [the king].
"Okay," [the mouse] told him. The mouse left
then. He went to cut [a hole] as wide as the seat of
the man's pants. He went and stuck his tail up [the
man's] nose. [The man] cho—ked. He strai—ned.
The ring came out.
It came out. Then when it came out, in a minute
the money appea—red again. Ohh, it was piled up in
the king's house. The money was there in heaps.
Ooh, there was lots of it now, because he had
recovered the ring again.
But you see, they dropped it in the Grijalva River,
the people who had taken it before. They dropped it
in the Grijalva. It was the little dog. There was a
little dog. "Please go bring [me] a ring that is in the
water," [the king] told him.
"Eh, but I don't know if I can get it. I guess I'll
MANVEL K'OBYOX 353
jna7tik mi sk'an ti kajvaltike, yu7un 7oy tak'in ta
j-mek," xi la 7un. "7Inoj xa chib p'in, te to busul li
yane," xi la 7un.
"Battik, ba jk'eltik kik," xiik la un. Bat la li moletik
7une, komo 7a li 7oy to 7ox la patan li vo7ne 7une,
mu7yuk la bu, mu 7ep la komem yil, muk' la stojoj 7a
li patan 7une.
Bweno, "K'el avil 7ep kechel li kile, 7ilo!" xut la.
Ju-jun la tasa, 7iyak'be li ju-jun li moletik 7une,
pulbil ta tasa k'u cha7al 7ixim 7un, 7iyak'be la
smoton 7un.
Va7i 7un, 7a li, 7ivinaj 7o 7un, 7i7a7yat, jna7tik mi
ya7i li presirente ta Mejiko, k'u cha7al 7une, mi
gobyerno, k'u cha7al 7iya7i 7un, 7itake la ta k'anel
7un.
Bweno, va7i, "7O te jun reye, takbekon tal!" xi la
ta Mejiko 7une. "Takbon tal!"
Va7i, "7Oy 7o te jun reye takbekon tal!" xi la 7un.
Va7i 7un, 7a li jjtek-lum 7une — "Mas nan lek
7ak'o batuk naka me taluk soltero smilotik 7o, ja7 li
7oy 7ep tak'ine," xiik la. Bat la un, yal la ech'el 7un,
dyos, 7a li me7on 7ikom li Jtek-lume, bat skotol li
tak'in 7une, 7iyich' la ech'el 7un, 7iyich' la ech'el
7un, k'ot ta Mejiko 7une, 7i7elk'anbat la li 7aniyo
7une, 7i7elk'anbat, 7aj, k'alal 7ich'ay 7aniyoe, yos,
mu la junuk sentavo 7ikom li tak'in noxtok 7une.
Va7i 7un, k'u cha7al jun la vinik 7une, ba la sbik'
7un, ba sbik' i 7ixtalale, yo7 mu xvinaj 7o 7une. "Mu
xa jna7tik bu bat," xi la 7un. "Pero buch'u stam, pero
yu7un vo7ot 7avelk'anik," xi la 7un.
Bweno, 7entonse, "Mu jna7tik k'u cha7al sna7
7un, 7a ti mi, 7a ti mi, yu7un nan te ta sbik', 7isbik'
nan li 7aniyoe, mas lek Ia7 kalbetik 7a li ch'oe, 7ak'o
sset'be li xchak svexe, 7ak'o sset'be junuk sbe, li,
7aver mi 7ak'o ya—k' pwersa 7un, 7aver mi 7u k'u
cha7al xlok' tale," xi la.
Bweno," xut. Bat xa li ch'o 7une, ba la stuch' k'u
sjamlej li xchak svex li vinik 7une, ba la stik'be li sne
ta sni7 7une, ba la ji—k'avuk 7un, ya—k' pwersa 7un,
lok' la li 7aniyo 7une.
Bweno, lok' la 7un, ja7 to, k'alal 7ilok' 7une, j-likel
la 7i7a—yan li tak'in noxtok 7une, 7iij, te xa la
busulik, ta bu sna 7a li rey 7une, te la busul li tak'in
7une, je, te xa 7oy xa ta j-mek 7un, porke yu7un
7ischa7-ta li 7aniyo noxtok 7une.
Bu, ja7 la li 7o la 7a li, 7ip'aj la yu7unik ta Nab 7a
li noxtok li buch'u yich'oj to 7ox 7une, p'aj la yu7un
ta Nab, ja7 la li 7unen tz'i7 7une, 7o la 7unen tz'i7
7un. 7A li, "7Abolajan ba sa7o tal jun 7aniyo ta yut
vo7," xut la 7un.
"7Ej pero mu jna7 mi jta, ja7 ta jk'opon ka7tik i