CHOO LIVED by the Krian River in the Kalaka District Of Sarawak.  He had a good garden in which he grew many kinds of fruit, and vegetables.

Choo looked after his melons well.

        The best things that Choo grew were very good melons, indeed.

         Choo looked after his melons well. He put banana leaves under them.  This gave them confortable bed to rest on.  But one morning the biggest and best melon was gone.  Only small pieces of it were left.  Choo was very angry.

        "Some animal has eaten one of my melons.  It may come again tonight and eat another one.  I must stop it," he said.

        Choo spent the whole of the next night in his garden.  It was very dark.  He could not see anything.  He did not hearany animal moving about in his garden.  But the next morning another melon was gone.  Choo was even more angry.

        "I must find a way to stop these animals or else they will eat all my melons. I wonder if rats are talking them?" he said.

         Choo took a big cooking pot and put it in his garden.  He made a little fire. He filled the cooking pot with water and put it on the fire.   When night came, Choo sat in his garden by his pot.

        "I am very glad to have this magic cooking pot,"  he called out. "I have boiling water in it.  If rats come to my garden, this cooking pot will put magic into them.  They will jump straight into this pot.  I shall make them into rat soup!  Come, rats, come! My cooking pot is waiting for you!"

        Choo thought that this would stop the rats coming to the garden.  But the next morning yet another melon had gone!  His pot had not helped him.  Then he said, "Perhaps it is not a rat but a fruit bat which is eating my melons."

        That night Choo sat by his cooking pot again.  He said in aloud voice:

        "Boil up,  boil up, my lovely magic cooking pot!  With your magic bring all the fruits bats into this garden.  With your magic make them jump into this cooking pot.  Come Fruit Bats!  Fruit Bats!  My magic cooking pot is waiting for you!"

        All night Choo sat by his cooking pot.  He did not see anything.  He did not hear anything.  But in the morning one more melon had been eaten. So it was not a fruit bat. Could it be the ant eAtar?   But they only eat ants.  He thought perhaps one of them might like melons too.

        Again poor Choo sat up all night.  He sat by his cooking pot and sang:

        "My lovely magic cooking pot!  Brings the ant-eater here.  Make it jump into this water.  Make the water boil.  Make a soup of it.  Come Ant-Eater!  Come Ant-Eater!  My cooking pot is waiting for you!"

        Poor Choo!  He sat up all night,  but he did not hear anything.  He did not see anything.  And in the morning another melon was gone.

        "I was wrong again,"  thought Choo.  "It was not an ant-eater.  What can it be?  Can it be Tupai, the squirrel?"

        Night came.  Choo sat beside his cooking pot once more.  He stirred his cooking pot and called:

        "Boil, boil, my lovely, magic cooking pot.  Make your magic work!  Bring here all the squirrels.  Make them jump into this water. Make a soup of them.  Make a squirrel soup.  Come, come, Squirrels, my cooking pot is waiting for you!"

        Suddently Choo heard little noises like many, many small feet running away.  Soon all was quiet.  Choo was happy.  He went to bed. He knew now who had been eating his melons.

        The squirrels had come to eat Choo's melons.  They had heard him sing about the magic cooking pot.  I think they are still running.  They may be in Africa by now.

        Next morning there were no melons missing, and Choo never saw a squirrel again.  He looked after his magic cooking pot very well.  He cooked a soup in it sometimes, not a rat soup, or a fruit bat soup, or an ant-eater soup, or a squirrel soup: but  a lovely, sweet-smiling melon soup!