Wo dairy women lived in opposite houses, one of whom owned only two cows, while the other was mistress of ten times that number. The latter, who was wanting in thrift, borrowed a couple of viss of ghee from the former with a promise to return it within a specified time, but when the day arrived and she was pressed to return the loan, she wickedly repudiated the transaction altogether.
Mariada Ramanna was appealed to, and as usual, the Plaintiff had no witnesses. While the Defendant supported her plea by the fact that she was far richer than the Plaintiff, and that the alleged loan was ridiculous on the face of it.
Mariada Ramanna, who had his own doubts, bade the parties attend on the following day, and, in the meantime, caused a miry puddle to be made right across the way to the Court House, so that any one arriving there must needs wade through it.
On the parties appearing before him, next day, with their legs besmeared knee-deep with mud, Mariada Ramanna caused the women to be supplied with two vessels full of water, and of exactly equal capacity, and ordered them to wash their legs before entering the Court. The Plaintiff after removing all vestige of mud from her legs had still half a pot of water left, while the Defendant, had used up all her water, and had one leg still miry. Mariada Ramanna rightly concluded from this, that the Defendant was a thriftless woman, and that her plea of wealth being of no use, she had doubtless borrowed the ghee as alleged by the Plaintiff, and he decreed its immediate restoration.
