Min Thein Kha - The Dead Man with the Salt Bottle and Hnin Maung Goes to the Cemetery

Boatman, Mekong (or Agalu)

One day, in the office of U Mae Kung's cargo handling business, the tally clerks, marka clerks, and shoulder-carrying laborers were arguing over money.

The 'correspondence clerk, the ledger clerk, and the MC, the cashier, were talking about the good and effective weapons of Germany, which had nothing to do with them. - . . - The typewriter clerk was putting a sheet of paper in the typewriter and was not typing, but was knitting a wool sweater. The chief clerk, U Nyan Tun, was also reciting the Gaza, which says that if you recite it one hundred and nine times, you will be happy, with his mouth moving like a snake.

The people in U Mae Kung's company office were working as if they were their own, but one person was treating U Mae Kung's work as if it were his own and working hard. - That person was the cashier, Maung Pan Aye.

"A coolie who was carrying a tiger for money. After thinking for a while, he held the tiger in his hand and... "

"One foot, brother, you idiot... Hey"

He said and moved the tiger.

"Hey, kid... don't try to shout "No"... If the rich man falls, I'll remember him for being a fool, Cho Kyi."

"Mr. Pan Aye, the cashier, stepped forward and warned me."

"Don't try to work, cashier, there's no need to be afraid, U Me Kang was once a coolie like us. He worked as a coolie, a boatman, then became a boatman, and only then did he become a rich man. There's no need to worry."

"The coolie, who was called Cho Gyi, replied."

"Hey, Cho... I can't tell the cashier, he's U Me Kang's right-hand man, U Mwe Bian, haha... haha," the cashier said, laughing again.

• The cashier stopped talking to them and was only interested in the accounts.

At that moment, U Maeng Kang's car arrived in front of the office. The coolie and the clerk, who were wearing a tiger, hid their pawns.

The typewriter clerk who was knitting a sweater (hid the knitting sweater and then typed it out) ... -

The clerk who was reciting the mantra also opened the book (and caught the busy guide who was busy with the book. The clerk registered the letters and went to the table where the rich man was sitting. .. , The rich man U Me Kung got out of the car and entered the workshop. U Me Kung - as his name suggests, was a dark-skinned and very large man. His body shape was that of a boatman - and testified. , . U Me Kung liked the color red very much, so he often chose a bright red headscarf and always wore the Rakhine longyi and the red Shwe Taung longyi. - U Me Kung entered the workshop and looked at his workers as if he were observing them •••

"My people are busy. The clerk is mixing ink to record the cost, the tally man is checking the sticks, the timekeeper is removing the mud from the blade under the knife, the typewriter is typing away, the clerk is flipping through the big books, they are all busy. Haha... Haha... I don't believe it. Our people would survive without an employer, and no one would be able to catch them trying to work when the employer comes. Otherwise, the people would be busy until the minute they get their money, the clerk would be knitting, the clerk would be chanting mantras, and the cashier would be the only one doing his job."

"' said the rich man, U Mae Kung, and the people in the workshop opened their eyes wide.

"No, boss, they're all working."

"Kula Cho Gyi entered and said, and U Mae Kang lit a cigar and said... :

“Hey, Cho, I’m already tired of these things.” The cashier, Maung Pan Aye, is the only one working. You didn’t even move the tiger properly when you were about to move it . You teased me by saying, “One step, Maung Mee Kang,” and then moved it. The cashier begged you not to say that. The cashier even put Maung Pan down because he was a poor student. What else are you going to say?”

As he said this, the workers in U Mae Kung's entire workshop looked at him with astonished faces.

"If I didn't travel as much as you, I would be like you. Is a man who went from being a boatman who had to work hard to become a rich man as bad as you think?" ..

"U Me Kang said with a mischievous smile."

The chief clerk said to U Me Kang...:

"It's definitely true, I think U Me Kaung has already gained clairvoyance" : ..

He considered this in his mind. After considering this, he smiled sweetly.

"Your Majesty, have you gained insight?"

"He pleaded with his hands raised and his face as if he was about to kick. "I can't see yet, but I can hear now," he said, reading the letters on his desk.

The people at U Mae Aung's workhouse did not understand the meaning of U Mae Aung's words, "I have not yet gained sight, but I have gained hearing." Only a boy who sold betel leaves and tobacco in front of the workhouse understood the meaning of the words. That boy had been studying and noting who was working before U Mae Aung arrived, who was not working, who was wasting time, who was talking, etc. When U Mae Aung arrived at the workhouse, he would park his car not far from the workhouse and beckon the boy to ask. Only after asking such questions did he park his car in front of the workhouse, get out of the car, and enter the workhouse.

This is how U Me Kung, a humble boatman who became a wealthy man, rules over his subordinates.)

U Me Kang's workers were completely unaware of this. After reading the letters, U Me Kang called his cashier, Maung Pan Lay.

"The boat will dock tomorrow, this is what the port of Pyay added."

"Mee Kang Gyi" will be there. "Mee Kang Lat" will be there tomorrow, Maung Pan Aye. "It's a holiday tomorrow, so no one will be there. You will have to come."

He said to U Me Kwang.

"Don't worry, uncle, I'll come" -

Maung Pan Aye said.

“The big boat came with a lot of barrels of molasses. After carefully checking it, we accepted it. The barrels of molasses | caused us a lot of trouble. We were happy last month. Don’t let it happen this time. If the number is too low, call the boat captain and tell him to write a letter stating that it is low and have him sign it. Do you hear?”

"Yes, uncle."

"After receiving the barrels, we will send them to the distilleries that will be delivering them without delay. If they come to pick them up, we will deliver them. We will inform the distilleries now that the barrels will arrive tomorrow."

"Yes, uncle."

Saying this, Maung Pan Aye searched for the book in the bookshelf.

“Maung Pan Aye... what are you looking for?” -

U Me Kwang asked. ; ...

"I'm looking for a book with addresses of breweries to send notices to."

"You're a bad person, don't look for me. Come here, I'll tell you. Diamekin Company, phone number M175, 96, 41st Street."

"Hoe Tok Company, 641. Fraser Street. Lee Rong Town, 35, Kwong Gyi Street, Nam Ram Alcohol Distillery, 93, Maung Khaing Street, Universal, 16, Sint O Tan." U Me Kwang recited it from memory. ,

Maung Pan Aye silently praised his rich man U Mae Kung for his good memory. U Mae Kung, while puffing on his cigar, said the following words.

“All the companies that do cargo handling and shipping like ours are foreigners. There is Vatsar Insan at 581, Howdy March Road, Barnett Brothers at 145, Sule Pagoda Road, Burma Clearing Forwarding at 71 March Road, Ascot Company at 528 March Road, and Gilinda Company at 22, Panso Tan. All are foreigners. Only “Me Kung” belongs to Myanmar. Let’s try our best. We want to show foreigners that Myanmar is not weak in business.”

"U Me Kang said enthusiastically and then blew out his cigarette ash. Then Maung Pan Aye...

“Call the telephone number 1719 and order the Burma Directory | Book published in 1939. When the book arrives, it contains important addresses. Try to memorize it. Don’t keep the book in your pocket. Try to carry it with you. That’s why the late monk said, ‘Only a monk can become an agalu.’ Try to carry your personal matters with you. You will become an agalu.”

U Me Kwang said.

U Mae Kung, who had become a rich man from a boatman's life, was a very remarkable man. He inadvertently told his cashier about it. The cashier wrote down the motto in his notebook.

"Agalu from Agonra"