The Manslayer

Summary

This story explores the theme of justice and moral consequences, focusing on a man who commits a murder and is subsequently pursued by the victim's relatives. In his attempt to escape punishment, he encounters a series of threatening obstacles in nature, including a lion, a serpent, and ultimately a crocodile, each symbolizing different elements of the natural world. Despite his efforts to flee, he meets his demise when a crocodile catches and eats him after he jumps into the river. This narrative illustrates the idea that those who commit heinous acts cannot escape judgment and retribution, as both natural and moral orders ensure that justice is served.

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A Man committed a murder, and was pursued by the relations of the man whom he murdered. On his reaching the river Nile he saw a Lion on its bank and being fearfully afraid, climbed up a tree. He found a serpent in the upper branches of the tree, and again being greatly alarmed, he threw himself into the river, where a crocodile caught him and ate him. Thus the earth, the air, and the water alike refused shelter to a murderer.