He directs his
steps thither, falls in love with the princess, and, together with
the bird, they return to Berbania. The three brothers are married at
the same time. It will be noticed that here the "forgotten-betrothed"
motif is lacking altogether.
For a Tagalog folk-tale connected with this romance, but changed
so that it is hardly recognizable as a relative, see the story of
"The Adorna (sic) Bird" (JAFL 20 : 107-108).
It is interesting to note that the Tagalog romance is definitely
reminiscent of the "Swan Maidens" cycle in the method Juan uses to
win the affections of Maria, the enchanter's daughter. For parallels
to Juan's trick of stealing Maria's clothes while she and her sisters
are bathing, see Macculloch, 342 f. For a large collection of "Swan
Maiden" stories in abstract, see Hartland, chapters X and XI.
Considering the fact that both parts of our story are practically
world-wide in their distribution, it is almost impossible to say
where and when the two in combination first existed. I am inclined to
think, on the whole, that our Filipino folk-tale is an importation,
and is not native.
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