Fable
The Shepherd Boy and The Wolf
A Shepherd Boy tended his master's Sheep near
a dark forest not far from the village. Soon he found life in the pasture very
dull. All he could do to amuse himself was to talk to his dog or play on his
shepherd's pipe.
One
day as he sat watching the Sheep and the quiet forest, and thinking what he
would do should he see a Wolf, he thought of a plan to amuse himself.
His
Master had told him to call for help should a Wolf attack the flock, and the
Villagers would drive it away. So now, though he had not seen anything that
even looked like a Wolf, he ran toward the village shouting at the top of his
voice, "Wolf! Wolf!"
As
he expected, the Villagers who heard the cry dropped their work and ran in
great excitement to the pasture. But when they got there, they found the Boy doubled
up with laughter at the trick he had played on them.
A
few days later the Shepherd Boy again shouted, "Wolf! Wolf!" Again,
the Villagers ran to help him, only to be laughed at again.
Then
one evening as the sun was setting behind the forest and the shadows were
creeping out over the pasture, a Wolf really did spring from the underbrush and
fall upon the Sheep.
In
terror the Boy ran toward the village shouting "Wolf! Wolf!" But
though the Villagers heard the cry, they did not run to help him as they had
before. "He cannot fool us again," they said.
The
Wolf killed a great many of the Boy's sheep and then slipped away into the
forest.
Moral
- Liars are not believed even when they speak the truth.
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