Aesop's Fables, translated by Laura Gibbs (2002)
519. HERMES AND THE COBBLERS
Perry 103 (Chambry
111)
Zeus ordered Hermes to instill a dose of deceit in every craftsman. With
a pestle and mortar, Hermes ground the drug into a fine powder and after
dividing it into equal portions he began to apply it to each of the craftsmen.
In the end, only the cobbler was left and a great deal of the drug was
still left over, so Hermes poured the entire contents of the mortar onto
the cobbler. As a result, all craftsmen are liars, but cobblers are the
worst of all.
This fable is suitable for a man who tells lies.
Note: For a fable about a lying cobbler, see Fable
588.
Source:
Aesop's Fables. A new translation by Laura
Gibbs.
Oxford University Press (World's Classics): Oxford, 2002.
NOTE: New
cover, with new ISBN, published in 2008; contents of book unchanged.
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