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Short Stories
 

        The Image Of Mercury and the Carpenter


There was a very poor man who was a Carpenter by trade, had a wooden image of Mercury, before which he made offerings day by day, and begged the idol to make him rich, but in spite of his entreaties he became poorer and poorer.

 At last, being very angry, he took his image down from his stall and dashed it against the wall.

 When its head was knocked off, out came a stream of gold, which the Carpenter quickly picked up and said, "Well, I think thou art altogether contradictory and unreasonable; for when I paid you honor, I got no benefits: but now when I treated you cruelly I am loaded with a basket of riches."