"Indeed!" said the judge. "When?"
"He spoke to me when I tied my horse to the tree."
"What did he say?" asked the judge.
"He said, 'Do not fasten your horse to that tree. My horse is savage and may kill yours.'"
"0 ho!" said the judge. "This poor man warned you that his horse was savage, and you tied your horse near his after the warning. This puts a new light on the matter. You are to blame, not he."
The judge turned to the poor man and said, "My man, why did you not answer my questions?"
"Oh, wise judge," said the poor man, "if I had told you that I warned him not to tie his horse near mine, he would have denied it. Then how could you have told which one of us to believe? I let him tell his own story, and you have learned the truth."
This speech pleased the judge. He praised the poor man for his wisdom, and sent the rich man away without a penny.
—ARABIAN TALE.