As sometimes it may happen,—the poor wretches
Who might escape the dangers of the sea
Are swallow'd quick by some voracious fish.
If, on the other hand, the fishermen
Enclose the fish, and bring them safe to shore,
Dead as they are they ruin those who buy them,
For they are sold for such enormous sums
That our whole fortune hangs upon the purchase,
And he who pays the price becomes a beggar.—Anon.
From the same. (Book vi. § 12, p. 359.)