THE OLD SHOES
A young man, a
student in one of our universities, was one day taking a
walk with a
professor, who was commonly called the students' friend,
from his kindness to
those who waited on his instructions.
As they went along,
they saw lying in the path a pair of old shoes,
which they supposed
to belong to a poor man who was employed in a field
close by, and who had
nearly finished his day's work.
The student turned to
the professor, saying: "Let us play the man a
trick: we will hide
his shoes, and conceal ourselves behind those
bushes, and wait to
see his perplexity when he cannot find them."
"My young
friend," answered the professor, "we should never amuse
ourselves at the
expense of the poor. But you are rich, and may give
yourself a much
greater pleasure by means of the poor man. Put a coin
into each shoe, and
then we will hide ourselves and watch how the
discovery affects
him."
The student did so,
and they both placed themselves behind the bushes
close by.
