Twistales

A woodsman went into the forest and petitioned the trees to provide him a handle for his axe. It seemed so modest a request that the principal trees granted it right away, and they declared that the plain homely ash should furnish what he needed. No sooner had the woodsman fitted the staff for his purpose, however, than he began chopping down the noblest trees in the woods. By the time the oak grasped the entire matter, it was too late, and he whispered to a neighbouring cedar, “With our first concession we lost everything. If we had not sacrificed our humble neighbour, we might still be able to stand for ages.”

Old Learning: When the rich surrender the rights of the poor, they provide a handle to be used against their own privileges.