The Tortoise, the
Elephant and the Hippopotamus
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One day, the tortoise met the elephant who trumpeted,
"Out of my way, you weakling, I might step on you!" The tortoise
was not afraid and stayed where he was, so the elephant stepped on him, but
he could not crush him. |
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"Do not boast, Mr Elephant, I am as strong as
you are!" Thus spoke the tortoise, but the elephant just laughed. So the
tortoise invited him to be there on his hill the next morning. |
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Before sunrise the tortoise ran down the hill to the
riverside where he met the hippopotamus who was just on his way back into the
water from his nocturnal feeding. "Mr Hippo! Shall we have a tug of war[1]?
I bet I am as strong as you are!" The hippopotamus laughed but agreed.
The tortoise produced a long rope and told the hippo to hold it in his mouth
until the tortoise would shout, "Hey!" |
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Then the tortoise ran back up the hill where he
found the elephant already getting impatient. He gave the elephant the other
end of the rope and said, "When I say ‘Hey!' Please pull, and you will
see who is the strongest." The tortoise went back to the hill slope
where he could not be seen and shouted "Hey!" The elephant and the
hippopotamus pulled and pulled but they were of equal strength. They both
agreed that the tortoise was stronger than they had expected. |
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Never agree to a wager[2]
with a party that you cannot trust. The tortoise let others do the work for
him, while he got the credit for it. |
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