THE KING AND THE CRITIC
DUMB WIFE
Once there was a man whose wife was dumb, and this made him very sad because he loved her very much. After some time he went to see a doctor and said. «Can you make my wife speak?» «Perhaps I can», said the doctor, «the operation is difficult, but if I try, I'll do my best». «Of course, you may try», said the husband, «I'll bring her tomorrow».
The next day the doctor made the operation and the dumb wife began to speak. She spoke so much and so loudly that in a few hours her husband ran back to the doctor and said, «Can you make my wife dumb again?» «No», said the doctor, «there are many ways to make a dumb woman speak, but no ways to make a woman stop talking». «What must I do?» said the man, «I shall soon die if I have to listen to her all day long». «Well», said the doctor, «I can't make her dumb, but I can make you deaf and you will not have to listen to her». «Very well», said the man, «you may do so. It will be better than the other way».A SLAVE
Murillo was a great painter in Spain. He painted beautiful pictures and he had many students.
Once he came to his studio and found a very beautiful picture there. He asked his students who had painted that picture but nobody answered. Then he asKed his slave Sebastian if he had seen somebody in the studio the night before. The slave did not answer. When the night came and everybody went away Sebastian began to paint. He did not think of the time. Suddenly he heard a noise behind him. When he turned round he saw Murillo and his students watch him quietly.
«Sebastian», cried Murillo, «you are very good painter. How did you learn to paint?»
«I took my lessons from you, master», the slave answered.
«From me? I have never given you lessons», said Murillo.
«But you gave lessons to your students, and I heard them», answered the slave. Murillo was a very honest man. He understood that the slave was a very gifted painter, so he gave him freedom and began to work with his «slave» who was not a slave any longer.
There was a king who thought that he could paint very well. His pictures were bad, but the people to whom he showed them were afraid of the king. They all said that they liked his pictures very much.
One day the king showed his pictures to a great painter who lived in his country and asked:
«I want to know what you think of my pictures. Do you like them? Am I a good painter or not?»
The painter looked at the king's pictures and said:
«My king, I think that your pictures are bad, and that you will never be a good painter».
The king got very angry and sent the painter to prison. After two years the king wanted to see the painter again.
«I was angry with you», he said, «because you did not like my pictures. Now forget all about it. You are a free man again and I am your friend».
For many hours the king talked with the painter, and even asked him to dine. After dinner the king showed his pictures to the painter and asked: «Well, how do you like them now?»
The painter did not answer anything. He turned to the soldier who was standing near him and said: «Take me back to prison».