What beggar can be dignified?
Whose heart no woman stings
Who, trapped by scamps, comes safely off?
Who is beloved of kings?
And again:
Who ever saw or heard
A gambler's truthful word,
A neat and cleanly crow,
A woman going slow
In love, a kindly snake,
A eunuch's pluck awake,
A drunkard's love of science,
A king in friends' alliance?
And yet I never committed an unfriendly act against the king—or anyone else—not even in a dream, not even by mere words. So why does the king withdraw his favor from me?"
Now one day Bull, the sweeper, saw Strong-Tooth stopped at the palace gate, and he laughed aloud, saying to the doorkeepers: "Be careful, doorkeepers! This fellow Strong-Tooth's temper has been spoiled by the king's favor and he dispenses arrests and releases. If you stop him, you will get a cuffing, just like me."
And Strong-Tooth reflected on hearing this: "I see. It was Bull's doing. Well, there is sense in the proverb:
Though foolish, base, and lacking pride,
A servant at the monarch's side
Will have his honor satisfied.
