Chapter 13
Returning home one winter’s day, a farmer found a snake lying under a hedge, half dead with cold. Taking pity on the creature, he placed it in his bosom and brought it home, where he laid it upon the hearth near the fire. No sooner was the snake restored by the warmth of the cottage than it began to attack the farmer’s wife and children. Hearing their cries, the farmer, whose compassion had saved the snake’s life, rushed into the room, grabbed an ax, and smashed the serpent until it was dead.
Kindness is wasted on the ungrateful and vicious.
