The English folk tale, The...
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The English folk tale, "The Wise Men of Gotham" is a tribute to uninspired human ingenuity which is bereft of the wisdom of God. In the section subtitled "Of Counting," we find the following story.
There once were twelve men of Gotham who went fishing. Some fished from the water and some remained on dry land. After they had finished and were heading home, one of their company prayed that none had drowned during their adventurous day. These wise ones decided that they should check to make sure.
One of them began to count and only counted to eleven when he ran out of people. Each in turn did the same. They concluded that one of their fellows had drowned. They went back to the fishing brook and amid great lamentations frantically searched for the drowning victim.
A courtier came riding by and asked concerning their troubles. They recounted the tragic incident to him. The courtier, perceiving the situation and its solution, asked them how much they would pay if he found the twelfth man. They replied, "All the money we have." The courtier then demanded their money and produced the twelfth fisherman. He began with man number one and whacked him squarely on the shoulders. He continued this until he reached twelve and gave this man an exceedingly good blow, saying, "Here is the twelfth man!" The wise men of Gotham were so grateful. They never realized that as each man counted, he forgot to count himself --the twelfth man.
There once were twelve men of Gotham who went fishing. Some fished from the water and some remained on dry land. After they had finished and were heading home, one of their company prayed that none had drowned during their adventurous day. These wise ones decided that they should check to make sure.
One of them began to count and only counted to eleven when he ran out of people. Each in turn did the same. They concluded that one of their fellows had drowned. They went back to the fishing brook and amid great lamentations frantically searched for the drowning victim.
A courtier came riding by and asked concerning their troubles. They recounted the tragic incident to him. The courtier, perceiving the situation and its solution, asked them how much they would pay if he found the twelfth man. They replied, "All the money we have." The courtier then demanded their money and produced the twelfth fisherman. He began with man number one and whacked him squarely on the shoulders. He continued this until he reached twelve and gave this man an exceedingly good blow, saying, "Here is the twelfth man!" The wise men of Gotham were so grateful. They never realized that as each man counted, he forgot to count himself --the twelfth man.
