A Shepherd Boy tended his master's Sheep near a dark forest not
far from the village. Soon he found life in the pasture very
dull. All he could do to amuse himself was to talk to his dog or
play on his shepherd's pipe.
One day as he sat watching the Sheep and the quiet forest, and
thinking what he would do should he see a Wolf, he thought of a
plan to amuse himself.
His Master had told him to call for help should a Wolf attack the
flock, and the Villagers would drive it away. So now, though he
had not seen anything that even looked like a Wolf, he ran toward
the village shouting at the top of his voice, "Wolf! Wolf!"
As he expected, the Villagers who heard the cry dropped their
work and ran in great excitement to the pasture. But when they
got there they found the Boy doubled up with laughter at the
trick he had played on them.
A few days later the Shepherd Boy again shouted, "Wolf! Wolf!"
Again the Villagers ran to help him, only to be laughed at again.
Then one evening as the sun was setting behind the forest and the
shadows were creeping out over the pasture, a Wolf really did
spring from the underbrush and fall upon the Sheep.
In terror the Boy ran toward the village shouting "Wolf! Wolf!"
But though the Villagers heard the cry, they did not run to help
him as they had before. "He cannot fool us again," they said.
The Wolf killed a great many of the Boy's sheep and then slipped
away into the forest.
_Liars are not believed even when they speak the truth._