"Well," said Zeuxis, "you have beaten me this time, and I shall boast
no more. I deceived only the birds, but you have deceived me, a
painter."
Some time after this, Zeuxis painted another wonderful picture. It was
that of a boy carrying a basket of ripe red cherries. When he hung
this painting outside of his door, some birds flew down and tried to
carry the cherries away.
"Ah! this picture is a failure," he said. "For if the boy had been as
well painted as the cherries, the birds would have been afraid to come
near him."