The Case Of The Stolen Silk

A long time ago there lived a silk merchant in a little village in Korea.

- Eva M. Doolittle

Every few months, he traveled on a donkey to the city to sell his products. Before one of these trips, he loaded 30 folds of silk onto his donkey, said good-bye to his wife and five children, and left.

The day was scorching hot, so the merchant paused often in the shade. It slowed his journey so much that he had to spend a night on the way. No shelter was in sight, except for an old monument with two stone figures. He went there, put the folds of silk under his head, and fell asleep.

In the morning, when he opened his eyes, his head was resting on a stone and the silk was gone. “Oh no!” cried the merchant. “How will I feed my family if I have nothing to sell?” Sitting on the steps of the monument, he twisted his beard and tried to figure out what to do. Finally, he had a plan.

He went to the nearest village to see a judge. Guards brought him in front of an old man with a long white beard and a plain robe.

“Your Honor,” the merchant began, “while I slept at the nearby monument last night, somebody stole my 30 folds of silk.”

The judge asked, “Do you have any witnesses?”

“I do not,” answered the merchant. “No one was there except for me. And the two statues.”