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Aesop's Fables, translated by Laura Gibbs (2002)

543. THE RICH MAN AND THE TANNER
Perry 204 (Chambry 309 *)

A tanner was about to move in next door to a rich man but the rich man tried to get rid of him on account of the foul smell. The tanner said to him, 'It will bother you for a little while but then you will get used to it, and afterwards you will not even notice the smell.' The rich man said, 'We will not lose our sense of smell simply on account of your profession!'
The fable shows that a person should not accept foolish advice, especially if it is contrary to his nature.

Note: For a quite different conclusion to this same situation, see Fable 544 (following).


Source: Aesop's Fables. A new translation by Laura Gibbs. Oxford University Press (World's Classics): Oxford, 2002.
NOTE: New cover, with new ISBN, published in 2008; contents of book unchanged.