“I still don’t believe you,” said the old man.

“All right,” said the snake, “we will ask the tree.”  They turned to a tree standing all alone in the wilderness, and the snake asked: “Tree, we want to know how kindness is repaid in this world.”

“I will tell you,” said the tree, sadly.  “I have been standing here for many, many years, patiently giving shade to man and beast alike.  But the goats climb up into my branches and eat my leaves, and the people come with their axes and chop down my branches.  Thus is the reward for kindness in this world.”

“Now I’ll bite you,” said the snake to the old man. 

“I’ll ask one more witness,” said the old man.  “Here is a foxhole, let us ask the fox.”

“All right,” said the snake, “but this is the last one we are going to ask.”  They called the fox.  The fox came out and the snake said: “Tell this simpleton of an old man how kindness is rewarded in this world.”

“That depends,” said the fox.  “Tell me your case.”

“This black snake was stuck on a rock in the middle of the river,” said the old man.  “I threw it my pipe-bag to crawl into, and pulled it ashore.  But instead of being grateful to me, the snake wants to bite me.”

“I don’t believe a word of it,” said the fox.  “A big black snake is much too clumsy to get into a narrow pipe-bag.”

“You just watch,” said the snake, and crawled into the bag. The fox quickly grabbed the bag and pulled the strings tight and took a rock and hammered away on the bag until the snake was dead.

“You are an old fool,” said the fox to the old man.  “Don’t you know that snakes bite?”