Cogia’s coming, all the people came out to meet him, who, on seeing him quite naked, said, ‘O Cogia Efendi, why do you come in this manner?’ ‘From the love I bore you,’ said the Cogia. ‘I was in such a hurry in dressing, that I forgot my clothes.’

   The Cogia had a scalt head. Once he went to the barber, had his head shaved, paid an aspre, and went away. The following week he went again, was shaved, and had a looking-glass placed before him. ‘As the half of my head is scalt,’ said the Cogia, ‘is not an aspre for shaving it too much by half?’

   One day the Cogia went with some men a-fishing. They cast the net into the sea, and the Cogia cast himself into the net. ‘O Cogia,’ said they, ‘what are you about?’ ‘I imagined myself a fish,’ said the Cogia.

   One day the boys of the town said to one another, ‘Come, let us get the Cogia to climb a tree, and

   we will steal away his sandals.’ The boys coming to the foot of a tree stopped, and said, ‘No one can climb this tree.’ The Cogia coming up, said, ‘I can climb it.’ ‘No, you can’t,’ said they. Forthwith the Cogia tied the skirts of his robe about his loins and put his sandals in his bosom. ‘O Cogia Efendi,’ said the boys, ‘what will you do with your slippers in the tree?’ Said the Cogia, ‘If I find a road when I am above there, I shall have my slippers ready to put on.’

   One day a man coming from the country brought the Cogia a hare. The Cogia, with much politeness and civility, gave him some broth to eat. At the end of a week he came again; but the Cogia appearing to have forgot him, said, ‘Who may you be?’ ‘I am the person who brought the hare,’ said the man; whereupon the Cogia again entertained him. After some days a number of men made their appearance and wanted to be entertained. ‘Who may you be?’ said the Cogia. ‘We are the neighbours of the man who brought you the hare,’ said they. A few days after a whole troop of men arriving, the Cogia asked them who they were? ‘We are the neighbours of the neighbours of the man who brought the hare,’ said they. ‘You are quite welcome,’ said the Cogia, and placed before them a large jar of pure water; on seeing which they said, ‘What is this?’ ‘The water of the water of the hare is what it is,’ said the Cogia.

   One day the Cogia, whilst labouring in the field, found a tortoise, and, seizing hold of it, tied a string round its neck and hung it to his spade. The tortoise beginning to cry and squeal, ‘It is of no use crying,’ said the Cogia, ‘you must now learn to work.’

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