A Forestry Commissioner had just felled a giant tree when, seeing an honest man approaching, he dropped his axe and fled. The next day when he cautiously returned to get his axe, he found the following lines pencilled on the stump:
"What nature reared by centuries of toil, A scalawag in half a day can spoil; An equal fate for him may Heaven provide-- Damned in the moment of his tallest pride."
What is he mocking?
Corrupt officials sworn to protect forests wreck in a day what nature built over centuries.
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Discussion questions
- What does the inscription on the tree stump reveal about the nature of consequences?
- How can we relate the actions of the Forestry Commissioner to real-life situations?
- What are some simple lessons from stories like this that can guide our behavior?
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Read it in another language
- قوة المحتال · العربية
- Die Macht des Schurken · Deutsch
- El Poder del Canalla · Español
- قدرت شیاد · فارسی
- Le Pouvoir du Scélérat · Français
- स्कैलावैग की शक्ति। · हिन्दी
- Il Potere del Farabutto · Italiano
- O Poder do Canalha · Português
- Сила проходимца · Русский
- స్కాలావాగ్ యొక్క శక్తి · తెలుగు
- Ang Kapangyarihan ng Scalawag · Tagalog
- Сила скельвага · Українська
- 恶棍的力量 · 中文
