The Farmer and the Baker

Once upon a time, a farmer and a baker lived in the same small village.

They became friends and developed a good relationship. One day the baker asked the farmer for a daily supply of one pound of butter for his bakery. In return the baker would give the farmer a pound loaf each day.

One morning, after several weeks of getting his pound of butter from the farmer; the baker suspected that the farmer was cheating him and that he wasn’t giving him the full pound of butter. He decided to weigh the butter to check whether he was receiving the correct amount.

When he weighed the butter, the farmer had supplied him with that day his suspicions were confirmed. The farmer had supplied him with less butter than they’d agreed. Angry about the unfairness, he decided to file a complaint against the farmer and took him to court.

At the hearing the judge asked the farmer whether he was indeed reducing the amount of butter supplied to the baker. The farmer answered that he was not aware of taking any action deliberately.

The judge asked the farmer how he measured out the butter. He replied “Your honour, I am but a lowly farmer and do not own a proper measure. I simply use an old-fashioned balance,” he replied.

“What do you use to balance out the pound of butter?” enquired the judge. The farmer replied, “Your honour, as the baker supplies me with a pound loaf each day, I use that. I put it on the scale and then balance out the same weight in butter to supply him in return. If the amount of butter I have been giving him is less than a pound, then it means the loaf he gives me as part of our agreement is also less than a pound.”

The judge determined that the farmer had no complaint to answer, as the reduced measure of butter was a direct result of the baker’s own actions to give less than agreed.

You can’t expect people to treat you with integrity, if you don’t have any yourself!!