The Lion & The Four Bulls

from E-Sop's Frables

Four Foolish bulls who were very good friends would always stay together when they were feeding and picking investments.

There was a Wise Lion who used to watch them every day and it made him furious to see them always together. He knew that he could kill and eat any single one of them if he could catch him alone, but he also knew that the four of them together could beat him. The Wise Lion was more powerful and faster than the Foolish Bulls, but together, the Bulls were able to accomplish more with less. So the Lion just watched and grew angrier and angrier every day.

Then the Lion had an idea.

He started whispers and rumors about the Bulls, how one of them had said so and so about the other behind his back, and how one thought the other's latest stock pick was silly, and things like that, until the Foolish Bulls grew cooler and cooler toward each other. And before very long they weren't sharing information or even speaking to each other, and finally each went to a different part of the pasture to feed.

Well, that was exactly what the Wise Lion wanted them to do and before very many days had passed the Lion had four good Bulls for dinner---one at a time.

The Point---It is necessary to point out that there are two points to this frable:

We should always remember that as Fools we are stronger if we work together---and---Gossip causes trouble (or gets you a job on major financial networks).

The Motley Fool (10/13/95)