The Fox and the Goat

A fox fell into a well and found herself stuck there. A goat, driven by thirst, came to the same well and, spotting the fox, asked whether the water was good. The fox, making the best of a bad situation, praised the water highly, declaring it excellent, and urged him to come down. The goat went down without thinking, listening only to his thirst. When he had drunk his fill, he consulted the fox about how to climb back up. The fox said, "I have a plan, if you truly care about saving us both. Brace your forelegs against the wall and hold your horns up; I'll climb out that way, and then I'll haul you up too." The goat readily agreed, and the fox, scrambling nimbly up his legs, shoulders, and horns, reached the mouth of the well and at once made off. When the goat reproached her for breaking their bargain, the fox turned and said, "My friend, if you had as much sense as you have hairs on your chin, you would not have gone down before working out how to get back up."