The Thieving Child and His Mother

A child stole a schoolmate's writing tablets at school and brought them to his mother, who, instead of correcting him, praised him. Another time he stole a cloak and brought it to her; she praised him still more. From then on, as he grew into a young man, he took to more serious thefts. But one day he was caught in the act; his hands were tied behind his back, and he was led to the executioner. His mother went with him, beating her breast. He declared that he wanted to say something in her ear. As soon as she came near, he seized her earlobe and bit it off. She reproached him for his cruelty: not content with the crimes he had already committed, he had just mutilated his mother! He replied, "If, at the time when I first brought you the tablet I had stolen, you had beaten me, I would not have come to this: I would not be led to my death."