There was a skinny young boy who was constantly being
teased by the older lads in the village. One of their favourite
games was to prove how stupid he was by giving him the
choice of picking a 20p piece or a 10p piece. The boy always
chose the 10p piece which would send the bullies into fits of
laughter.
“See,” they would say. “He always picks the 10p because it’s
bigger. He’s so thick.”
On a number of occasions this trick had been witnessed by
the local storekeeper who eventually took the lad aside and
questioned him. “I’m sure you know 10p isn’t worth as much
as 20p, is it really because it’s bigger?”
“Of course not,” whispered the boy, “but if I stopped picking
the 10p they’d stop playing the trick!”
★