There was once a poor man who had four sons, and when they were grown up, he said to them, “My dear children, you must now go out into the world, for I have nothing to give you, so set out, and go to some distance and learn a trade, and see how you can make your way.” So the four brothers took their sticks, bade their father farewell, and went through the town-gate together. When they had travelled about for some time, they came to a crossway which branched off in four different directions.
Then said the eldest, “Here we must separate, but on this day four years, we will meet each other again at this spot, and in the meantime we will seek our fortunes.”
Then each of them went his way, and the eldest met a man who asked him where he was going, and what he was intending to do? “I want to learn a trade,” he replied.
Then the other said, “Come with me, and be a thief.”
“No,” he answered, “that is no longer regarded as a reputable trade, and the end of it is that one has to swing on the gallows.”