In my hometown there once lived

Two house-painters who competed

In mastery without a moment's rest.

One day it happened that on the top

Of the nose of one of them there was

A little bit of paint, like a fly's wing.

The other whirled his axe so as

To produce a wind, which instantly

Carried off the paint entirely,

Leaving the nose uninjured and

The face of his partner unflappable.

Later on, when the mayor heard of that,

He called the painter and said to him,

'Try and do the same thing on me.'

The painter said, 'I have been able

To trim things in that way, but the stuff

On which I have worked has been dead

For three years now. Since the death

Of my partner, I have had no material

To work upon. I've lost my former skill

Because from that time on, I have had

No one with whom I could rival, sir.'