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A Witch professed to be able to avert the anger of the gods by

means of charms, of which she alone possessed the secret; and she

drove a brisk trade, and made a fat livelihood out of it. But

certain persons accused her of black magic and carried her before

the judges, and demanded that she should be put to death for

dealings with the Devil. She was found guilty and condemned to

death: and one of the judges said to her as she was leaving the

dock, "You say you can avert the anger of the gods. How comes it,

then, that you have failed to disarm the enmity of men?"

THE OLD MAN AND DEATH