herd along, the road. They immediately chose him for their arbiter (perhaps calling to mind the story of the three well-known goddesses in times of yore, who, in their quarrel about an apple, had also hit upon a shepherd to decide between them), and they made him acquainted with the case.
The shepherd considered for a moment, and then said, “In the gift of this apple there is a deeply hidden meaning; but who can guess it, except the clever young lady who has concealed it therein? In my opinion, this apple is a deceptive fruit, ripened on the tree of discord, and its purple colour points at a bloody strife between you, that one may destroy the other, instead of enjoying the gift. Tell me, how is it possible to divide an apple without separating it?”
The two knights pondered over the speech of the shepherd, and thought there was much wisdom in it. “Thou art right,” they said; “for has not the cursed apple already produced quarrel and discord between us? Have we not been ready to fight one another for the deceitful gift of that proud lady, who despises us both at heart? Did she not place us at the head of the army, thinking we should be killed? And has she not here succeeded in arming our hands with
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