A man made a wooden statue of Mercury and offered it for sale, but no one wanted to buy it. To attract purchasers, he cried out that he was selling the statue of a benefactor who bestowed wealth and helped the owner heap up riches. One of the bystanders said to him, “Good fellow, why do you sell him when you may yourself enjoy the wealth he has to give?’ “Why,” he replied, “I need money now, and he gives his gifts very slowly.”
