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Two Travellers were on the road together, when a Bear suddenly appeared on the scene.
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Before he observed them, one made for a tree at the side of the road,
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and climbed up into the branches and hid there.
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The other was not so nimble as his companion;
and, as he could not escape, he threw himself on the ground and pretended to be dead.
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The Bear came up and sniffed all round him, but he kept perfectly still and held his breath:
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for they say that a bear will not touch a dead body.
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The Bear took him for a corpse, and went away.
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When the coast was clear, the Traveller in the tree came down,
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and asked the other what it was the Bear had whispered to him when he put his mouth to his ear.
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The other replied, "He told me never again to travel with a friend who deserts you at the first sign of danger."
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Misfortune tests the sincerity of friendship.