Once and old man took his ass to the seaside to bring bake some sacks of salt. On his way home he had to go over a small river. The ass stumbled and fell into the water. The river washedthe salt away. He wa very happy yo find that the sacks were lighter.The next day the old man bought some cotton.He put thew sacks of cotton on the back of the ass. On their way home they had to go over the same small river.The ass remembered how the river had washed the salt away before. So he pretended to stumble and put his body into the river. He was surprised to find after walking from the river that the sacks had become many times heavier than before.