The Nail

A merchant had done good business at the fair; he had sold his wares, and lined his money-bags with gold and silver. Then he wanted to travel homewards, and be in his own house before nightfall. So he packed his trunk with the money on his horse, and rode away. At noon he rested in a town, and when he wanted to go farther the stable-boy brought out his horse and said,“A nail is wanting, sir, in the shoe of its left hind foot.”

“Let it be wanting,”answered the merchant;“the shoe will certainly stay on for the six miles I have still to go. I am in a hurry.”In the afternoon, when he once more alighted and had his horse fed, the stableboy went into the room to him and said,“Sir, a shoe is missing from your horse's left hind foot. Shall I take him to the blacksmith?”

“Let it still be wanting,”answered the man;“the horse can very well hold out for the couple of miles which remain. I am in haste.”He rode forth, but before long the horse began to limp. It had not limped long before it began to stumble, and it had not stumbled long before it fell down and broke its leg. The merchant was forced to leave the horse where it was, and unbuckle the trunk, take it on his back, and go home on foot. And there he did not arrive until quite late at night.“And that unlucky nail,”said he to himself,“has caused all this disaster.”

The more haste the less speed.

钉子

一个商人在一年一次的年市上做了几笔好生意，货物都卖出去了，钱袋里装满了金子、银子。他现在就要回家，想在夜幕降临之前赶到家里。于是他把放着钱的旅行提包绑在马背上，骑马走。中午，他在一个城镇稍事休息，要继续走的时候，仆人把他骑的马牵到他跟前来，说：“主人，它左边后蹄的马蹄铁少了个钉子。”

“少就少吧，”商人回答说，“再走六个钟头就到了，马蹄铁大概掉不了。时间很紧顾不得了。”下午，他又下马，叫人给马喂食的时候，仆人到房间里来，说：“主人，您的马左边后蹄的马蹄铁掉了。要牵去找铁匠吗？”

“掉就掉了吧，”主人回答说，“就剩几个钟头了，马大概能顶得下来。时间很紧。”他骑马继续赶路，可是没过多久，马跛了，一瘸一拐地走着；一瘸一拐地走不多久，它开始跌跌撞撞地走着；跌跌撞撞地走不多久，马摔倒在地上，跌断了一条马腿。商人只好让马躺在那里，解下旅行提包自己背在肩上，徒步走回去，直到深夜才走到家里。他自言自语说：“所有的不幸都是那根可恶的钉子造成的。真是欲速则不达。”