“O my master，” replied the fisherman （and Shasta knew by the wheedling tone the greedy look that was probably coming into his face as he said it）， “what price could induce your servant， poor though he is， to sell into slavery his only child and his own flesh？ Has not one of the poets said， ‘Natural affection is stronger than soup and offspring more precious than carbuncles？’ ““It is even so，” replied the guest dryly. “But another poet has likewise said， ‘He who attempts to deceive the judicious is already baring his own back for the scourge.’ Do not load your aged mouth with falsehoods. This boy is manifestly no son of yours， for your cheek is as dark as mine but the boy is fair and white like the accursed but beautiful barbarians who inhabit the remote North.”
