There once was a powerful emperor who lived in a grand palace in a city in the west of Africa. He thought of nothing and nobody but himself and his ne clothes. Every hour of every day he took off the ne clothes he was wearing and threw them on the oor. Then he dressed himself in new ne clothes and stood before his long mirror to admire himself. He did this so that everybody would say, “Ahh! Look at our emperor in his ne new clothes!”
Then, one day, two tricksters, who were real crooks, arrived in the city.
“We can make money from this emperor who thinks of nothing and nobody but himself and his fine new clothes,” said Crook Number One. “But how?”
“We will tell everybody that we weave ne cloth with wonderful patterns and colours and beads,” said Crook Number Two. “We will tell them that only people who are clever are able to see it. We will say that stupid people cannot see it at all.”
So the crooks opened a shop and set up a weaving loom. Then they started weaving NOTHING AT ALL!
A young man stopped at the shop one day when he saw the crooks waving their hands about in the air. “Excuse me,” he said to them. “What are you doing?”
“If you were clever, you would see that we are weaving ne cloth with wonderful patterns and colours and beads,” said Crook Number One.
“Only stupid people cannot see what we are weaving!” said Crook Number Two.
The man didn’t want the crooks to think he was stupid. “Of course I can see that ne cloth,” he said. “I’m not stupid!” But he could see NOTHING AT ALL, because there was nothing at all to see!
And so the news spread that there were weavers making ne cloth with wonderful patterns and colours and beads, but that only clever people were able to see it.
The emperor soon heard the news, and sent for his advisor.
“Advisor, I hear that two men in the city weave ne cloth with wonderful patterns and colours and beads that only clever people can see. Do you think that I should have ne new clothes made from this cloth?”
“Yes, Emperor. You always need ne new clothes,” said the emperor’s advisor.
“I do,” said the emperor. “Take this bag of gold to the weavers so that they may weave some ne cloth for me!”
The emperor’s advisor took the bag of gold and hurried off to the weavers.
“Excuse me,” he said, as he watched the crooks at the loom waving their arms about in the air. “What are you doing?”
“If you were clever, you would see that we are weaving ne cloth with wonderful patterns and colours and beads,” said Crook Number One.
“Only stupid people cannot see what we are weaving!” said Crook Number Two.
“That is why the cloth is expensive,” said Crook Number One. “But you may buy our fine cloth for a bag of gold.”