The Shepherd and the Bureaucrat¹

A bureaucrat was hiking when he came upon a shepherd tending a large flock. The bureaucrat took a fancy to the sheep and asked the shepherd, "If I can guess how many there are, may I have one?" The shepherd thought it unlikely the man would guess the exact number, so he agreed.

The bureaucrat guessed, "You have 287 sheep." The shepherd was astonished, since this was exactly right.

"Can I pick out my sheep now?" asked the bureaucrat. The shepherd grudgingly² gave his permission. Selecting one, the bureaucrat slung³ it over his shoulders to carry home.

The shepherd got an idea." If I guess your occupation'," he said, "may I have my sheep back?" The bureaucrat was surprised, but figured there was little chance of the shepherd guessing correctly, so he went along. "You're a bureaucrat, "announced the shepherd. Amazed, the bureaucrat asked.

"How did you know?"

The shepherd replied, "Put the dog down and we'll talk about it.

一位官僚在徒步旅行，这时他看到一个牧羊人在看护一大群羊。这个官僚特别喜欢羊，就问牧羊人：“如果我能猜出有多少只，我能领走一只羊吗？”牧羊人想他不可能猜中准确的数目，就同意了。

官僚猜道：“你有二百八十七只羊。”牧羊人惊呆了，因为这确是准确的数目。

“我可以挑一只羊了吧？”官僚问道。牧羊人勉强地答应了。官僚挑了一只羊，把它甩在肩上就往家里扛。

牧羊人来了主意。“如果我猜中你的身份，”他说，“我可以收回我的羊吗？”官僚甚感惊奇，但考虑到牧羊人猜中的机会很小，就同意了。“你是个官员，”牧羊人猜道。

官僚一愣，问道：“你怎么知道的？”

牧羊人回答：“先把我的狗放下，然后我们再说话。”