The Adventures of Jonathan Gullible - Bastiat Institute

Chapter 39
Vultures, Beggars, Con Men,
and Kings
Next morning, the fi rst rays of light awakened Jonathan. He
heard purring; Mices was enjoying a long stretch – digging
his claws in the soil. Jonathan rubbed his eyes and looked wearily
around. Aside from a few columns of smoke, the town seemed
quiet again. Hungrily he searched his pockets and found a couple of
remaining slices of bread. He ate one and, trying not to wake Alisa,
gently placed a slice under her hand. But she stirred and sat up.
“I want to take a look from the top of this mountain,” he told
her. She agreed and they began heading up the steep slope together.
Soon the path gave way to rocks that required hand over hand
climbing and hauling, using any protruding branch or root. Well
ahead of Alisa, but behind Mices, Jonathan arrived at an outcrop
near the top. He surveyed the town far below. The summit was near,
so he continued up an incline and through a cluster of stunted and
twisted trees.
“People!” he said to himself, exasperated. “Constantly pushing
each other around. Threatening each other. Arresting each other.
Robbing and harming each other.”
Eventually, the trees thinned out to a few bushes, and then, a
pile of large boulders. A faint, full moon could still be seen fading
in the dawn, slipping closer to the horizon. The air was cool and
pleasant as he trudged along. On the peak was a single scraggly tree
with a big, ugly vulture perched on a bare branch. “Oh no,” groaned
Jonathan, who had hoped for a more lonely spot. “Just my luck. I
leave behind a valley of vultures in order to fi nd peace and what do
I fi nd? A real vulture!”
“I am a condor!” echoed a deep, gruff voice.
Jonathan froze. Mices jumped, then arched his back and began
to hiss. Jonathan’s eyes, wider than the moon, moved slowly,