Social Commentaries
Cross Purposes (Mackail)
Translated by J. W. Mackail (1890) · From Select Epigrams from the Greek Anthology (1890)
A deaf man went to law with a deaf man, and the judge was a long way deafer than both. The one claimed that the other owed him five months' rent; and he replied that he had ground his corn by night; then the judge, looking down on them, said, "Why quarrel? she is your mother; keep her between you."
This translation is printed as prose in its source edition.
Cite this poem
MLA
Nicarchus. “Cross Purposes (Mackail).” Translated by J. W. Mackail. Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/nicarchus/50/.
Chicago
Nicarchus. “Cross Purposes (Mackail).” Translated by J. W. Mackail. Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/nicarchus/50/.
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