PULLING A FAST ONE
One day the Hodja had gone to Konya on some business. While there, he thought it would not be a bad idea to replace some part of his wearing apparel. Accordingly, he went into a clothing store and asked to be shown some breeches.
Just as he was about to pay for the pair of breeches he had selected, he changed his mind.
"The pair of breeches I have on aren't so bad. You better give me a cloak instead," he said to the shopkeeper.
After trying some on, he found one fitting him nicely and walked out of the shop. The owner was after him at once.
"I'm sorry, Hodja Effendi!" he panted. "You forgot to pay for the cloak!"
"That's funny!" said the Hodja. "Didn't I leave you the pair of breeches in exchange?"
"Yes, of course! But you had not paid for them either!"
"You people of Konya are funny, indeed! If you think you can pull a fast one on me, you are very much mistaken! Why should I pay for the breeches? I didn't take them, did I?"
The unfortunate shopkeeper was so confused with this intricate reasoning that, rather than risk losing his sanity, he let the Hodja go with the unpaid cloak.
