Once upon a time in a year of famine a man gave to a poor widow a gold piece to take care of. He had put the gold coin into a jar that was full of flour. The good woman took the flour, made a cake and baked it and gave the cake to a poor man, not knowing there was a gold piece in it. Not long afterwards, the man came and asked for the gold piece which he had given into her custody.

She replied, "If I have made any use of your gold piece, may my child eat poison

and die."

The people tell that not long after that one of the children of the woman died. When the sages heard of it, they said: "Behold, this woman had taken a true oath, for she did not know that there was a gold piece in the jar with the flour, and yet the Lord, blessed be He, punished her by taking one of her children. How much more careful must one be not to swear falsely!"

And God punished that woman because she swore falsely in saying that she had not had any benefit from the gold coin, whilst in fact she had derived benefit therefrom, for she saved in dough where the gold piece was lying. Therefore, good people, attend to the moral of this story. If everyone of you swear true, many children God will give to you.