ONCE upon a time there lived a man。God had given him the knowledge of all the languages of men， beasts and birds。He understood everything they said。
He saw the strife and discontent， quarrelling and fighting among them， and it made his heart so heavy that he became indifferent to whatever happened。
It was all so pitiful and so miserable that he almost forgot to laugh and smile。
He was a rich man， and had large fields and many acres。
One day in the early spring he hired a number of labourers to come out with him and till the ground。
There were a goodly number， young and old， and they worked merrily together from the rising of the sun until noontime， when they unyoked the oxen from the ploughs and settled down to their meal。
It consisted， as usual， of Mamaliga-the cake made out of the golden flour of the maize-mixed together with some cheese。
After they had finished their meal the older ones retired under the shades of the trees close to the hedge that was growing at one end of the field， but the young people went on enjoying themselves in their own way in another part of the field。
Where the men had finished their meal the ground was strewn with crumbs of Mamaliga and cheese， so a number of crows came down and began picking them up， croaking and screeching all the while。
At the same time a cuckoo began calling in the hedge。
When the men saw the crows gathering round the place where they had had their meals and picking up the crumbs， they took up pieces of earth and stones and threw them at the crows， whilst they sat listening with evident enjoyment to the calling of the cuckoo。
The master of the field， who was with them， smiled， and they wondered greatly at seeing him smile， and said to him：
“What is there that makes you smile？”
“Nothing，”he replied。
“But we have never seen you smile before，”they said。