“The devil told the architect “I can build that bridge for you….but then I own the soul of the first living creature that crosses it.”
So the devil ends up with a rooster, or a goat, a dog, a chicken….I think he should really work on his contracts. Make it more specific. Like specify what he really wants. If it is a human soul, then say so.
Stories throughout history portray the devil as making a deal with a human. He promises Jack that he will not take his soul if Jack will release him from the wallet he convinced the devil to hide in. He promised a bridge builder he would finish the project, and all he got was a goat.
He promised the people of Aachen, Germany, he would finish their cathedral if he could take the first living soul who entered it. Of course, the people tricked him and sent a wolf in as the first soul. Enraged, the devil decides to pour sand all over the city. He is lugging a large bag of sand, and meets a woman who recognizes him. She tells him it is a very long way to the city, and the devil gives up exhausted. Tricked again, as the city was just over the hill.
Poor guy. Does he ever get it right?
Only in the story, “The Devil and Daniel Webster”, by Stephen Vincent Benet, does the devil practice sound business management. He has a written contract with a farmer, Jabez Stone. He has given Mr. Stone seven years of prosperity, and now demands payment. The lawyer, Daniel Webster, takes the case to a judge and jury who rules for Mr. Stone, and against the devil. One of the greatest arguments in the case is that Farmer Stone is an American citizen, and the devil isn’t. He replies that he has been longer in America than anyone else, saying “I don’t like to boast of it, but my name has been in this country longer than any of yours”. Good argument. But, the devil loses again.
So when I hear about the evil corporations that run our lives, I smile. For if they have made a pact with the devil, we have nothing to worry about. Unless you are a rooster, a goat, a dog, or a chicken.
The image at the top of the post can be found here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/lacadaz/2249353357/sizes/z/in/photostream/
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