The Donkey's Barley Ration (1950s)

[Music] [Music] This moving picture begins in the quaint and familiar streets of a Quiet town. Just ahead, our dependable donkey, Slowfoot, is waiting for us. Slowfoot is waiting for us. Slowfoot. Sometimes that donkey can be stubborn as a mule. He was supposed to carry us to that coffee house where at the noon hour an old shake retells the beloved stories of Nasaredin Hocha. Is this your donkey, Aphendi? Yes, thank you, Burhan. It is. Are you joining us in the coffee house? Indeed, we are. Slow foot can wait out here while the shake tells of Naseradine [Music] Popja. I have a letter from my cousin, Ephendi. He sent you his greetings. Ah indeed. Thank him for me. Bhan is all well on his farm. Well and promising. Splendid. Burhan. He writes that the Americans are cooperating with our government to help the farmers. Rubbish. Ah, a word of wisdom from our young radical. What's wrong with helping the farmers? Hamid. Everything. Cooperation with America isn't doing any good for people who live in a city like me. You have such a fair and open mind. Hamid, I'm not interested in farmers. More production at less cost by farmers means more food at lower prices in the city markets. Right. Any fool knows that. Ah, but do you? When you can buy at low prices, you can get more and better food, so you are healthier. Since you have money left over, you are wealthier. And now I have explained this. I hope you are wiser. Matt, it's so round about. Why don't they just give out money to us city people? If they gave out their money directly, there would not be enough for everyone. But if they treat their money like seeds, then the fruit of those seeds can help us all. Spending money to grow more, better, and cheaper food is the best long range plan for prosperity. I think you ought to learn, as Nasaredin Hocha once did, that the long range view is never to economize on food and farming. Listen, Hamid, and try to learn. [Music] Now it once happened in the time of Nasaredin Hocha that a year of famine and hardship fell upon the land. There was little food and less money. And every villager was wondering how he could help to solve the problem. [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] Two of Bhocha's friends thought of an easy way to get much more work done in their grain fields. All they needed was to borrow the Hocha's donkey. But this idea didn't appeal to the Hocha at all. No, not today. My donkey is not here. [Music] But listen, the donkey is here. You're no friends if you believe my donkey more than me. [Music] In the middle of their argument, the Hocha and his friends were interrupted by the calling of a village meeting where the ways and means of solving the problems of hard times were to be discussed. Many of the villagers were in favor of spending what money they had only for grain and by working longer and harder in the fields to grow more food. But Naseratin Hocha had a theory which sounded much better. At least it did to him. And what he had to say soon made him the very center of attention. Friends, we can save all the grain we need by cutting down on our donkey's rations. They will not complain. Well, here was a new idea. All the villagers had thought that food was very very important. But Nasaredine Hocha was saying eating is just a bad habit. Give me one month to show you how much grain I can save just by feeding my donkey less. In the meantime, spend your money on whatever you want and don't worry. And from the great excitement, you could tell that everybody in the village thought this was a wonderful idea. At least almost everybody. You really couldn't tell what the Hoa's donkey thought of it. [Music] And so through the following days and weeks, Nasaredin Hocha filled his measure with grain, put half of each scoopful into an empty jug, and gave the rest to his donkey. [Music] [Music] For this economy, the Hochar was very much praised by his friends. Unfortunately, their admiration went to his head because just to prove how right he was, he cut the donkey's barley ration in half again. [Music] Near the end of the trial month, the whole village was buzzing about how easy it was to save grain without depriving yourself of anything. After all, donkeys don't complain. And just to show what a perfect way this was to economize, on the day before he was to face the villagers, the Hocha cut his donkey's barley ration in half once more. [Music] The next day, the Hocha and his donkey stood before the villagers. Look, my friends, all this grain I saved in just one month by cutting down the donkey's barley ration. You see what a bad habit eating can be. Now spend your money on what you want and stop worrying about food. And what a tonic the loud cries of harra to the hocha's ears. He basked in their generous admiration and glowed with self-satisfaction. But alas, those same cheers meant little to the donkey because he had dropped dead of starvation. [Music] So you see enough good food is essential for health and happiness and to take a long range view of prosperity. We must all admit that money is most wisely spent that is spent to grow food. For the fruits of planted money will grow many times and help make the life we live a better one. [Music]