A chance discovery led a man to find a wallet containing $700. Days later, he came across a notice from a wealthy individual who had lost his wallet and was offering a $50 reward for its return. The man decided to do the right thing and return the wallet to its rightful owner.
However, upon returning the wallet, the wealthy man counted the money and accused the man of having already taken his reward. The wealthy man claimed that the wallet had originally contained $750. The man was confused, and the two began to argue. The dispute eventually made its way to court.
In court, both men shared their sides of the story. The wealthy man concluded by saying, “Your Honor, I hope you believe me.” The elderly judge replied, “Of course,” which led the wealthy man to smile, while the poor man felt hopeless. However, in a surprising turn of events, the judge took the wallet from the wealthy man and handed it back to the poor man.
The wealthy man angrily asked, “What are you doing?” The judge explained that if the wealthy man was indeed honest about the wallet containing $750, then the wallet returned by the poor man must belong to someone else. The judge’s clever solution meant that the poor man got to keep the wallet and its contents, while the wealthy man would have to wait for his own wallet to be found.
The wealthy man asked about his money, and the judge replied, “We’ll have to wait until someone finds your wallet with $750 in it.” The judge’s wise and fair decision brought the dispute to a close, leaving the wealthy man to ponder the unexpected twist.
