A dog used to run up quietly
to the heels of everyone he met, and to bite them
without notice. His master suspended a bell about
his neck so that the Dog might give notice of his presence
wherever he went. Thinking it a mark of distinction,
the Dog grew proud of his bell and went tinkling it
all over the marketplace. One day an old hound
said to him: Why do you make such an exhibition
of yourself? That bell that you carry is not,
believe me, any order of merit, but on the contrary
a mark of disgrace, a public notice to all men to
avoid you as an ill mannered dog.”
Notoriety is often mistaken for fame.
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