English Confluence By CL Gautam

Ch-8 The Tale of The Melon City by Vikram Seth             Summary   The Tale of Melon City" is a humorous poem which shows how stupid the king, the ministers and the people of a certain kingdom were. It was, in fact, a kingdom of fools. Once, the king ordered for an arch to be constructed over the main street to impress the onlookers. The arch was made. When the king rode down the thoroughfare, his crown was knocked down. The king at once ordered that the chief of builders should be hanged. While being led to the gallows the victim shouted that the fault lay with the workmen. The king called the proceedings to a halt and ordered that the workmen should be hanged instead. The workmen blamed the masons who in turn blamed the architect. The architect pointed out that it was the king himself who had made certain amendments in the plans. This put the king in a tricky spot and he called for advice from the wisest man. The old man said t...