In illustration of the apothegm that “fools who attend only to the words of an order, and do not understand the meaning, cause much detriment,” is the story of the servants who kept the rain off the trunks:  The camel of a merchant gave way under its load on a journey.  He said to his servants, “I will go and buy another camel to carry the half of this camel’s load.  And you must remain here, and take particular care that if it clouds over the rain does not wet the leather of these trunks, which are full of clothes.”  With these words the merchant left the servants by the side of the camel and went off, and suddenly a cloud came up and began to discharge rain.  Then the fools said, “Our master told us to take care that the rain did not touch the leather of the trunks;” and after they had made this sage reflection they dragged the clothes out of the trunks and wrapped them round the leather.  The consequence was that the rain spoiled the clothes.  Then the merchant returned, and in a rage said to his servants, “You rascals!  Talk of water!  Why, the whole stock of clothes is spoiled by the rain!” And they answered him, “You told us to keep the rain off the leather of the trunks.  What fault have we committed?” He answered, “I told you that if the leather got wet the clothes would be spoiled.  I told you so in order to save the clothes, not the leather.”

The story of the servant who looked after the door is a farther illustration of the same maxim.  A merchant said to his foolish servant, “Take care of the door of my shop; I am going home for a short time.”  After his master was gone, the fool took the shop-door on his shoulder and went off to see an actor perform.  As he was returning his master met him, and gave him a scolding, and he answered, “I have taken care of this door, as you told me.”

This jest had found its way into Europe three centuries ago.  It is related of Giufa, the typical Sicilian booby, and probably came to England from Italy.  This is how it is told in the Sacke Full of Newes, a jest-book originally printed in the sixteenth century:  “In the countrey dwelt a Gentlewoman who had a French man dwelling with her, and he did ever use to go to Church with her; and upon a time he and his mistresse were going to church, and she bad him pull the doore after him and follow her to the church; and so he took the doore betweene his armes, and lifted it from the hooks, and followed his mistresse with it.  But when she looked behinde her and saw him bring the doore upon his back, ‘Why, thou foolish knave,’ qd she, ’what wilt thou do with the door?’ ‘Marry, mistresse,’ qd he, ‘you bad me pull the doore after me.’  ‘Why, fool,’ qd she, ’I did command thee that thou shouldest make fast the doore after thee, and not bring it upon thy back after me.’  But after this there was much good sport and laughing at his simplicity and foolishnesse therein.”