The story is told of a judge who had been frequently ridiculed by a conceited lawyer. When asked by a friend why he didn't rebuke his assailant, he replied, "In our town lives a widow who has a dog. And whenever the moon shines, it goes outside and barks all night." Having said that, the magistrate shifted the conversation to another subject.

Finally someone asked, "But Judge, what about the dog and the moon?"

"Oh," he replied, "the moon went on shining - that's all."