"PUFF THE MAGIC DRAGON" peter,paul & mary

A  MEDIEVAL TALE OF DECEIT

In the long ago Kingdom of Paine in the year of our Lord  1007 A.D. The Queen  was told by her Nobleman the soon the Kingdoms Milk supply will not be enough to supply her kingdom. She asked them what solution was at hand? Well the cows are getting old, not as productive as before and they seem to be filling the air with stench from their crapping. Who should we call quizzed the Queen? Call the Milk Maidens... of course they know as much about milk as the cows do. claimed a Nobleman.

Call them to the Kingdom Milk Maidens are professionals. Announce to all my Knight's to meet at the round table and hear them out!

They all met in the great hall, The Milk Maidens portrayed a sad future look by 1013 A.D. please check this pie chart before one of the knights eats the pie! No milk will be available for you in the kingdom and what milk there will be you will pay a handsome price for it will be like Golden Honey! one Milk Maiden exclaimed. No milk for my family on Thanksgiving one Knight shouted out. this can not stand.

The Milk Maids told the Queen as well as the knights that they had some solutions to this dilemma. First in a kingdom to the south in Meigs Kingdom we are building a dairy farm to provide for you. As well as being involved in a soon operational farm to the west in the Kingdom of Prairie. Your crisis is solved. Oh thank-you Milk Maidens hailed the Queen and the Knights. but in the back of the hall came the sounds of a few Peasants in the kingdom, please be careful Queen and Knights these Milk Maidens bring forth with a "Come Hell or High Water" What skin have they in this project? Please read this contract carefully, it will be a contract you and your off springs will have live with for a long time. The Milk Maidens huddled and explained this with all of their knowledge this is the best deal possible, one Milk Maiden whispered we got to find a new name for this contract. "Take or Pay" sounds so much more reasonable. The Peasants views were pushed aside what possible could they know, they only drink the stuff? Hailed the top Knight and with that he Proudly hit his sword to the table and the die was cast. With a price of around  48 jars of honey a in 1013.

Everyone in the Kingdom was happy with the deal except one Knight and a few Peasants, This will all soon unravel mentioned one.

They All Lived Happily Ever After.   (NOT REALLY)

Soon the wheels started to come off of the farm. First the Dairy Farm to the south in Meigs was not constructed due to low demand for milk and the high cost of building it. So soon the Milk Maidens cancelled it, Well sighed the Kingdom of Paine we are out of that one. The Milk Maidens informed the Queen that due to the "Come Hell Or High Water" contract she had an obligation to make this project whole. Paine Kingdoms  share was 2 million jars of the finest honey, But we received no Milk? The Dragon chuckled in the background? No Milk was guaranteed with the "Come Hell or High Water" contract didn't you read it? The  Top Knight got the other Knights to send the Milk Maidens the two million jars of honey with a promise we just might someday get the Honey back? You never know as the Milk Maidens chuckled.

Now to the west the Prairie Farm was having a few problems first the Dairy Farm and the Processing  Plant were having a few problems. First the cost of the whole thing climbed from 4 Billion jars of Honey to almost 5 Billion  Yes you and the rest of the Kingdoms are on the hook for that remember the contract?  The Duke of Peabody who at the start owned the whole Dairy Farm sold all but 5% to other Kingdoms but explained to the Kingdoms we will still manage the operation. But you only own 5% of the farm? Read the contract, Knight. Even the Milk Maidens own more. They should read their contracts too.

Now first the Dairy Farm was delayed and the Kingdom of Paine payed 300,000 jars of honey as not to miss interest payments. Seems a cow or two died at the Farm, bottling equipment broke down, problems with the hay that the cows were eating, even transporting cost changed. The cows only produced 68% of the Milk and that also drove the cost up. Look things are improving Bear with us?  But the estimate of 48.06 jars of honey has gone up to 104.06 jars of honey? Remember the "Come Hell Or High Water" contract. We never promised you a rose garden.

Look the evil Queen is gone, new Knights at the table yet five of them see nothing amiss on these deals? One Knight mentioned we "gambled" Really? Gamble with your wealth Knight Fodor not the Kingdoms, I guess after all its only Kingdom money! What a sad tale to  Knight Hada's reign at the round table our unoffical expert on Milk. Now comes word from the Kingdom of Bryan that the Milk Maidens have cut a deal with them for a deal of 45 jars of honey even with a cap for the next four years, not an estimate but a guarantee.

We have a fund set up as a monthly billing system to even it out for you what else do you want? No one needs to look into this contract believe us chimed three Milk Maidens. Oh and never mind that contract with the Kingdom of Columbus or Bryan things have changed enjoy.

I don't know if the Milk Maidens took a carriage out of the Kingdom or just slittered out?

In the end the Queen, Noblemen in charge as well as the Knights knew no more, possibly  less than the Peasants that try to warn them.

The moral of this story is quite simple.....

No use crying over Spilt Milk!