Mr. Slumber was a rather old man who spent all his time sleeping on the sidewalk of a small hamlet. One day, the local villagers gathered and talked about the matter. Some said that he had been sleeping there for over fifty years. They wondered for the reason of so great a sleep, but however hard they tried, none could find it.... Finally the eldest of the elders stood up and said,

Gentlemen! I know the reason for this long sleep, and a simple reason it is. He does not awake because — in his sleep Mr. Slumber dreams that he is awake...