Encore: The Hiding Place

Circle Round

This episode of Circle Round presents an adaptation of a Jewish and Egyptian folk tale titled 'The Hiding Place.' The story follows Solomon,

Key takeaways

• Solomon the Peddler loses 500 silver pieces after they are stolen from a hidden cache in a grove.
• The thief is revealed to be the city's mayor, who is notorious for greed and high taxes.

Main topics

• Folklore adaptation
• Greed and justice

Notable quotes

We're going to fight greed with greed.

Conclusion

A classic tale demonstrating how intelligence and community cooperatio

Transcript preview

Speaker 1 (0:02) Hey there, Circle Round listeners. My name is Ben Brock Johnson, one of the people working behind the scenes on this show. One of the good things about Circle Round having so many episodes is that there are often little gems that you haven't heard yet. Stories from years ago. And even if you have heard them before, there's always something new to discover within the episode itself. Kind of like buried treasure. And today we have a great story that is about just that, buried treasure. So circle around everyone for The Hiding Place. Speaker 4 (0:49) WBUR Podcasts, Boston. Speaker 6 (0:57) Have you ever played hide-and-seek? If so, then you've probably come up with all sorts of fun places to conceal yourself from the seeker. In today's tale, an honest peddler believes he's found the perfect place to hide a precious possession until a double-dealing trickster seeks it out. Speaker 6 (1:26) I'm Rebecca Shear, and welcome to Circle Round, where storytime happens all the time. Today, our story is called The Hiding Place. We found versions of this tale from Egyptian and Jewish lore. Speaker 6 (1:43) Some really great people came together to bring you our adaptation of this story, including Aaron Bartz, Eric Christopher Peterson, and Kara Ricketts. Three stars from the Tony Award-winning Broadway show Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, running at the Lyric Theater in New York City. So circle around, everyone, for The Hiding Place. Speaker 6 (2:18) Solomon the Peddler rode his rickety wagon from city to city and town to town, hawking his hodgepodge of wares. Step Speaker 5 (2:27) right up and get your cups and candles, your textiles and tools, all at low, low prices, all for a limited time. Speaker 6 (2:34) Every now and then, business was as brisk as a buzzing bee, and coins came flying into Solomon's cash box. Speaker 5 (2:42) Thank you for your purchase, sir. I appreciate your business, ma'am. Thanks for being a valued customer, madam. Speaker 6 (2:49) But most of the time, business was as slow as a tired turtle. And by the end of the day, Solomon's cash box held little more than air. Still, the peddler kept at it. He worked all day. Every day, refusing to take time off. And little by little, his savings grew. Until at last, his cash box was filled to the brim with silver pieces. Speaker 5 (3:16) Wow, I've never had this much money before. So I'm going to do something I've never done before. Take a vacation. Speaker 6 (3:25) Solomon rolled through the countryside with a smile on his face. Before long, he saw a bustling city in the distance, one he had never been to before. Speaker 5 (3:36) Wow, that city looks like a great place to take some time off. Thing is, I've got an awful lot of cash with me. How can I make sure my silver pieces are safe during my stay? Speaker 6 (3:49) At the edge of the city, Solomon came upon a big, broad field. And that's when he had an idea. Speaker 5 (3:58) I'll hide my silver pieces in this field. I'll set aside some coins for spending money. Then I'll bury the rest and come back for it later. But first, let's see how much I've got. One, two, three, four, five. One by one, Solomon Speaker 6 (4:16) counted his silver pieces until at last... Speaker 5 (4:19) 599, 600. I've got 600 silver pieces in this cash Speaker 6 (4:24) box. Wow! Solomon set aside 100 silver pieces for spending money. So, if he had 600 silver pieces total, how many did he have left in his cash box? That's right, 500. So, with his 500 silver pieces clinking in his cash box, Solomon hurried across the field. At the far end of the field was a grove of tall, leafy trees. Solomon glanced over both shoulders, decided no one else was about, then quickly dug a hole near the trees. He Speaker 4 (4:59) laid the cash box inside and Speaker 6 (5:01) covered it with dirt. Speaker 5 (5:04) All righty then. My 500 silver pieces are safe, and I am on a holiday. Speaker 6 (5:11) Solomon had a lovely time in the city. He feasted on fine food in charming cafes. He shopped for new clothing at elegant stores. And each night, he enjoyed a different play or opera at the theater. Once he had used up all of his spending money, he decided his vacation was over. Speaker 5 (5:32) Well, that was delightful. Now I'll go back to the grove, unbury the rest of my money, and I'll be on my way. Speaker 6 (5:41) Solomon checked out of his hotel and returned to his hiding place. But to his dismay, when he plunged his shovel into the soil... Speaker 5 (5:50) Oh, no. Speaker 6 (5:52) He did not see a cash box full of 500 silver pieces. Instead... All Speaker 5 (5:58) I'm seeing is dirt, which means that someone must have stolen my cash box. But how? And who? I could have sworn I was alone when I buried it in the... Solomon stopped short. for suddenly he Speaker 6 (6:11) caught sight of Speaker 5 (6:12) something on the ground. Footprints! There's a trail of strange footprints leading from my hiding place into the trees. This could be a clue. Speaker 6 (6:23) Solomon dropped his shovel and followed the footprints through the grove. On the other side was a house, an enormous, sprawling abode with stately pillars, gleaming brick walls, and more windows and chimneys than Solomon could count. Speaker 5 (6:40) Whoa! Who knew such a massive house was on the other side of this grove? I wonder