Again and again Nasrudin tried to tie a turban out of a
piece of material which he had been given, but it was too short. 
Eventually he took it to the market and gave it to an auctioneer
to sell for him.
   When the sale started, he heard the auctioneer praising the 
cloth to the skies, and the bidding rose and rose.
   ‘I cannot stand to hear so many good things said about a
wretched piece of cloth which has caused me so much trouble,’
thought the Mulla. ‘Am I to conceal the shortcomings of such
an unworthy thing?’
   So he stole up to the man who had made the last bid and 
whispered to him: ‘That muslin is hardly worth buying for 
a turban: it is a short length.’