it happened once upon a time that the wife of Mullah Nasruddin, while busy with some task in the house, was startled by a loud noise. As a life-long companion of the Mullah, she was of course accustomed to the unexpected. Nevertheless, she called out, “What happened?”

“Nothing serious,” said the Mullah from the other room. “My coat fell down the stairs.”

“Your coat fell down the stairs? How could a coat make so much noise falling down the stairs?”

“I’m not sure,” Nasruddin said. “Perhaps because I was in it.”