Alexander the Great and the Beggar

As Alexander marched through a dust-cracked country road, a beggar in tatters knelt at the roadside and stretched out a hand for alms. The king reined in his horse, reached into his purse, and dropped several pieces of gold into the trembling palm. One of his generals, unable to contain himself, cried out that a copper coin would more than answer the poor man's need. Alexander looked down and answered quietly: 'A copper coin would suit the beggar's asking. But gold suits Alexander's giving.'

The story is preached from a thousand pulpits as a lesson on generosity worthy of one's station. Its earliest verifiable appearance, however, has eluded easy search. It does not appear in Plutarch's Life of Alexander nor in Arrian. Contributors are invited to trace its provenance through medieval exempla, Renaissance moral compendia, and Victorian sermon collections.