The Bear and the Gardener in this case keeping the flies off a friend, and the ultimate good of safeguarding his welfare. The story gained currency in England from the 18th century on through translations or imitations of La Fontaine. One of its earliest appearances was in Robert Dodsley's "Select fables of Esop and other fabulists" (1764), where it is given the title "The Hermit and the Bear" and a milder ending. In this version a hermit has done the bear a good turn; later still this was identified with taking a thorn from its paw, drawing on the story of Androcles and the Lion.
Paw Paw Railroad Throughout its history, the Paw Paw was specifically exempt from those sections of Michigan's railroad law which regulated rates and fares. In 1898 the South Haven & Eastern (successor to the T&SH) converted the T&SH's lines, including the Paw Paw–Lawton segment, back to . In 1903 it passed along with the SH&E to the Pere Marquette Railway, which finally abandoned the line in 1941. Paw Paw Railroad The Paw Paw Railroad is a defunct railroad which operated in Van Buren County, Michigan, between 1857 and 1887. At a length of , it was the shortest operating common carrier railroad in