--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: And horse-stealing,” said the Water Rat…" description: "\"“And horse-stealing,” said the Water Rat, adding his mite. “And impersonating a washerwoman, and defrauding the rails, and horse-stealing—or did I say ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3f5/kij-johnson-19953_ancient-greek_and-horse-stealing-said-the-water-rat-ad_2877168.jpg" --- # And horse-stealing,” said the Water Rat, adding his mite… ![“And horse-stealing,” said the Water Rat, adding his mite. “And impersonating a washerwoman, and defrauding the rails, and horse-stealing—or did I say that already?” “You did,” said Beryl. “You did,” affirmed the Mole. “And there was a second motor-car theft, was there not? I cannot keep track.”…” quote by Kij Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3f5/kij-johnson-19953_ancient-greek_and-horse-stealing-said-the-water-rat-ad_2877168.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3f5/kij-johnson-19953_ancient-greek_and-horse-stealing-said-the-water-rat-ad_2877168.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3f5/kij-johnson-19953_ancient-greek_and-horse-stealing-said-the-water-rat-ad_2877168.jpg) > ““And horse-stealing,” said the Water Rat, adding his mite. “And impersonating a washerwoman, and defrauding the rails, and horse-stealing—or did I say that already?” “You did,” said Beryl. “You did,” affirmed the Mole. “And there was a second motor-car theft, was there not? I cannot keep track.” “O, how thrilling!” said the Rabbit, her ribbons fluttering with excitement. “It is all exactly like the ancient Greeks!” “Ulysses?” Beryl said drily. “Very likely.” “O, Beryl.” The Rabbit looked reproachfully at her companion.”” [Kij Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kij-johnson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A chaotic conversation reveals characters obsessively recounting petty crimes, highlighting absurdity and the human tendency to over‑catalog misdeeds. **In simple terms:** People keep listing minor crimes, making it absurd. Key Takeaway Recognize when detail becomes distraction. Themes absurdity conversation cataloging Mood playful ironic Type literary dialogue When to use this quote - family gatherings - crime discussions - literary analysis Key Concepts human behavior social interaction Questions to Reflect On - Why do we obsess over minor transgressions? - What does this say about memory and storytelling? A Different Perspective The humor may mask deeper social critique. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ancient greek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ancient-greek/) [Beryl Rabbit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beryl-rabbit-3967003/) [Horse Stealing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/horse-stealing-647507/) [Rabbit Looked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rabbit-looked-1700887/) [Said Beryl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said-beryl-3967004/) [Said Rabbit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said-rabbit-1679445/) [Water](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/water/) ## Related quotes > [Went to the grocery store, got everything on my list and went up to the checkout. I put a bag of pet food for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-engvall/went-to-the-grocery-store-got-everything-on-my-list-and-went-up-to/) [Bill Engvall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-engvall/) > [“But the Rabbit did not care. 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I cannot keep track.” “O, how thrilling!” said the Rabbit, her ribbons fluttering with excitement. “It is all exactly like the ancient Greeks!” “Ulysses?” Beryl said drily. “Very likely.” “O, Beryl.” The Rabbit looked reproachfully at her companion.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Kij Johnson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kij-johnson/and-horse-stealing-said-the-water-rat-adding-his-mite-and/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Ancient greek" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kij-johnson/and-horse-stealing-said-the-water-rat-adding-his-mite-and/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3f5/kij-johnson-19953_ancient-greek_and-horse-stealing-said-the-water-rat-ad_2877168.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3f5/kij-johnson-19953_ancient-greek_and-horse-stealing-said-the-water-rat-ad_2877168.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3f5/kij-johnson-19953_ancient-greek_and-horse-stealing-said-the-water-rat-ad_2877168.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“And horse-stealing,” said the Water Rat, adding his mite. “And impersonating a washerwoman, and defrauding…” — Kij Johnson", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Kij Johnson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kij-johnson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“And horse-stealing,” said the Water Rat,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kij-johnson/and-horse-stealing-said-the-water-rat-adding-his-mite-and/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kij-johnson/and-horse-stealing-said-the-water-rat-adding-his-mite-and/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```