Even pangs grant exemption

Explanation

Peisistratus the tyrant, they say, used to demand a tithe of crops from the Athenians. Once, passing by, he saw an old man working among rocks and stony places, and asked the old man what crops he gathered from such a place. The old man answered, "Pains and pangs, and even of these Peisistratus takes a tithe." Peisistratus, marvelling at his free speech, granted him exemption from the tithe. From this the Athenians used the proverb.