Soon after the burglar alarm is installed, you hear it go off. The boys are there on another raid! You rush out into the garden just in time to see the boys running off. You missed them this time, but maybe next time ... ?
You are congratulating yourself on at least your partial success in making the boys run off without any apples when the doorbell rings. It is the police, who were alerted by the sound of the burglar alarm and have come to investigate. When you explain that the burglar alarm is attached to your apple tree and the thieves ran away as soon as it went off, you notice the policemen are starting to look very annoyed. By the time you have finished your explanation, the policemen are very angry indeed. They tell you that you have fetched them out unnecessarily and wasted police time - a serious offence. They say they will bring a charge against you. You are in trouble.
A week later, you are summonsed to the local magistrates court, where the magistrate orders you to take the burglar alarm down from the tree. You are fined £100 and have to pay £250 costs. You also now have a criminal record and will have to watch your step in future. What do you do now? Do you
Put an electric fence around the tree
Give up and tell the boys they can have as many apples as they like