Ask your ass if he believes it

• ask your ass → Lazare Sainéan, La Langue de Rabelais (Paris 1922): 16th century storytellers would begin their tales with the formula, Au temps que les bêtes parlaient, “In the days when animals could speak”

• if he believes it → Lazare Sainéan, La Langue de Rabelais (Paris 1922), quotes the closing line from François Rabelais, Pantagruel, Chapter 1: Car si ne le croiez, non foys je, fist elle, “For if you do not believe it- 'Indeed I don't!' said she”
  • note that La Langue de Rabelais (I.216) refers to a common 16th century folktale ending formula: 'Car si ne le croiez, non foys je' ('For if you do not believe it, neither do I')

• aas: (Norwegian) hill → wallops have heels

• consulting the camel / ass: → Heed! Heed. (several parallels to page 5 in this section)