ménager la chèvre et le chou

The French refers to the tale of the man in charge of a wolf, a goat, and a cabbage. He came to a river which he had to cross; but the ferry-boat was so small that he could only take one of his charges with him. His difficulty was to get them across, for if he left the wolf and goat together, the wolf would eat the goat; and if he left the goat with the cabbage the goat would eat it.