Translated by George Fyler Townsend
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Contents
- The Ass and the Grasshopper
- The Lion and the Mouse
- The Charcoal-Burner and the Fuller
- The Father and His Sons
- The Boy Hunting Locusts
- The Cock and the Jewel
- The Kingdom of the Lion
- The Wolf and the Crane
- The Fisherman Piping
- Hercules and the Wagoner
- The Ants and the Grasshopper
- The Traveler and His Dog
- The Dog and the Shadow
- The Mole and His Mother
- The Herdsman and the Lost Bull
- The Hare and the Tortoise
- The Pomegranate, Apple-Tree, and Bramble
- The Farmer and the Stork
- The Farmer and the Snake
- The Fawn and His Mother
- The Bear and the Fox
- The Swallow and the Crow
- The Mountain in Labor
- The Ass, the Fox, and the Lion
- The Tortoise and the Eagle
- The Flies and the Honey-Pot
- The Man and the Lion
- The Farmer and the Cranes
- The Dog in the Manger
- The Fox and the Goat
- The Bear and the Two Travelers
- The Oxen and the Axle-Trees
- The Thirsty Pigeon
- The Raven and the Swan
- The Goat and the Goatherd
- The Miser
- The Sick Lion
- The Horse and Groom
- The Ass and the Lapdog
- The Lioness
- The Boasting Traveler
- The Cat and the Cock
- The Piglet, the Sheep, and the Goat
- The Boy and the Filberts
- The Lion in Love
- The Laborer and the Snake
- The Wolf in Sheep's Clothing
- The Ass and the Mule
- The Frogs Asking for a King
- The Boys and the Frogs
- The Sick Stag
- The Salt Merchant and His Ass
- The Oxen and the Butchers
- The Lion, the Mouse, and the Fox
- The Vain Jackdaw
- The Goatherd and the Wild Goats
- The Mischievous Dog
- The Fox Who Had Lost His Tail
- The Boy and the Nettles
- The Man and His Two Sweethearts
- The Astronomer
- The Wolves and the Sheep
- The Old Woman and the Physician
- The Fighting Cocks and the Eagle
- The Charger and the Miller
- The Fox and the Monkey
- The Horse and His Rider
- The Belly and the Members
- The Vine and the Goat
- Jupiter and the Monkey
- The Widow and Her Little Maidens
- The Shepherd's Boy and the Wolf
- The Cat and the Birds
- The Kid and the Wolf
- The Ox and the Frog
- The Shepherd and the Wolf
- The Father and His Two Daughters
- The Farmer and His Sons
- The Crab and Its Mother
- The Heifer and the Ox
- The Swallow, the Serpent, and the Court of Justice
- The Thief and His Mother
- The Old Man and Death
- The Fir-Tree and the Bramble
- The Mouse, the Frog, and the Hawk
- The Man Bitten by a Dog
- The Two Pots
- The Wolf and the Sheep
- The Fisherman and His Nets
- The Huntsman and the Fisherman
- The Old Woman and the Wine-Jar
- The Fox and the Crow
- The Two Dogs
- The Stag in the Ox-Stall
- The Hawk, the Kite, and the Pigeons
- The Widow and the Sheep
- The Wild Ass and the Lion
- The Eagle and the Arrow
- The Sick Kite
- The Lion and the Dolphin
- The Lion and the Boar
- The One-Eyed Doe
- The Shepherd and the Sea
- The Ass, the Cock, and the Lion
- The Mice and the Weasels
- The Mice in Council
- The Wolf and the Housedog
- The Rivers and the Sea
- The Playful Ass
- The Three Tradesmen
- The Master and His Dogs
- The Wolf and the Shepherds
- The Dolphins, the Whales, and the Sprat
- The Ass Carrying the Image
- The Two Travelers and the Axe
- The Old Lion
- The Old Hound
- The Bee and Jupiter
- The Milk-Woman and Her Pail
- The Seaside Travelers
- The Brazier and His Dog
- The Ass and His Shadow
- The Ass and His Masters
- The Oak and the Reeds
- The Fisherman and the Little Fish
- The Hunter and the Woodman
- The Wild Boar and the Fox
- The Lion in a Farmyard
- Mercury and the Sculptor
- The Swan and the Goose
- The Swollen Fox
- The Fox and the Woodcutter
- The Birdcatcher, the Partridge, and the Cock
- The Monkey and the Fishermen
- The Flea and the Wrestler
- The Two Frogs
- The Cat and the Mice
- The Lion, the Bear, and the Fox
- The Doe and the Lion
- The Farmer and the Fox
- The Seagull and the Kite
- The Philosopher, the Ants, and Mercury
- The Mouse and the Bull
- The Lion and the Hare
- The Peasant and the Eagle
- The Image of Mercury and the Carpenter
- The Bull and the Goat
- The Dancing Monkeys
- The Fox and the Leopard
- The Monkeys and Their Mother
- The Oaks and Jupiter
- The Hare and the Hound
- The Traveler and Fortune
- The Bald Knight
- The Shepherd and the Dog
- The Lamp
- The Lion, the Fox, and the Ass
- The Bull, the Lioness, and the Wild-Boar Hunter
- The Oak and the Woodcutters
- The Hen and the Golden Eggs
- The Ass and the Frogs
- The Crow and the Raven
- The Trees and the Axe
- The Crab and the Fox
- The Woman and Her Hen
- The Ass and the Old Shepherd
- The Kites and the Swans
- The Wolves and the Sheepdogs
- The Hares and the Foxes
- The Bowman and Lion
- The Camel
- The Wasp and the Snake
- The Dog and the Hare
- The Bull and the Calf
- The Stag, the Wolf, and the Sheep
- The Peacock and the Crane
- The Fox and the Hedgehog
- The Eagle, the Cat, and the Wild Sow
- The Thief and the Innkeeper
- The Mule
- The Hart and the Vine
- The Serpent and the Eagle
- The Crow and the Pitcher
- The Two Frogs
- The Wolf and the Fox
- The Walnut-Tree
- The Gnat and the Lion
- The Monkey and the Dolphin
- The Jackdaw and the Doves
- The Horse and the Stag
- The Kid and the Wolf
- The Prophet
- The Fox and the Monkey
- The Thief and the Housedog
- The Man, the Horse, the Ox, and the Dog
- The Apes and the Two Travelers
- The Wolf and the Shepherd
- The Hares and the Lions
- The Lark and Her Young Ones
- The Fox and the Lion
- The Weasel and the Mice
- The Boy Bathing
- The Ass and the Wolf
- The Seller of Images
- The Fox and the Grapes
- The Man and His Wife
- The Peacock and Juno
- The Hawk and the Nightingale
- The Dog, the Cock, and the Fox
- The Wolf and the Goat
- The Lion and the Bull
- The Goat and the Ass
- The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse
- The Wolf, the Fox, and the Ape
- The Fly and the Draught-Mule
- The Fishermen
- The Lion and the Three Bulls
- The Fowler and the Viper
- The Horse and the Ass
- The Fox and the Mask
- The Geese and the Cranes
- The Blind Man and the Whelp
- The Dogs and the Fox
- The Cobbler Turned Doctor
- The Wolf and the Horse
- The Brother and the Sister
- The Wasps, the Partridges, and the Farmer
- The Crow and Mercury
- The North Wind and the Sun
- The Two Men Who Were Enemies
- The Gamecocks and the Partridge
- The Quack Frog
- The Lion, the Wolf, and the Fox
- The Dog's House
- The Wolf and the Lion
- The Birds, the Beasts, and the Bat
- The Spendthrift and the Swallow
- The Fox and the Lion
- The Owl and the Birds
- The Trumpeter Taken Prisoner
- The Ass in the Lion's Skin
- The Sparrow and the Hare
- The Flea and the Ox
- The Goods and the Ills
- The Dove and the Crow
- Mercury and the Workmen
- The Eagle and the Jackdaw
- The Fox and the Crane
- Jupiter, Neptune, Minerva, and Momus
- The Eagle and the Fox
- The Man and the Satyr
- The Ass and His Purchaser
- The Two Bags
- The Stag at the Pool
- The Jackdaw and the Fox
- The Lark Burying Her Father
- The Gnat and the Bull
- The Bitch and Her Whelps
- The Dogs and the Hides
- The Shepherd and the Sheep
- The Grasshopper and the Owl
- The Monkey and the Camel
- The Peasant and the Apple-Tree
- The Two Soldiers and the Robber
- The Trees Under the Protection of the Gods
- The Mother and the Wolf
- The Ass and the Horse
- Truth and the Traveler
- The Manslayer
- The Lion and the Fox
- The Lion and the Eagle
- The Hen and the Swallow
- The Buffoon and the Countryman
- The Crow and the Serpent
- The Hunter and the Horseman
- The King's Son and the Painted Lion
- The Cat and Venus
- The She-Goats and Their Beards
- The Camel and the Arab
- The Miller, His Son, and Their Ass
- The Crow and the Sheep
- The Fox and the Bramble
- The Wolf and the Lion
- The Dog and the Oyster
- The Ant and the Dove
- The Partridge and the Fowler
- The Flea and the Man
- The Thieves and the Cock
- The Dog and the Cook
- The Travelers and the Plane-Tree
- The Hares and the Frogs
- The Lion, Jupiter, and the Elephant
- The Lamb and the Wolf
- The Rich Man and the Tanner
- The Shipwrecked Man and the Sea
- The Mules and the Robbers
- The Viper and the File
- The Lion and the Shepherd
- The Camel and Jupiter
- The Panther and the Shepherds
- The Ass and the Charger
- The Eagle and His Captor
- The Bald Man and the Fly
- The Olive-Tree and the Fig-Tree
- The Eagle and the Kite
- The Ass and His Driver
- The Thrush and the Fowler
- The Rose and the Amaranth
- The Frogs' Complaint Against the Sun
- LIFE OF AESOP
- PREFACE
- FOOTNOTES
The Wolf and the Lamb
WOLF, meeting with a Lamb astray from the fold, resolved not to lay violent hands on
him, but to find some plea to justify to the Lamb the Wolf's right to eat him. He thus
addressed him: "Sirrah, last year you grossly insulted me." "Indeed,"
bleated the Lamb in a mournful tone of voice, "I was not then born." Then said
the Wolf, "You feed in my pasture." "No, good sir," replied the Lamb,
"I have not yet tasted grass." Again said the Wolf, "You drink of my
well." "No," exclaimed the Lamb, "I never yet drank water, for as yet
my mother's milk is both food and drink to me." Upon which the Wolf seized him and
ate him up, saying, "Well! I won't remain supperless, even though you refute every
one of my imputations." The tyrant will always find a pretext for his tyranny.
The Bat and the Weasels
A BAT who fell upon the ground and was caught by a Weasel pleaded to be spared his
life. The Weasel refused, saying that he was by nature the enemy of all birds. The Bat
assured him that he was not a bird, but a mouse, and thus was set free. Shortly afterwards
the Bat again fell to the ground and was caught by another Weasel, whom he likewise
entreated not to eat him. The Weasel said that he had a special hostility to mice. The Bat
assured him that he was not a mouse, but a bat, and thus a second time escaped.
It is wise to turn circumstances to good account.
The Ass and the Grasshopper
AN ASS having heard some Grasshoppers chirping, was highly enchanted; and, desiring to
possess the same charms of melody, demanded what sort of food they lived on to give them
such beautiful voices. They replied, "The dew." The Ass resolved that he would
live only upon dew, and in a short time died of hunger.
The Lion and the Mouse
A LION was awakened from sleep by a Mouse running over his face. Rising up angrily, he
caught him and was about to kill him, when the Mouse piteously entreated, saying: "If
you would only spare my life, I would be sure to repay your kindness." The Lion
laughed and let him go. It happened shortly after this that the Lion was caught by some
hunters, who bound him by st ropes to the ground. The Mouse, recognizing his roar, came
gnawed the rope with his teeth, and set him free, exclaim
"You ridiculed the idea of my ever being able to help you, expecting to receive
from me any repayment of your favor; I now you know that it is possible for even a Mouse
to con benefits on a Lion."
The Charcoal-Burner and the Fuller
A CHARCOAL-BURNER carried on his trade in his own house. One day he met a friend, a
Fuller, and entreated him to come and live with him, saying that they should be far better
neighbors and that their housekeeping expenses would be lessened. The Fuller replied,
"The arrangement is impossible as far as I am concerned, for whatever I should
whiten, you would immediately blacken again with your charcoal."
Like will draw like.
The Father and His Sons
A FATHER had a family of sons who were perpetually quarreling among themselves. When he
failed to heal their disputes by his exhortations, he determined to give them a practical
illustration of the evils of disunion; and for this purpose he one day told them to bring
him a bundle of sticks. When they had done so, he placed the faggot into the hands of each
of them in succession, and ordered them to break it in pieces. They tried with all their
strength, and were not able to do it. He next opened the faggot, took the sticks
separately, one by one, and again put them into his sons' hands, upon which they broke
them easily. He then addressed them in these words: "My sons, if you are of one mind,
and unite to assist each other, you will be as this faggot, uninjured by all the attempts
of your enemies; but if you are divided among yourselves, you will be broken as easily as
these sticks."
The Boy Hunting Locusts
A BOY was hunting for locusts. He had caught a goodly number, when he saw a Scorpion,
and mistaking him for a locust, reached out his hand to take him. The Scorpion, showing
his sting, said: If you had but touched me, my friend, you would have lost me, and all
your locusts too!"
The Cock and the Jewel
A COCK, scratching for food for himself and his hens, found a precious stone and
exclaimed: "If your owner had found thee, and not I, he would have taken thee up, and
have set thee in thy first estate; but I have found thee for no purpose. I would rather
have one barleycorn than all the jewels in the world."
The Kingdom of the Lion
THE BEASTS of the field and forest had a Lion as their king. He was neither wrathful,
cruel, nor tyrannical, but just and gentle as a king could be. During his reign he made a
royal proclamation for a general assembly of all the birds and beasts, and drew up
conditions for a universal league, in which the Wolf and the Lamb, the Panther and the
Kid, the Tiger and the Stag, the Dog and the Hare, should live together in perfect peace
and amity. The Hare said, "Oh, how I have longed to see this day, in which the weak
shall take their place with impunity by the side of the strong." And after the Hare
said this, he ran for his life.
The Wolf and the Crane
A WOLF who had a bone stuck in his throat hired a Crane, for a large sum, to put her
head into his mouth and draw out the bone. When the Crane had extracted the bone and
demanded the promised payment, the Wolf, grinning and grinding his teeth, exclaimed:
"Why, you have surely already had a sufficient recompense, in having been permitted
to draw out your head in safety from the mouth and jaws of a wolf."
In serving the wicked, expect no reward, and be thankful if you escape
injury for your pains.
The Fisherman Piping
A FISHERMAN skilled in music took his flute and his nets to the seashore. Standing on a
projecting rock, he played several tunes in the hope that the fish, attracted by his
melody, would of their own accord dance into his net, which he had placed below. At last,
having long waited in vain, he laid aside his flute, and casting his net into the sea,
made an excellent haul of fish. When he saw them leaping about in the net upon the rock he
said: "O you most perverse creatures, when I piped you would not dance, but now that
I have ceased you do so merrily."
Hercules and the Wagoner
A CARTER was driving a wagon along a country lane, when the wheels sank down deep into
a rut. The rustic driver, stupefied and aghast, stood looking at the wagon, and did
nothing but utter loud cries to Hercules to come and help him. Hercules, it is said,
appeared and thus addressed him: "Put your shoulders to the wheels, my man. Goad on
your bullocks, and never more pray to me for help, until you have done your best to help
yourself, or depend upon it you will henceforth pray in vain."
Self-help is the best help.
The Ants and the Grasshopper
THE ANTS were spending a fine winter's day drying grain collected in the summertime. A
Grasshopper, perishing with famine, passed by and earnestly begged for a little food. The
Ants inquired of him, "Why did you not treasure up food during the summer?' He
replied, "I had not leisure enough. I passed the days in singing." They then
said in derision: "If you were foolish enough to sing all the summer, you must dance
supperless to bed in the winter."
The Traveler and His Dog
A TRAVELER about to set out on a journey saw his Dog stand at the door stretching
himself. He asked him sharply: "Why do you stand there gaping? Everything is ready
but you, so come with me instantly." The Dog, wagging his tail, replied: "O,
master! I am quite ready; it is you for whom I am waiting."
The loiterer often blames delay on his more active friend.
The Dog and the Shadow
A DOG, crossing a bridge over a stream with a piece of flesh in his mouth, saw his own
shadow in the water and took it for that of another Dog, with a piece of meat double his
own in size. He immediately let go of his own, and fiercely attacked the other Dog to get
his larger piece from him. He thus lost both: that which he grasped at in the water,
because it was a shadow; and his own, because the stream swept it away.
The Mole and His Mother
A MOLE, a creature blind from birth, once said to his Mother: "I am sure than I
can see, Mother!" In the desire to prove to him his mistake, his Mother placed before
him a few grains of frankincense, and asked, "What is it?' The young Mole said,
"It is a pebble." His Mother exclaimed: "My son, I am afraid that you are
not only blind, but that you have lost your sense of smell.
The Herdsman and the Lost Bull
A HERDSMAN tending his flock in a forest lost a Bull-calf from the fold. After a long
and fruitless search, he made a vow that, if he could only discover the thief who had
stolen the Calf, he would offer a lamb in sacrifice to Hermes, Pan, and the Guardian
Deities of the forest. Not long afterwards, as he ascended a small hillock, he saw at its
foot a Lion feeding on the Calf. Terrified at the sight, he lifted his eyes and his hands
to heaven, and said: "Just now I vowed to offer a lamb to the Guardian Deities of the
forest if I could only find out who had robbed me; but now that I have discovered the
thief, I would willingly add a full-grown Bull to the Calf I have lost, if I may only
secure my own escape from him in safety."
The Hare and the Tortoise
A HARE one day ridiculed the short feet and slow pace of the Tortoise, who replied,
laughing: "Though you be swift as the wind, I will beat you in a race." The
Hare, believing her assertion to be simply impossible, assented to the proposal; and they
agreed that the Fox should choose the course and fix the goal. On the day appointed for
the race the two started together. The Tortoise never for a moment stopped, but went on
with a slow but steady pace straight to the end of the course. The Hare, lying down by the
wayside, fell fast asleep. At last waking up, and moving as fast as he could, he saw the
Tortoise had reached the goal, and was comfortably dozing after her fatigue.
Slow but steady wins the race.
The Pomegranate, Apple-Tree, and Bramble
THE POMEGRANATE and Apple-Tree disputed as to which was the most beautiful. When their
strife was at its height, a Bramble from the neighboring hedge lifted up its voice, and
said in a boastful tone: "Pray, my dear friends, in my presence at least cease from
such vain disputings."
The Farmer and the Stork
A FARMER placed nets on his newly-sown plowlands and caught a number of Cranes, which
came to pick up his seed. With them he trapped a Stork that had fractured his leg in the
net and was earnestly beseeching the Farmer to spare his life. "Pray save me,
Master," he said, "and let me go free this once. My broken limb should excite
your pity. Besides, I am no Crane, I am a Stork, a bird of excellent character; and see
how I love and slave for my father and mother. Look too, at my feathers-- they are not the
least like those of a Crane." The Farmer laughed aloud and said, "It may be all
as you say, I only know this: I have taken you with these robbers, the Cranes, and you
must die in their company."
Birds of a feather flock together.
The Farmer and the Snake
ONE WINTER a Farmer found a Snake stiff and frozen with cold. He had compassion on it,
and taking it up, placed it in his bosom. The Snake was quickly revived by the warmth, and
resuming its natural instincts, bit its benefactor, inflicting on him a mortal wound.
"Oh," cried the Farmer with his last breath, "I am rightly served for
pitying a scoundrel."
The greatest kindness will not bind the ungrateful.
The Fawn and His Mother
A YOUNG FAWN once said to his Mother, "You are larger than a dog, and swifter, and
more used to running, and you have your horns as a defense; why, then, O Mother! do the
hounds frighten you so?" She smiled, and said: "I know full well, my son, that
all you say is true. I have the advantages you mention, but when I hear even the bark of a
single dog I feel ready to faint, and fly away as fast as I can."
No arguments will give courage to the coward.
The Bear and the Fox
A BEAR boasted very much of his philanthropy, saying that of all animals he was the
most tender in his regard for man, for he had such respect for him that he would not even
touch his dead body. A Fox hearing these words said with a smile to the Bear, "Oh!
that you would eat the dead and not the living."
The Swallow and the Crow
THE SWALLOW and the Crow had a contention about their plumage. The Crow put an end to
the dispute by saying, "Your feathers are all very well in the spring, but mine
protect me against the winter."
Fair weather friends are not worth much.
The Mountain in Labor
A MOUNTAIN was once greatly agitated. Loud groans and noises were heard, and crowds of
people came from all parts to see what was the matter. While they were assembled in
anxious expectation of some terrible calamity, out came a Mouse.
Don't make much ado about nothing.
The Ass, the Fox, and the Lion
THE ASS and the Fox, having entered into partnership together for their mutual
protection, went out into the forest to hunt. They had not proceeded far when they met a
Lion. The Fox, seeing imminent danger, approached the Lion and promised to contrive for
him the capture of the Ass if the Lion would pledge his word not to harm the Fox. Then,
upon assuring the Ass that he would not be injured, the Fox led him to a deep pit and
arranged that he should fall into it. The Lion, seeing that the Ass was secured,
immediately clutched the Fox, and attacked the Ass at his leisure.
The Tortoise and the Eagle
A TORTOISE, lazily basking in the sun, complained to the sea-birds of her hard fate,
that no one would teach her to fly. An Eagle, hovering near, heard her lamentation and
demanded what reward she would give him if he would take her aloft and float her in the
air. "I will give you," she said, "all the riches of the Red Sea."
"I will teach you to fly then," said the Eagle; and taking her up in his talons
he carried her almost to the clouds suddenly he let her go, and she fell on a lofty
mountain, dashing her shell to pieces. The Tortoise exclaimed in the moment of death:
"I have deserved my present fate; for what had I to do with wings and clouds, who can
with difficulty move about on the earth?'
If men had all they wished, they would be often ruined.
The Flies and the Honey-Pot
A NUMBER of Flies were attracted to a jar of honey which had been overturned in a
housekeeper's room, and placing their feet in it, ate greedily. Their feet, however,
became so smeared with the honey that they could not use their wings, nor release
themselves, and were suffocated. Just as they were expiring, they exclaimed, "O
foolish creatures that we are, for the sake of a little pleasure we have destroyed
ourselves."
Pleasure bought with pains, hurts.
The Man and the Lion
A MAN and a Lion traveled together through the forest. They soon began to boast of
their respective superiority to each other in strength and prowess. As they were
disputing, they passed a statue carved in stone, which represented "a Lion strangled
by a Man." The traveler pointed to it and said: "See there! How strong we are,
and how we prevail over even the king of beasts." The Lion replied: "This statue
was made by one of you men. If we Lions knew how to erect statues, you would see the Man
placed under the paw of the Lion."
One story is good, till another is told.
The Farmer and the Cranes
SOME CRANES made their feeding grounds on some plowlands newly sown with wheat. For a
long time the Farmer, brandishing an empty sling, chased them away by the terror he
inspired; but when the birds found that the sling was only swung in the air, they ceased
to take any notice of it and would not move. The Farmer, on seeing this, charged his sling
with stones, and killed a great number. The remaining birds at once forsook his fields,
crying to each other, "It is time for us to be off to Liliput: for this man is no
longer content to scare us, but begins to show us in earnest what he can do."
If words suffice not, blows must follow.
The Dog in the Manger
A DOG lay in a manger, and by his growling and snapping prevented the oxen from eating
the hay which had been placed for them. "What a selfish Dog!" said one of them
to his companions; "he cannot eat the hay himself, and yet refuses to allow those to
eat who can."
The Fox and the Goat
A FOX one day fell into a deep well and could find no means of escape. A Goat, overcome
with thirst, came to the same well, and seeing the Fox, inquired if the water was good.
Concealing his sad plight under a merry guise, the Fox indulged in a lavish praise of the
water, saying it was excellent beyond measure, and encouraging him to descend. The Goat,
mindful only of his thirst, thoughtlessly jumped down, but just as he drank, the Fox
informed him of the difficulty they were both in and suggested a scheme for their common
escape. "If," said he, "you will place your forefeet upon the wall and bend
your head, I will run up your back and escape, and will help you out afterwards." The
Goat readily assented and the Fox leaped upon his back. Steadying himself with the Goat's
horns, he safely reached the mouth of the well and made off as fast as he could. When the
Goat upbraided him for breaking his promise, he turned around and cried out, "You
foolish old fellow! If you had as many brains in your head as you have hairs in your
beard, you would never have gone down before you had inspected the way up, nor have
exposed yourself to dangers from which you had no means of escape."
Look before you leap.
The Bear and the Two Travelers
TWO MEN were traveling together, when a Bear suddenly met them on their path. One of
them climbed up quickly into a tree and concealed himself in the branches. The other,
seeing that he must be attacked, fell flat on the ground, and when the Bear came up and
felt him with his snout, and smelt him all over, he held his breath, and feigned the
appearance of death as much as he could. The Bear soon left him, for it is said he will
not touch a dead body. When he was quite gone, the other Traveler descended from the tree,
and jocularly inquired of his friend what it was the Bear had whispered in his ear.
"He gave me this advice," his companion replied. "Never travel with a
friend who deserts you at the approach of danger."
Misfortune tests the sincerity of friends.
The Oxen and the Axle-Trees
A HEAVY WAGON was being dragged along a country lane by a team of Oxen. The Axle-trees
groaned and creaked terribly; whereupon the Oxen, turning round, thus addressed the
wheels: "Hullo there! why do you make so much noise? We bear all the labor, and we,
not you, ought to cry out."
Those who suffer most cry out the least.
The Thirsty Pigeon
A PIGEON, oppressed by excessive thirst, saw a goblet of water painted on a signboard.
Not supposing it to be only a picture, she flew towards it with a loud whir and
unwittingly dashed against the signboard, jarring herself terribly. Having broken her
wings by the blow, she fell to the ground, and was caught by one of the bystanders.
Zeal should not outrun discretion.
The Raven and the Swan
A RAVEN saw a Swan and desired to secure for himself the same beautiful plumage.
Supposing that the Swan's splendid white color arose from his washing in the water in
which he swam, the Raven left the altars in the neighborhood where he picked up his
living, and took up residence in the lakes and pools. But cleansing his feathers as often
as he would, he could not change their color, while through want of food he perished.
Change of habit cannot alter Nature.
The Goat and the Goatherd
A GOATHERD had sought to bring back a stray goat to his flock. He whistled and sounded
his horn in vain; the straggler paid no attention to the summons. At last the Goatherd
threw a stone, and breaking its horn, begged the Goat not to tell his master. The Goat
replied, "Why, you silly fellow, the horn will speak though I be silent."
Do not attempt to hide things which cannot be hid.
The Miser
A MISER sold all that he had and bought a lump of gold, which he buried in a hole in
the ground by the side of an old wall and went to look at daily. One of his workmen
observed his frequent visits to the spot and decided to watch his movements. He soon
discovered the secret of the hidden treasure, and digging down, came to the lump of gold,
and stole it. The Miser, on his next visit, found the hole empty and began to tear his
hair and to make loud lamentations. A neighbor, seeing him overcome with grief and
learning the cause, said, "Pray do not grieve so; but go and take a stone, and place
it in the hole, and fancy that the gold is still lying there. It will do you quite the
same service; for when the gold was there, you had it not, as you did not make the
slightest use of it."
The Sick Lion
A LION, unable from old age and infirmities to provide himself with food by force,
resolved to do so by artifice. He returned to his den, and lying down there, pretended to
be sick, taking care that his sickness should be publicly known. The beasts expressed
their sorrow, and came one by one to his den, where the Lion devoured them. After many of
the beasts had thus disappeared, the Fox discovered the trick and presenting himself to
the Lion, stood on the outside of the cave, at a respectful distance, and asked him how he
was. "I am very middling," replied the Lion, "but why do you stand without?
Pray enter within to talk with me." "No, thank you," said the Fox. "I
notice that there are many prints of feet entering your cave, but I see no trace of any
returning."
He is wise who is warned by the misfortunes of others.
The Horse and Groom
A GROOM used to spend whole days in currycombing and rubbing down his Horse, but at the
same time stole his oats and sold them for his own profit. "Alas!" said the
Horse, "if you really wish me to be in good condition, you should groom me less, and
feed me more."
The Ass and the Lapdog
A MAN had an Ass, and a Maltese Lapdog, a very great beauty. The Ass was left in a
stable and had plenty of oats and hay to eat, just as any other Ass would. The Lapdog knew
many tricks and was a great favorite with his master, who often fondled him and seldom
went out to dine without bringing him home some tidbit to eat. The Ass, on the contrary,
had much work to do in grinding the corn-mill and in carrying wood from the forest or
burdens from the farm. He often lamented his own hard fate and contrasted it with the
luxury and idleness of the Lapdog, till at last one day he broke his cords and halter, and
galloped into his master's house, kicking up his heels without measure, and frisking and
fawning as well as he could. He next tried to jump about his master as he had seen the
Lapdog do, but he broke the table and smashed all the dishes upon it to atoms. He then
attempted to lick his master, and jumped upon his back. The servants, hearing the strange
hubbub and perceiving the danger of their master, quickly relieved him, and drove out the
Ass to his stable with kicks and clubs and cuffs. The Ass, as he returned to his stall
beaten nearly to death, thus lamented: "I have brought it all on myself! Why could I
not have been contented to labor with my companions, and not wish to be idle all the day
like that useless little Lapdog!"
The Lioness
A CONTROVERSY prevailed among the beasts of the field as to which of the animals
deserved the most credit for producing the greatest number of whelps at a birth. They
rushed clamorously into the presence of the Lioness and demanded of her the settlement of
the dispute. "And you," they said, "how many sons have you at a birth?' The
Lioness laughed at them, and said: "Why! I have only one; but that one is altogether
a thoroughbred Lion."
The value is in the worth, not in the number.
The Boasting Traveler
A MAN who had traveled in foreign lands boasted very much, on returning to his own
country, of the many wonderful and heroic feats he had performed in the different places
he had visited. Among other things, he said that when he was at Rhodes he had leaped to
such a distance that no man of his day could leap anywhere near him as to that, there were
in Rhodes many persons who saw him do it and whom he could call as witnesses. One of the
bystanders interrupted him, saying: "Now, my good man, if this be all true there is
no need of witnesses. Suppose this to be Rhodes, and leap for us."
The Cat and the Cock
A CAT caught a Cock, and pondered how he might find a reasonable excuse for eating him.
He accused him of being a nuisance to men by crowing in the nighttime and not permitting
them to sleep. The Cock defended himself by saying that he did this for the benefit of
men, that they might rise in time for their labors. The Cat replied, "Although you
abound in specious apologies, I shall not remain supperless"; and he made a meal of
him.
The Piglet, the Sheep, and the Goat
A YOUNG PIG was shut up in a fold-yard with a Goat and a Sheep. On one occasion when
the shepherd laid hold of him, he grunted and squeaked and resisted violently. The Sheep
and the Goat complained of his distressing cries, saying, "He often handles us, and
we do not cry out." To this the Pig replied, "Your handling and mine are very
different things. He catches you only for your wool, or your milk, but he lays hold on me
for my very life."
The Boy and the Filberts
A BOY put his hand into a pitcher full of filberts. He grasped as many as he could
possibly hold, but when he tried to pull out his hand, he was prevented from doing so by
the neck of the pitcher. Unwilling to lose his filberts, and yet unable to withdraw his
hand, he burst into tears and bitterly lamented his disappointment. A bystander said to
him, "Be satisfied with half the quantity, and you will readily draw out your
hand."
Do not attempt too much at once.
The Lion in Love
A LION demanded the daughter of a woodcutter in marriage. The Father, unwilling to
grant, and yet afraid to refuse his request, hit upon this expedient to rid himself of his
importunities. He expressed his willingness to accept the Lion as the suitor of his
daughter on one condition: that he should allow him to extract his teeth, and cut off his
claws, as his daughter was fearfully afraid of both. The Lion cheerfully assented to the
proposal. But when the toothless, clawless Lion returned to repeat his request, the
Woodman, no longer afraid, set upon him with his club, and drove him away into the forest.
The Laborer and the Snake
A SNAKE, having made his hole close to the porch of a cottage, inflicted a mortal bite
on the Cottager's infant son. Grieving over his loss, the Father resolved to kill the
Snake. The next day, when it came out of its hole for food, he took up his axe, but by
swinging too hastily, missed its head and cut off only the end of its tail. After some
time the Cottager, afraid that the Snake would bite him also, endeavored to make peace,
and placed some bread and salt in the hole. The Snake, slightly hissing, said: "There
can henceforth be no peace between us; for whenever I see you I shall remember the loss of
my tail, and whenever you see me you will be thinking of the death of your son."
No one truly forgets injuries in the presence of him who caused the
injury.
The Wolf in Sheep's Clothing
ONCE UPON A TIME a Wolf resolved to disguise his appearance in order to secure food
more easily. Encased in the skin of a sheep, he pastured with the flock deceiving the
shepherd by his costume. In the evening he was shut up by the shepherd in the fold; the
gate was closed, and the entrance made thoroughly secure. But the shepherd, returning to
the fold during the night to obtain meat for the next day, mistakenly caught up the Wolf
instead of a sheep, and killed him instantly.
Harm seek. harm find.
The Ass and the Mule
A MULETEER set forth on a journey, driving before him an Ass and a Mule, both well
laden. The Ass, as long as he traveled along the plain, carried his load with ease, but
when he began to ascend the steep path of the mountain, felt his load to be more than he
could bear. He entreated his companion to relieve him of a small portion, that he might
carry home the rest; but the Mule paid no attention to the request. The Ass shortly
afterwards fell down dead under his burden. Not knowing what else to do in so wild a
region, the Muleteer placed upon the Mule the load carried by the Ass in addition to his
own, and at the top of all placed the hide of the Ass, after he had skinned him. The Mule,
groaning beneath his heavy burden, said to himself: "I am treated according to my
deserts. If I had only been willing to assist the Ass a little in his need, I should not
now be bearing, together with his burden, himself as well."
The Frogs Asking for a King
THE FROGS, grieved at having no established Ruler, sent ambassadors to Jupiter
entreating for a King. Perceiving their simplicity, he cast down a huge log into the lake.
The Frogs were terrified at the splash occasioned by its fall and hid themselves in the
depths of the pool. But as soon as they realized that the huge log was motionless, they
swam again to the top of the water, dismissed their fears, climbed up, and began squatting
on it in contempt. After some time they began to think themselves ill-treated in the
appointment of so inert a Ruler, and sent a second deputation to Jupiter to pray that he
would set over them another sovereign. He then gave them an Eel to govern them. When the
Frogs discovered his easy good nature, they sent yet a third time to Jupiter to beg him to
choose for them still another King. Jupiter, displeased with all their complaints, sent a
Heron, who preyed upon the Frogs day by day till there were none left to croak upon the
lake.
The Boys and the Frogs
SOME BOYS, playing near a pond, saw a number of Frogs in the water and began to pelt
them with stones. They killed several of them, when one of the Frogs, lifting his head out
of the water, cried out: "Pray stop, my boys: what is sport to you, is death to
us."
The Sick Stag
A SICK STAG lay down in a quiet corner of its pasture-ground. His companions came in
great numbers to inquire after his health, and each one helped himself to a share of the
food which had been placed for his use; so that he died, not from his sickness, but from
the failure of the means of living.
Evil companions bring more hurt than profit.
The Salt Merchant and His Ass
A PEDDLER drove his Ass to the seashore to buy salt. His road home lay across a stream
into which his Ass, making a false step, fell by accident and rose up again with his load
considerably lighter, as the water melted the sack. The Peddler retraced his steps and
refilled his panniers with a larger quantity of salt than before. When he came again to
the stream, the Ass fell down on purpose in the same spot, and, regaining his feet with
the weight of his load much diminished, brayed triumphantly as if he had obtained what he
desired. The Peddler saw through his trick and drove him for the third time to the coast,
where he bought a cargo of sponges instead of salt. The Ass, again playing the fool, fell
down on purpose when he reached the stream, but the sponges became swollen with water,
greatly increasing his load. And thus his trick recoiled on him, for he now carried on his
back a double burden.
The Oxen and the Butchers
THE OXEN once upon a time sought to destroy the Butchers, who practiced a trade
destructive to their race. They assembled on a certain day to carry out their purpose, and
sharpened their horns for the contest. But one of them who was exceedingly old (for many a
field had he plowed) thus spoke: "These Butchers, it is true, slaughter us, but they
do so with skillful hands, and with no unnecessary pain. If we get rid of them, we shall
fall into the hands of unskillful operators, and thus suffer a double death: for you may
be assured, that though all the Butchers should perish, yet will men never want
beef."
Do not be in a hurry to change one evil for another.
The Lion, the Mouse, and the Fox
A LION, fatigued by the heat of a summer's day, fell fast asleep in his den. A Mouse
ran over his mane and ears and woke him from his slumbers. He rose up and shook himself in
great wrath, and searched every corner of his den to find the Mouse. A Fox seeing him
said: "A fine Lion you are, to be frightened of a Mouse." "'Tis not the
Mouse I fear," said the Lion; "I resent his familiarity and ill-breeding."
Little liberties are great offenses.
The Vain Jackdaw
JUPITER DETERMINED, it is said, to create a sovereign over the birds, and made
proclamation that on a certain day they should all present themselves before him, when he
would himself choose the most beautiful among them to be king. The Jackdaw, knowing his
own ugliness, searched through the woods and fields, and collected the feathers which had
fallen from the wings of his companions, and stuck them in all parts of his body, hoping
thereby to make himself the most beautiful of all. When the appointed day arrived, and the
birds had assembled before Jupiter, the Jackdaw also made his appearance in his many
feathered finery. But when Jupiter proposed to make him king because of the beauty of his
plumage, the birds indignantly protested, and each plucked from him his own feathers,
leaving the Jackdaw nothing but a Jackdaw.
The Goatherd and the Wild Goats
A GOATHERD, driving his flock from their pasture at eventide, found some Wild Goats
mingled among them, and shut them up together with his own for the night. The next day it
snowed very hard, so that he could not take the herd to their usual feeding places, but
was obliged to keep them in the fold. He gave his own goats just sufficient food to keep
them alive, but fed the strangers more abundantly in the hope of enticing them to stay
with him and of making them his own. When the thaw set in, he led them all out to feed,
and the Wild Goats scampered away as fast as they could to the mountains. The Goatherd
scolded them for their ingratitude in leaving him, when during the storm he had taken more
care of them than of his own herd. One of them, turning about, said to him: "That is
the very reason why we are so cautious; for if you yesterday treated us better than the
Goats you have had so long, it is plain also that if others came after us, you would in
the same manner prefer them to ourselves."
Old friends cannot with impunity be sacrificed for new ones.
The Mischievous Dog
A DOG used to run up quietly to the heels of everyone he met, and to bite them without
notice. His master suspended a bell about his neck so that the Dog might give notice of
his presence wherever he went. Thinking it a mark of distinction, the Dog grew proud of
his bell and went tinkling it all over the marketplace. One day an old hound said to him:
Why do you make such an exhibition of yourself? That bell that you carry is not, believe
me, any order of merit, but on the contrary a mark of disgrace, a public notice to all men
to avoid you as an ill mannered dog."
Notoriety is often mistaken for fame.
The Fox Who Had Lost His Tail
A FOX caught in a trap escaped, but in so doing lost his tail. Thereafter, feeling his
life a burden from the shame and ridicule to which he was exposed, he schemed to convince
all the other Foxes that being tailless was much more attractive, thus making up for his
own deprivation. He assembled a good many Foxes and publicly advised them to cut off their
tails, saying that they would not only look much better without them, but that they would
get rid of the weight of the brush, which was a very great inconvenience. One of them
interrupting him said, "If you had not yourself lost your tail, my friend, you would
not thus counsel us."
The Boy and the Nettles
A BOY was stung by a Nettle. He ran home and told his Mother, saying, "Although it
hurts me very much, I only touched it gently." "That was just why it stung
you," said his Mother. "The next time you touch a Nettle, grasp it boldly, and
it will be soft as silk to your hand, and not in the least hurt you."
Whatever you do, do with all your might.
The Man and His Two Sweethearts
A MIDDLE-AGED MAN, whose hair had begun to turn gray, courted two women at the same
time. One of them was young, and the other well advanced in years. The elder woman,
ashamed to be courted by a man younger than herself, made a point, whenever her admirer
visited her, to pull out some portion of his black hairs. The younger, on the contrary,
not wishing to become the wife of an old man, was equally zealous in removing every gray
hair she could find. Thus it came to pass that between them both he very soon found that
he had not a hair left on his head.
Those who seek to please everybody please nobody.
The Astronomer
AN ASTRONOMER used to go out at night to observe the stars. One evening, as he wandered
through the suburbs with his whole attention fixed on the sky, he fell accidentally into a
deep well. While he lamented and bewailed his sores and bruises, and cried loudly for
help, a neighbor ran to the well, and learning what had happened said: "Hark ye, old
fellow, why, in striving to pry into what is in heaven, do you not manage to see what is
on earth?'
The Wolves and the Sheep
"WHY SHOULD there always be this fear and slaughter between us?" said the
Wolves to the Sheep. "Those evil-disposed Dogs have much to answer for. They always
bark whenever we approach you and attack us before we have done any harm. If you would
only dismiss them from your heels, there might soon be treaties of peace and
reconciliation between us." The Sheep, poor silly creatures, were easily beguiled and
dismissed the Dogs, whereupon the Wolves destroyed the unguarded flock at their own
pleasure.
The Old Woman and the Physician
AN OLD WOMAN having lost the use of her eyes, called in a Physician to heal them, and
made this bargain with him in the presence of witnesses: that if he should cure her
blindness, he should receive from her a sum of money; but if her infirmity remained, she
should give him nothing. This agreement being made, the Physician, time after time,
applied his salve to her eyes, and on every visit took something away, stealing all her
property little by little. And when he had got all she had, he healed her and demanded the
promised payment. The Old Woman, when she recovered her sight and saw none of her goods in
her house, would give him nothing. The Physician insisted on his claim, and. as she still
refused, summoned her before the Judge. The Old Woman, standing up in the Court, argued:
"This man here speaks the truth in what he says; for I did promise to give him a sum
of money if I should recover my sight: but if I continued blind, I was to give him
nothing. Now he declares that I am healed. I on the contrary affirm that I am still blind;
for when I lost the use of my eyes, I saw in my house various chattels and valuable goods:
but now, though he swears I am cured of my blindness, I am not able to see a single thing
in it."
The Fighting Cocks and the Eagle
TWO GAME COCKS were fiercely fighting for the mastery of the farmyard. One at last put
the other to flight. The vanquished Cock skulked away and hid himself in a quiet corner,
while the conqueror, flying up to a high wall, flapped his wings and crowed exultingly
with all his might. An Eagle sailing through the air pounced upon him and carried him off
in his talons. The vanquished Cock immediately came out of his corner, and ruled
henceforth with undisputed mastery.
Pride goes before destruction.
The Charger and the Miller
A CHARGER, feeling the infirmities of age, was sent to work in a mill instead of going
out to battle. But when he was compelled to grind instead of serving in the wars, he
bewailed his change of fortune and called to mind his former state, saying, "Ah!
Miller, I had indeed to go campaigning before, but I was barbed from counter to tail, and
a man went along to groom me; and now I cannot understand what ailed me to prefer the mill
before the battle." "Forbear," said the Miller to him, "harping on
what was of yore, for it is the common lot of mortals to sustain the ups and downs of
fortune."
The Fox and the Monkey
A MONKEY once danced in an assembly of the Beasts, and so pleased them all by his
performance that they elected him their King. A Fox, envying him the honor, discovered a
piece of meat lying in a trap, and leading the Monkey to the place where it was, said that
she had found a store, but had not used it, she had kept it for him as treasure trove of
his kingdom, and counseled him to lay hold of it. The Monkey approached carelessly and was
caught in the trap; and on his accusing the Fox of purposely leading him into the snare,
she replied, "O Monkey, and are you, with such a mind as yours, going to be King over
the Beasts?"
The Horse and His Rider
A HORSE SOLDIER took the utmost pains with his charger. As long as the war lasted, he
looked upon him as his fellow-helper in all emergencies and fed him carefully with hay and
corn. But when the war was over, he only allowed him chaff to eat and made him carry heavy
loads of wood, subjecting him to much slavish drudgery and ill-treatment. War was again
proclaimed, however, and when the trumpet summoned him to his standard, the Soldier put on
his charger its military trappings, and mounted, being clad in his heavy coat of mail. The
Horse fell down straightway under the weight, no longer equal to the burden, and said to
his master, "You must now go to the war on foot, for you have transformed me from a
Horse into an Ass; and how can you expect that I can again turn in a moment from an Ass to
a Horse?'
The Belly and the Members
THE MEMBERS of the Body rebelled against the Belly, and said, "Why should we be
perpetually engaged in administering to your wants, while you do nothing but take your
rest, and enjoy yourself in luxury and self-indulgence?' The Members carried out their
resolve and refused their assistance to the Belly. The whole Body quickly became
debilitated, and the hands, feet, mouth, and eyes, when too late, repented of their folly.
The Vine and the Goat
A VINE was luxuriant in the time of vintage with leaves and grapes. A Goat, passing by,
nibbled its young tendrils and its leaves. The Vine addressed him and said: "Why do
you thus injure me without a cause, and crop my leaves? Is there no young grass left? But
I shall not have to wait long for my just revenge; for if you now should crop my leaves,
and cut me down to my root, I shall provide the wine to pour over you when you are led as
a victim to the sacrifice."
Jupiter and the Monkey
JUPITER ISSUED a proclamation to all the beasts of the forest and promised a royal
reward to the one whose offspring should be deemed the handsomest. The Monkey came with
the rest and presented, with all a mother's tenderness, a flat-nosed, hairless,
ill-featured young Monkey as a candidate for the promised reward. A general laugh saluted
her on the presentation of her son. She resolutely said, "I know not whether Jupiter
will allot the prize to my son, but this I do know, that he is at least in the eyes of me
his mother, the dearest, handsomest, and most beautiful of all."
The Widow and Her Little Maidens
A WIDOW who was fond of cleaning had two little maidens to wait on her. She was in the
habit of waking them early in the morning, at cockcrow. The maidens, aggravated by such
excessive labor, resolved to kill the cock who roused their mistress so early. When they
had done this, they found that they had only prepared for themselves greater troubles, for
their mistress, no longer hearing the hour from the cock, woke them up to their work in
the middle of the night.
The Shepherd's Boy and the Wolf
A SHEPHERD-BOY, who watched a flock of sheep near a village, brought out the villagers
three or four times by crying out, "Wolf! Wolf!" and when his neighbors came to
help him, laughed at them for their pains. The Wolf, however, did truly come at last. The
Shepherd-boy, now really alarmed, shouted in an agony of terror: "Pray, do come and
help me; the Wolf is killing the sheep"; but no one paid any heed to his cries, nor
rendered any assistance. The Wolf, having no cause of fear, at his leisure lacerated or
destroyed the whole flock.
There is no believing a liar, even when he speaks the truth.
The Cat and the Birds
A CAT, hearing that the Birds in a certain aviary were ailing dressed himself up as a
physician, and, taking his cane and a bag of instruments becoming his profession, went to
call on them. He knocked at the door and inquired of the inmates how they all did, saying
that if they were ill, he would be happy to prescribe for them and cure them. They
replied, "We are all very well, and shall continue so, if you will only be good
enough to go away, and leave us as we are."
The Kid and the Wolf
A KID standing on the roof of a house, out of harm's way, saw a Wolf passing by and
immediately began to taunt and revile him. The Wolf, looking up, said, "Sirrah! I
hear thee: yet it is not thou who mockest me, but the roof on which thou art
standing."
Time and place often give the advantage to the weak over the strong.
The Ox and the Frog
AN OX drinking at a pool trod on a brood of young frogs and crushed one of them to
death. The Mother coming up, and missing one of her sons, inquired of his brothers what
had become of him. "He is dead, dear Mother; for just now a very huge beast with four
great feet came to the pool and crushed him to death with his cloven heel." The Frog,
puffing herself out, inquired, "if the beast was as big as that in size."
"Cease, Mother, to puff yourself out," said her son, "and do not be angry;
for you would, I assure you, sooner burst than successfully imitate the hugeness of that
monster."
The Shepherd and the Wolf
A SHEPHERD once found the whelp of a Wolf and brought it up, and after a while taught
it to steal lambs from the neighboring flocks. The Wolf, having shown himself an apt
pupil, said to the Shepherd, "Since you have taught me to steal, you must keep a
sharp lookout, or you will lose some of your own flock."
The Father and His Two Daughters
A MAN had two daughters, the one married to a gardener, and the other to a tile-maker.
After a time he went to the daughter who had married the gardener, and inquired how she
was and how all things went with her. She said, "All things are prospering with me,
and I have only one wish, that there may be a heavy fall of rain, in order that the plants
may be well watered." Not long after, he went to the daughter who had married the
tilemaker, and likewise inquired of her how she fared; she replied, "I want for
nothing, and have only one wish, that the dry weather may continue, and the sun shine hot
and bright, so that the bricks might be dried." He said to her, "If your sister
wishes for rain, and you for dry weather, with which of the two am I to join my wishes?'
The Farmer and His Sons
A FATHER, being on the point of death, wished to be sure that his sons would give the
same attention to his farm as he himself had given it. He called them to his bedside and
said, "My sons, there is a great treasure hid in one of my vineyards." The sons,
after his death, took their spades and mattocks and carefully dug over every portion of
their land. They found no treasure, but the vines repaid their labor by an extraordinary
and superabundant crop.
The Crab and Its Mother
A CRAB said to her son, "Why do you walk so one-sided, my child? It is far more
becoming to go straight forward." The young Crab replied: "Quite true, dear
Mother; and if you will show me the straight way, I will promise to walk in it." The
Mother tried in vain, and submitted without remonstrance to the reproof of her child.
Example is more powerful than precept.
The Heifer and the Ox
A HEIFER saw an Ox hard at work harnessed to a plow, and tormented him with reflections
on his unhappy fate in being compelled to labor. Shortly afterwards, at the harvest
festival, the owner released the Ox from his yoke, but bound the Heifer with cords and led
him away to the altar to be slain in honor of the occasion. The Ox saw what was being
done, and said with a smile to the Heifer: "For this you were allowed to live in
idleness, because you were presently to be sacrificed."
The Swallow, the Serpent, and the Court of Justice
A SWALLOW, returning from abroad and especially fond of dwelling with men, built
herself a nest in the wall of a Court of Justice and there hatched seven young birds. A
Serpent gliding past the nest from its hole in the wall ate up the young unfledged
nestlings. The Swallow, finding her nest empty, lamented greatly and exclaimed: "Woe
to me a stranger! that in this place where all others' rights are protected, I alone
should suffer wrong."
The Thief and His Mother
A BOY stole a lesson-book from one of his schoolfellows and took it home to his Mother.
She not only abstained from beating him, but encouraged him. He next time stole a cloak
and brought it to her, and she again commended him. The Youth, advanced to adulthood,
proceeded to steal things of still greater value. At last he was caught in the very act,
and having his hands bound behind him, was led away to the place of public execution. His
Mother followed in the crowd and violently beat her breast in sorrow, whereupon the young
man said, "I wish to say something to my Mother in her ear." She came close to
him, and he quickly seized her ear with his teeth and bit it off. The Mother upbraided him
as an unnatural child, whereon he replied, "Ah! if you had beaten me when I first
stole and brought to you that lesson-book, I should not have come to this, nor have been
thus led to a disgraceful death."
The Old Man and Death
AN OLD MAN was employed in cutting wood in the forest, and, in carrying the faggots to
the city for sale one day, became very wearied with his long journey. He sat down by the
wayside, and throwing down his load, besought "Death" to come. "Death"
immediately appeared in answer to his summons and asked for what reason he had called him.
The Old Man hurriedly replied, "That, lifting up the load, you may place it again
upon my shoulders."
The Fir-Tree and the Bramble
A FIR-TREE said boastingly to the Bramble, "You are useful for nothing at all;
while I am everywhere used for roofs and houses." The Bramble answered: 'You poor
creature, if you would only call to mind the axes and saws which are about to hew you
down, you would have reason to wish that you had grown up a Bramble, not a Fir-Tree."
Better poverty without care, than riches with.
The Mouse, the Frog, and the Hawk
A MOUSE who always lived on the land, by an unlucky chance formed an intimate
acquaintance with a Frog, who lived for the most part in the water. The Frog, one day
intent on mischief, bound the foot of the Mouse tightly to his own. Thus joined together,
the Frog first of all led his friend the Mouse to the meadow where they were accustomed to
find their food. After this, he gradually led him towards the pool in which he lived,
until reaching the very brink, he suddenly jumped in, dragging the Mouse with him. The
Frog enjoyed the water amazingly, and swam croaking about, as if he had done a good deed.
The unhappy Mouse was soon suffocated by the water, and his dead body floated about on the
surface, tied to the foot of the Frog. A Hawk observed it, and, pouncing upon it with his
talons, carried it aloft. The Frog, being still fastened to the leg of the Mouse, was also
carried off a prisoner, and was eaten by the Hawk.
Harm hatch, harm catch.
The Man Bitten by a Dog
A MAN who had been bitten by a Dog went about in quest of someone who might heal him. A
friend, meeting him and learning what he wanted, said, "If you would be cured, take a
piece of bread, and dip it in the blood from your wound, and go and give it to the Dog
that bit you." The Man who had been bitten laughed at this advice and said,
"Why? If I should do so, it would be as if I should beg every Dog in the town to bite
me."
Benefits bestowed upon the evil-disposed increase their means of
injuring you.
The Two Pots
A RIVER carried down in its stream two Pots, one made of earthenware and the other of
brass. The Earthen Pot said to the Brass Pot, "Pray keep at a distance and do not
come near me, for if you touch me ever so slightly, I shall be broken in pieces, and
besides, I by no means wish to come near you."
Equals make the best friends.
The Wolf and the Sheep
A WOLF, sorely wounded and bitten by dogs, lay sick and maimed in his lair. Being in
want of food, he called to a Sheep who was passing, and asked him to fetch some water from
a stream flowing close beside him. "For," he said, "if you will bring me
drink, I will find means to provide myself with meat." "Yes," said the
Sheep, "if I should bring you the draught, you would doubtless make me provide the
meat also."
Hypocritical speeches are easily seen through.
The Aethiop
THE PURCHASER of a black servant was persuaded that the color of his skin arose from
dirt contracted through the neglect of his former masters. On bringing him home he
resorted to every means of cleaning, and subjected the man to incessant scrubbings. The
servant caught a severe cold, but he never changed his color or complexion.
What's bred in the bone will stick to the flesh.
The Fisherman and His Nets
A FISHERMAN, engaged in his calling, made a very successful cast and captured a great
haul of fish. He managed by a skillful handling of his net to retain all the large fish
and to draw them to the shore; but he could not prevent the smaller fish from falling back
through the meshes of the net into the sea.
The Huntsman and the Fisherman
A HUNTSMAN, returning with his dogs from the field, fell in by chance with a Fisherman
who was bringing home a basket well laden with fish. The Huntsman wished to have the fish,
and their owner experienced an equal longing for the contents of the game-bag. They
quickly agreed to exchange the produce of their day's sport. Each was so well pleased with
his bargain that they made for some time the same exchange day after day. Finally a
neighbor said to them, "If you go on in this way, you will soon destroy by frequent
use the pleasure of your exchange, and each will again wish to retain the fruits of his
own sport."
Abstain and enjoy.
The Old Woman and the Wine-Jar
AN OLD WOMAN found an empty jar which had lately been full of prime old wine and which
still retained the fragrant smell of its former contents. She greedily placed it several
times to her nose, and drawing it backwards and forwards said, "O most delicious! How
nice must the Wine itself have been, when it leaves behind in the very vessel which
contained it so sweet a perfume!"
The memory of a good deed lives.
The Fox and the Crow
A CROW having stolen a bit of meat, perched in a tree and held it in her beak. A Fox,
seeing this, longed to possess the meat himself, and by a wily stratagem succeeded.
"How handsome is the Crow," he exclaimed, in the beauty of her shape and in the
fairness of her complexion! Oh, if her voice were only equal to her beauty, she would
deservedly be considered the Queen of Birds!" This he said deceitfully; but the Crow,
anxious to refute the reflection cast upon her voice, set up a loud caw and dropped the
flesh. The Fox quickly picked it up, and thus addressed the Crow: "My good Crow, your
voice is right enough, but your wit is wanting."
The Two Dogs
A MAN had two dogs: a Hound, trained to assist him in his sports, and a Housedog,
taught to watch the house. When he returned home after a good day's sport, he always gave
the Housedog a large share of his spoil. The Hound, feeling much aggrieved at this,
reproached his companion, saying, "It is very hard to have all this labor, while you,
who do not assist in the chase, luxuriate on the fruits of my exertions." The
Housedog replied, "Do not blame me, my friend, but find fault with the master, who
has not taught me to labor, but to depend for subsistence on the labor of others."
Children are not to be blamed for the faults of their parents.
The Stag in the Ox-Stall
A STAG, roundly chased by the hounds and blinded by fear to the danger he was running
into, took shelter in a farmyard and hid himself in a shed among the oxen. An Ox gave him
this kindly warning: "O unhappy creature! why should you thus, of your own accord,
incur destruction and trust yourself in the house of your enemy?' The Stag replied:
"Only allow me, friend, to stay where I am, and I will undertake to find some
favorable opportunity of effecting my escape." At the approach of the evening the
herdsman came to feed his cattle, but did not see the Stag; and even the farm-bailiff with
several laborers passed through the shed and failed to notice him. The Stag,
congratulating himself on his safety, began to express his sincere thanks to the Oxen who
had kindly helped him in the hour of need. One of them again answered him: "We indeed
wish you well, but the danger is not over. There is one other yet to pass through the
shed, who has as it were a hundred eyes, and until he has come and gone, your life is
still in peril." At that moment the master himself entered, and having had to
complain that his oxen had not been properly fed, he went up to their racks and cried out:
"Why is there such a scarcity of fodder? There is not half enough straw for them to
lie on. Those lazy fellows have not even swept the cobwebs away." While he thus
examined everything in turn, he spied the tips of the antlers of the Stag peeping out of
the straw. Then summoning his laborers, he ordered that the Stag should be seized and
killed.
The Hawk, the Kite, and the Pigeons
THE PIGEONS, terrified by the appearance of a Kite, called upon the Hawk to defend
them. He at once consented. When they had admitted him into the cote, they found that he
made more havoc and slew a larger number of them in one day than the Kite could pounce
upon in a whole year.
Avoid a remedy that is worse than the disease.
The Widow and the Sheep
A CERTAIN poor widow had one solitary Sheep. At shearing time, wishing to take his
fleece and to avoid expense, she sheared him herself, but used the shears so unskillfully
that with the fleece she sheared the flesh. The Sheep, writhing with pain, said, "Why
do you hurt me so, Mistress? What weight can my blood add to the wool? If you want my
flesh, there is the butcher, who will kill me in an instant; but if you want my fleece and
wool, there is the shearer, who will shear and not hurt me."
The least outlay is not always the greatest gain.
The Wild Ass and the Lion
A WILD ASS and a Lion entered into an alliance so that they might capture the beasts of
the forest with greater ease. The Lion agreed to assist the Wild Ass with his strength,
while the Wild Ass gave the Lion the benefit of his greater speed. When they had taken as
many beasts as their necessities required, the Lion undertook to distribute the prey, and
for this purpose divided it into three shares. "I will take the first share," he
said, "because I am King: and the second share, as a partner with you in the chase:
and the third share (believe me) will be a source of great evil to you, unless you
willingly resign it to me, and set off as fast as you can."
Might makes right.
The Eagle and the Arrow
AN EAGLE sat on a lofty rock, watching the movements of a Hare whom he sought to make
his prey. An archer, who saw the Eagle from a place of concealment, took an accurate aim
and wounded him mortally. The Eagle gave one look at the arrow that had entered his heart
and saw in that single glance that its feathers had been furnished by himself. "It is
a double grief to me," he exclaimed, "that I should perish by an arrow feathered
from my own wings."
The Sick Kite
A KITE, sick unto death, said to his mother: "O Mother! do not mourn, but at once
invoke the gods that my life may be prolonged." She replied, "Alas! my son,
which of the gods do you think will pity you? Is there one whom you have not outraged by
filching from their very altars a part of the sacrifice offered up to them?'
We must make friends in prosperity if we would have their help in
adversity.
The Lion and the Dolphin
A LION roaming by the seashore saw a Dolphin lift up its head out of the waves, and
suggested that they contract an alliance, saying that of all the animals they ought to be
the best friends, since the one was the king of beasts on the earth, and the other was the
sovereign ruler of all the inhabitants of the ocean. The Dolphin gladly consented to this
request. Not long afterwards the Lion had a combat with a wild bull, and called on the
Dolphin to help him. The Dolphin, though quite willing to give him assistance, was unable
to do so, as he could not by any means reach the land. The Lion abused him as a traitor.
The Dolphin replied, "Nay, my friend, blame not me, but Nature, which, while giving
me the sovereignty of the sea, has quite denied me the power of living upon the
land."
The Lion and the Boar
ON A SUMMER DAY, when the great heat induced a general thirst among the beasts, a Lion
and a Boar came at the same moment to a small well to drink. They fiercely disputed which
of them should drink first, and were soon engaged in the agonies of a mortal combat. When
they stopped suddenly to catch their breath for a fiercer renewal of the fight, they saw
some Vultures waiting in the distance to feast on the one that should fall first. They at
once made up their quarrel, saying, "It is better for us to make friends, than to
become the food of Crows or Vultures."
The One-Eyed Doe
A DOE blind in one eye was accustomed to graze as near to the edge of the cliff as she
possibly could, in the hope of securing her greater safety. She turned her sound eye
towards the land that she might get the earliest tidings of the approach of hunter or
hound, and her injured eye towards the sea, from whence she entertained no anticipation of
danger. Some boatmen sailing by saw her, and taking a successful aim, mortally wounded
her. Yielding up her last breath, she gasped forth this lament: "O wretched creature
that I am! to take such precaution against the land, and after all to find this seashore,
to which I had come for safety, so much more perilous."
The Shepherd and the Sea
A SHEPHERD, keeping watch over his sheep near the shore, saw the Sea very calm and
smooth, and longed to make a voyage with a view to commerce. He sold all his flock,
invested it in a cargo of dates, and set sail. But a very great tempest came on, and the
ship being in danger of sinking, he threw all his merchandise overboard, and barely
escaped with his life in the empty ship. Not long afterwards when someone passed by and
observed the unruffled calm of the Sea, he interrupted him and said, "It is again in
want of dates, and therefore looks quiet."
The Ass, the Cock, and the Lion
AN ASS and a Cock were in a straw-yard together when a Lion, desperate from hunger,
approached the spot. He was about to spring upon the Ass, when the Cock (to the sound of
whose voice the Lion, it is said, has a singular aversion) crowed loudly, and the Lion
fled away as fast as he could. The Ass, observing his trepidation at the mere crowing of a
Cock summoned courage to attack him, and galloped after him for that purpose. He had run
no long distance, when the Lion, turning about, seized him and tore him to pieces.
False confidence often leads into danger.
The Mice and the Weasels
THE WEASELS and the Mice waged a perpetual war with each other, in which much blood was
shed. The Weasels were always the victors. The Mice thought that the cause of their
frequent defeats was that they had no leaders set apart from the general army to command
them, and that they were exposed to dangers from lack of discipline. They therefore chose
as leaders Mice that were most renowned for their family descent, strength, and counsel,
as well as those most noted for their courage in the fight, so that they might be better
marshaled in battle array and formed into troops, regiments, and battalions. When all this
was done, and the army disciplined, and the herald Mouse had duly proclaimed war by
challenging the Weasels, the newly chosen generals bound their heads with straws, that
they might be more conspicuous to all their troops. Scarcely had the battle begun, when a
great rout overwhelmed the Mice, who scampered off as fast as they could to their holes.
The generals, not being able to get in on account of the ornaments on their heads, were
all captured and eaten by the Weasels.
The more honor the more danger.
The Mice in Council
THE MICE summoned a council to decide how they might best devise means of warning
themselves of the approach of their great enemy the Cat. Among the many plans suggested,
the one that found most favor was the proposal to tie a bell to the neck of the Cat, so
that the Mice, being warned by the sound of the tinkling, might run away and hide
themselves in their holes at his approach. But when the Mice further debated who among
them should thus "bell the Cat," there was no one found to do it.
The Wolf and the Housedog
A WOLF, meeting a big well-fed Mastiff with a wooden collar about his neck asked him
who it was that fed him so well and yet compelled him to drag that heavy log about
wherever he went. "The master," he replied. Then said the Wolf: "May no
friend of mine ever be in such a plight; for the weight of this chain is enough to spoil
the appetite."
The Rivers and the Sea
THE RIVERS joined together to complain to the Sea, saying, "Why is it that when we
flow into your tides so potable and sweet, you work in us such a change, and make us salty
and unfit to drink?" The Sea, perceiving that they intended to throw the blame on
him, said, "Pray cease to flow into me, and then you will not be made briny."
The Playful Ass
AN ASS climbed up to the roof of a building, and frisking about there, broke in the
tiling. The owner went up after him and quickly drove him down, beating him severely with
a thick wooden cudgel. The Ass said, "Why, I saw the Monkey do this very thing
yesterday, and you all laughed heartily, as if it afforded you very great amusement."
The Three Tradesmen
A GREAT CITY was besieged, and its inhabitants were called together to consider the
best means of protecting it from the enemy. A Bricklayer earnestly recommended bricks as
affording the best material for an effective resistance. A Carpenter, with equal
enthusiasm, proposed timber as a preferable method of defense. Upon which a Currier stood
up and said, "Sirs, I differ from you altogether: there is no material for resistance
equal to a covering of hides; and nothing so good as leather."
Every man for himself.
The Master and His Dogs
A CERTAIN MAN, detained by a storm in his country house, first of all killed his sheep,
and then his goats, for the maintenance of his household. The storm still continuing, he
was obliged to slaughter his yoke oxen for food. On seeing this, his Dogs took counsel
together, and said, "It is time for us to be off, for if the master spare not his
oxen, who work for his gain, how can we expect him to spare us?'
He is not to be trusted as a friend who mistreats his own family.
The Wolf and the Shepherds
A WOLF, passing by, saw some Shepherds in a hut eating a haunch of mutton for their
dinner. Approaching them, he said, "What a clamor you would raise if I were to do as
you are doing!"
The Dolphins, the Whales, and the Sprat
THE DOLPHINS and Whales waged a fierce war with each other. When the battle was at its
height, a Sprat lifted its head out of the waves and said that he would reconcile their
differences if they would accept him as an umpire. One of the Dolphins replied, "We
would far rather be destroyed in our battle with each other than admit any interference
from you in our affairs."
The Ass Carrying the Image
AN ASS once carried through the streets of a city a famous wooden Image, to be placed
in one of its Temples. As he passed along, the crowd made lowly prostration before the
Image. The Ass, thinking that they bowed their heads in token of respect for himself,
bristled up with pride, gave himself airs, and refused to move another step. The driver,
seeing him thus stop, laid his whip lustily about his shoulders and said, "O you
perverse dull-head! it is not yet come to this, that men pay worship to an Ass."
They are not wise who give to themselves the credit due to others.
The Two Travelers and the Axe
TWO MEN were journeying together. One of them picked up an axe that lay upon the path,
and said, "I have found an axe." "Nay, my friend," replied the other,
"do not say 'I,' but 'We' have found an axe." They had not gone far before they
saw the owner of the axe pursuing them, and he who had picked up the axe said, "We
are undone." "Nay," replied the other, "keep to your first mode of
speech, my friend; what you thought right then, think right now. Say 'I,' not 'We' are
undone."
He who shares the danger ought to share the prize.
The Old Lion
A LION, worn out with years and powerless from disease, lay on the ground at the point
of death. A Boar rushed upon him, and avenged with a stroke of his tusks a long-remembered
injury. Shortly afterwards the Bull with his horns gored him as if he were an enemy. When
the Ass saw that the huge beast could be assailed with impunity, he let drive at his
forehead with his heels. The expiring Lion said, "I have reluctantly brooked the
insults of the brave, but to be compelled to endure such treatment from thee, a disgrace
to Nature, is indeed to die a double death."
The Old Hound
A HOUND, who in the days of his youth and strength had never yielded to any beast of
the forest, encountered in his old age a boar in the chase. He seized him boldly by the
ear, but could not retain his hold because of the decay of his teeth, so that the boar
escaped. His master, quickly coming up, was very much disappointed, and fiercely abused
the dog. The Hound looked up and said, "It was not my fault. master: my spirit was as
good as ever, but I could not help my infirmities. I rather deserve to be praised for what
I have been, than to be blamed for what I am."
The Bee and Jupiter
A BEE from Mount Hymettus, the queen of the hive, ascended to Olympus to present
Jupiter some honey fresh from her combs. Jupiter, delighted with the offering of honey,
promised to give whatever she should ask. She therefore besought him, saying, "Give
me, I pray thee, a sting, that if any mortal shall approach to take my honey, I may kill
him." Jupiter was much displeased, for he loved the race of man, but could not refuse
the request because of his promise. He thus answered the Bee: "You shall have your
request, but it will be at the peril of your own life. For if you use your sting, it shall
remain in the wound you make, and then you will die from the loss of it."
Evil wishes, like chickens, come home to roost.
The Milk-Woman and Her Pail
A FARMER'S daughter was carrying her Pail of milk from the field to the farmhouse, when
she fell a-musing. "The money for which this milk will be sold, will buy at least
three hundred eggs. The eggs, allowing for all mishaps, will produce two hundred and fifty
chickens. The chickens will become ready for the market when poultry will fetch the
highest price, so that by the end of the year I shall have money enough from my share to
buy a new gown. In this dress I will go to the Christmas parties, where all the young
fellows will propose to me, but I will toss my head and refuse them every one." At
this moment she tossed her head in unison with her thoughts, when down fell the milk pail
to the ground, and all her imaginary schemes perished in a moment.
The Seaside Travelers
SOME TRAVELERS, journeying along the seashore, climbed to the summit of a tall cliff,
and looking over the sea, saw in the distance what they thought was a large ship. They
waited in the hope of seeing it enter the harbor, but as the object on which they looked
was driven nearer to shore by the wind, they found that it could at the most be a small
boat, and not a ship. When however it reached the beach, they discovered that it was only
a large faggot of sticks, and one of them said to his companions, "We have waited for
no purpose, for after all there is nothing to see but a load of wood."
Our mere anticipations of life outrun its realities.
The Brazier and His Dog
A BRAZIER had a little Dog, which was a great favorite with his master, and his
constant companion. While he hammered away at his metals the Dog slept; but when, on the
other hand, he went to dinner and began to eat, the Dog woke up and wagged his tail, as if
he would ask for a share of his meal. His master one day, pretending to be angry and
shaking his stick at him, said, "You wretched little sluggard! what shall I do to
you? While I am hammering on the anvil, you sleep on the mat; and when I begin to eat
after my toil, you wake up and wag your tail for food. Do you not know that labor is the
source of every blessing, and that none but those who work are entitled to eat?'
The Ass and His Shadow
A TRAVELER hired an Ass to convey him to a distant place. The day being intensely hot,
and the sun shining in its strength, the Traveler stopped to rest, and sought shelter from
the heat under the Shadow of the Ass. As this afforded only protection for one, and as the
Traveler and the owner of the Ass both claimed it, a violent dispute arose between them as
to which of them had the right to the Shadow. The owner maintained that he had let the Ass
only, and not his Shadow. The Traveler asserted that he had, with the hire of the Ass,
hired his Shadow also. The quarrel proceeded from words to blows, and while the men
fought, the Ass galloped off.
In quarreling about the shadow we often lose the substance.
The Ass and His Masters
AN ASS, belonging to an herb-seller who gave him too little food and too much work made
a petition to Jupiter to be released from his present service and provided with another
master. Jupiter, after warning him that he would repent his request, caused him to be sold
to a tile-maker. Shortly afterwards, finding that he had heavier loads to carry and harder
work in the brick-field, he petitioned for another change of master. Jupiter, telling him
that it would be the last time that he could grant his request, ordained that he be sold
to a tanner. The Ass found that he had fallen into worse hands, and noting his master's
occupation, said, groaning: "It would have been better for me to have been either
starved by the one, or to have been overworked by the other of my former masters, than to
have been bought by my present owner, who will even after I am dead tan my hide, and make
me useful to him."
The Oak and the Reeds
A VERY LARGE OAK was uprooted by the wind and thrown across a stream. It fell among
some Reeds, which it thus addressed: "I wonder how you, who are so light and weak,
are not entirely crushed by these strong winds." They replied, "You fight and
contend with the wind, and consequently you are destroyed; while we on the contrary bend
before the least breath of air, and therefore remain unbroken, and escape."
Stoop to conquer.
The Fisherman and the Little Fish
A FISHERMAN who lived on the produce of his nets, one day caught a single small Fish as
the result of his day's labor. The Fish, panting convulsively, thus entreated for his
life: "O Sir, what good can I be to you, and how little am I worth? I am not yet come
to my full size. Pray spare my life, and put me back into the sea. I shall soon become a
large fish fit for the tables of the rich, and then you can catch me again, and make a
handsome profit of me." The Fisherman replied, "I should indeed be a very simple
fellow if, for the chance of a greater uncertain profit, I were to forego my present
certain gain."
The Hunter and the Woodman
A HUNTER, not very bold, was searching for the tracks of a Lion. He asked a man felling
oaks in the forest if he had seen any marks of his footsteps or knew where his lair was.
"I will," said the man, "at once show you the Lion himself." The
Hunter, turning very pale and chattering with his teeth from fear, replied, "No,
thank you. I did not ask that; it is his track only I am in search of, not the Lion
himself."
The hero is brave in deeds as well as words.
The Wild Boar and the Fox
A WILD BOAR stood under a tree and rubbed his tusks against the trunk. A Fox passing by
asked him why he thus sharpened his teeth when there was no danger threatening from either
huntsman or hound. He replied, "I do it advisedly; for it would never do to have to
sharpen my weapons just at the time I ought to be using them."
The Lion in a Farmyard
A LION entered a farmyard. The Farmer, wishing to catch him, shut the gate. When the
Lion found that he could not escape, he flew upon the sheep and killed them, and then
attacked the oxen. The Farmer, beginning to be alarmed for his own safety, opened the gate
and released the Lion. On his departure the Farmer grievously lamented the destruction of
his sheep and oxen, but his wife, who had been a spectator to all that took place, said,
"On my word, you are rightly served, for how could you for a moment think of shutting
up a Lion along with you in your farmyard when you know that you shake in your shoes if
you only hear his roar at a distance?'
Mercury and the Sculptor
MERCURY ONCE DETERMINED to learn in what esteem he was held among mortals. For this
purpose he assumed the character of a man and visited in this disguise a Sculptor's studio
having looked at various statues, he demanded the price of two figures of Jupiter and
Juno. When the sum at which they were valued was named, he pointed to a figure of himself,
saying to the Sculptor, "You will certainly want much more for this, as it is the
statue of the Messenger of the Gods, and author of all your gain." The Sculptor
replied, "Well, if you will buy these, I'll fling you that into the bargain."
The Swan and the Goose
A CERTAIN rich man bought in the market a Goose and a Swan. He fed the one for his
table and kept the other for the sake of its song. When the time came for killing the
Goose, the cook went to get him at night, when it was dark, and he was not able to
distinguish one bird from the other. By mistake he caught the Swan instead of the Goose.
The Swan, threatened with death, burst forth into song and thus made himself known by his
voice, and preserved his life by his melody.
The Swollen Fox
A VERY HUNGRY FOX, seeing some bread and meat left by shepherds in the hollow of an
oak, crept into the hole and made a hearty meal. When he finished, he was so full that he
was not able to get out, and began to groan and lament his fate. Another Fox passing by
heard his cries, and coming up, inquired the cause of his complaining. On learning what
had happened, he said to him, "Ah, you will have to remain there, my friend, until
you become such as you were when you crept in, and then you will easily get out."
The Fox and the Woodcutter
A FOX, running before the hounds, came across a Woodcutter felling an oak and begged
him to show him a safe hiding-place. The Woodcutter advised him to take shelter in his own
hut, so the Fox crept in and hid himself in a corner. The huntsman soon came up with his
hounds and inquired of the Woodcutter if he had seen the Fox. He declared that he had not
seen him, and yet pointed, all the time he was speaking, to the hut where the Fox lay
hidden. The huntsman took no notice of the signs, but believing his word, hastened forward
in the chase. As soon as they were well away, the Fox departed without taking any notice
of the Woodcutter: whereon he called to him and reproached him, saying, "You
ungrateful fellow, you owe your life to me, and yet you leave me without a word of
thanks." The Fox replied, "Indeed, I should have thanked you fervently if your
deeds had been as good as your words, and if your hands had not been traitors to your
speech."
The Birdcatcher, the Partridge, and the Cock
A BIRDCATCHER was about to sit down to a dinner of herbs when a friend unexpectedly
came in. The bird-trap was quite empty, as he had caught nothing, and he had to kill a
pied Partridge, which he had tamed for a decoy. The bird entreated earnestly for his life:
"What would you do without me when next you spread your nets? Who would chirp you to
sleep, or call for you the covey of answering birds?' The Birdcatcher spared his life, and
determined to pick out a fine young Cock just attaining to his comb. But the Cock
expostulated in piteous tones from his perch: "If you kill me, who will announce to
you the appearance of the dawn? Who will wake you to your daily tasks or tell you when it
is time to visit the bird-trap in the morning?' He replied, "What you say is true.
You are a capital bird at telling the time of day. But my friend and I must have our
dinners."
Necessity knows no law.
The Monkey and the Fishermen
A MONKEY perched upon a lofty tree saw some Fishermen casting their nets into a river,
and narrowly watched their proceedings. The Fishermen after a while gave up fishing, and
on going home to dinner left their nets upon the bank. The Monkey, who is the most
imitative of animals, descended from the treetop and endeavored to do as they had done.
Having handled the net, he threw it into the river, but became tangled in the meshes and
drowned. With his last breath he said to himself, "I am rightly served; for what
business had I who had never handled a net to try and catch fish?'
The Flea and the Wrestler
A FLEA settled upon the bare foot of a Wrestler and bit him, causing the man to call
loudly upon Hercules for help. When the Flea a second time hopped upon his foot, he
groaned and said, "O Hercules! if you will not help me against a Flea, how can I hope
for your assistance against greater antagonists?'
The Two Frogs
TWO FROGS dwelt in the same pool. When the pool dried up under the summer's heat, they
left it and set out together for another home. As they went along they chanced to pass a
deep well, amply supplied with water, and when they saw it, one of the Frogs said to the
other, "Let us descend and make our abode in this well: it will furnish us with
shelter and food." The other replied with greater caution, "But suppose the
water should fail us. How can we get out again from so great a depth?'
Do nothing without a regard to the consequences.
The Cat and the Mice
A CERTAIN HOUSE was overrun with Mice. A Cat, discovering this, made her way into it
and began to catch and eat them one by one. Fearing for their lives, the Mice kept
themselves close in their holes. The Cat was no longer able to get at them and perceived
that she must tempt them forth by some device. For this purpose she jumped upon a peg, and
suspending herself from it, pretended to be dead. One of the Mice, peeping stealthily out,
saw her and said, "Ah, my good madam, even though you should turn into a meal-bag, we
will not come near you."
The Lion, the Bear, and the Fox
A LION and a Bear seized a Kid at the same moment, and fought fiercely for its
possession. When they had fearfully lacerated each other and were faint from the long
combat, they lay down exhausted with fatigue. A Fox, who had gone round them at a distance
several times, saw them both stretched on the ground with the Kid lying untouched in the
middle. He ran in between them, and seizing the Kid scampered off as fast as he could. The
Lion and the Bear saw him, but not being able to get up, said, "Woe be to us, that we
should have fought and belabored ourselves only to serve the turn of a Fox."
It sometimes happens that one man has all the toil, and another all the
profit.
The Doe and the Lion
A DOE hard pressed by hunters sought refuge in a cave belonging to a Lion. The Lion
concealed himself on seeing her approach, but when she was safe within the cave, sprang
upon her and tore her to pieces. "Woe is me," exclaimed the Doe, "who have
escaped from man, only to throw myself into the mouth of a wild beast?'
In avoiding one evil, care must be taken not to fall into another.
The Farmer and the Fox
A FARMER, who bore a grudge against a Fox for robbing his poultry yard, caught him at
last, and being determined to take an ample revenge, tied some rope well soaked in oil to
his tail, and set it on fire. The Fox by a strange fatality rushed to the fields of the
Farmer who had captured him. It was the time of the wheat harvest; but the Farmer reaped
nothing that year and returned home grieving sorely.
The Seagull and the Kite
A SEAGULL having bolted down too large a fish, burst its deep gullet-bag and lay down
on the shore to die. A Kite saw him and exclaimed: "You richly deserve your fate; for
a bird of the air has no business to seek its food from the sea."
Every man should be content to mind his own business.
The Philosopher, the Ants, and Mercury
A PHILOSOPHER witnessed from the shore the shipwreck of a vessel, of which the crew and
passengers were all drowned. He inveighed against the injustice of Providence, which would
for the sake of one criminal perchance sailing in the ship allow so many innocent persons
to perish. As he was indulging in these reflections, he found himself surrounded by a
whole army of Ants, near whose nest he was standing. One of them climbed up and stung him,
and he immediately trampled them all to death with his foot. Mercury presented himself,
and striking the Philosopher with his wand, said, "And are you indeed to make
yourself a judge of the dealings of Providence, who hast thyself in a similar manner
treated these poor Ants?'
The Mouse and the Bull
A BULL was bitten by a Mouse and, angered by the wound, tried to capture him. But the
Mouse reached his hole in safety. Though the Bull dug into the walls with his horns, he
tired before he could rout out the Mouse, and crouching down, went to sleep outside the
hole. The Mouse peeped out, crept furtively up his flank, and again biting him, retreated
to his hole. The Bull rising up, and not knowing what to do, was sadly perplexed. At which
the Mouse said, "The great do not always prevail. There are times when the small and
lowly are the strongest to do mischief."
The Lion and the Hare
A LION came across a Hare, who was fast asleep. He was just in the act of seizing her,
when a fine young Hart trotted by, and he left the Hare to follow him. The Hare, scared by
the noise, awoke and scudded away. The Lion was unable after a long chase to catch the
Hart, and returned to feed upon the Hare. On finding that the Hare also had run off, he
said, "I am rightly served, for having let go of the food that I had in my hand for
the chance of obtaining more."
The Peasant and the Eagle
A PEASANT found an Eagle captured in a trap, and much admiring the bird, set him free.
The Eagle did not prove ungrateful to his deliverer, for seeing the Peasant sitting under
a wall which was not safe, he flew toward him and with his talons snatched a bundle from
his head. When the Peasant rose in pursuit, the Eagle let the bundle fall again. Taking it
up, the man returned to the same place, to find that the wall under which he had been
sitting had fallen to pieces; and he marveled at the service rendered him by the Eagle.
The Image of Mercury and the Carpenter
A VERY POOR MAN, a Carpenter by trade, had a wooden image of Mercury, before which he
made offerings day by day, and begged the idol to make him rich, but in spite of his
entreaties he became poorer and poorer. At last, being very angry, he took his image down
from its pedestal and dashed it against the wall. When its head was knocked off, out came
a stream of gold, which the Carpenter quickly picked up and said, "Well, I think thou
art altogether contradictory and unreasonable; for when I paid you honor, I reaped no
benefits: but now that I maltreat you I am loaded with an abundance of riches."
The Bull and the Goat
A BULL, escaping from a Lion, hid in a cave which some shepherds had recently occupied.
As soon as he entered, a He-Goat left in the cave sharply attacked him with his horns. The
Bull quietly addressed him: "Butt away as much as you will. I have no fear of you,
but of the Lion. Let that monster go away and I will soon let you know what is the
respective strength of a Goat and a Bull."
It shows an evil disposition to take advantage of a friend in distress.
The Dancing Monkeys
A PRINCE had some Monkeys trained to dance. Being naturally great mimics of men's
actions, they showed themselves most apt pupils, and when arrayed in their rich clothes
and masks, they danced as well as any of the courtiers. The spectacle was often repeated
with great applause, till on one occasion a courtier, bent on mischief, took from his
pocket a handful of nuts and threw them upon the stage. The Monkeys at the sight of the
nuts forgot their dancing and became (as indeed they were) Monkeys instead of actors.
Pulling off their masks and tearing their robes, they fought with one another for the
nuts. The dancing spectacle thus came to an end amidst the laughter and ridicule of the
audience.
The Fox and the Leopard
THE FOX and the Leopard disputed which was the more beautiful of the two. The Leopard
exhibited one by one the various spots which decorated his skin. But the Fox, interrupting
him, said, "And how much more beautiful than you am I, who am decorated, not in body,
but in mind."
The Monkeys and Their Mother
THE MONKEY, it is said, has two young ones at each birth. The Mother fondles one and
nurtures it with the greatest affection and care, but hates and neglects the other. It
happened once that the young one which was caressed and loved was smothered by the too
great affection of the Mother, while the despised one was nurtured and reared in spite of
the neglect to which it was exposed.
The best intentions will not always ensure success.
The Oaks and Jupiter
THE OAKS presented a complaint to Jupiter, saying, "We bear for no purpose the
burden of life, as of all the trees that grow we are the most continually in peril of the
axe." Jupiter made answer: "You have only to thank yourselves for the
misfortunes to which you are exposed: for if you did not make such excellent pillars and
posts, and prove yourselves so serviceable to the carpenters and the farmers, the axe
would not so frequently be laid to your roots."
The Hare and the Hound
A HOUND started a Hare from his lair, but after a long run, gave up the chase. A
goat-herd seeing him stop, mocked him, saying "The little one is the best runner of
the two." The Hound replied, "You do not see the difference between us: I was
only running for a dinner, but he for his life."
The Traveler and Fortune
A TRAVELER wearied from a long journey lay down, overcome with fatigue, on the very
brink of a deep well. Just as he was about to fall into the water, Dame Fortune, it is
said, appeared to him and waking him from his slumber thus addressed him: "Good Sir,
pray wake up: for if you fall into the well, the blame will be thrown on me, and I shall
get an ill name among mortals; for I find that men are sure to impute their calamities to
me, however much by their own folly they have really brought them on themselves."
Everyone is more or less master of his own fate.
The Bald Knight
A BALD KNIGHT, who wore a wig, went out to hunt. A sudden puff of wind blew off his hat
and wig, at which a loud laugh rang forth from his companions. He pulled up his horse, and
with great glee joined in the joke by saying, "What a marvel it is that hairs which
are not mine should fly from me, when they have forsaken even the man on whose head they
grew."
The Shepherd and the Dog
A SHEPHERD penning his sheep in the fold for the night was about to shut up a wolf with
them, when his Dog perceiving the wolf said, "Master, how can you expect the sheep to
be safe if you admit a wolf into the fold?'
The Lamp
A LAMP, soaked with too much oil and flaring brightly, boasted that it gave more light
than the sun. Then a sudden puff of wind arose, and the Lamp was immediately extinguished.
Its owner lit it again, and said: "Boast no more, but henceforth be content to give
thy light in silence. Know that not even the stars need to be relit"
The Lion, the Fox, and the Ass
THE LION, the Fox and the Ass entered into an agreement to assist each other in the
chase. Having secured a large booty, the Lion on their return from the forest asked the
Ass to allot his due portion to each of the three partners in the treaty. The Ass
carefully divided the spoil into three equal shares and modestly requested the two others
to make the first choice. The Lion, bursting out into a great rage, devoured the Ass. Then
he requested the Fox to do him the favor to make a division. The Fox accumulated all that
they had killed into one large heap and left to himself the smallest possible morsel. The
Lion said, "Who has taught you, my very excellent fellow, the art of division? You
are perfect to a fraction." He replied, "I learned it from the Ass, by
witnessing his fate."
Happy is the man who learns from the misfortunes of others.
The Bull, the Lioness, and the Wild-Boar Hunter
A BULL finding a lion's cub asleep gored him to death with his horns. The Lioness came
up, and bitterly lamented the death of her whelp. A wild-boar Hunter, seeing her distress,
stood at a distance and said to her, "Think how many men there are who have reason to
lament the loss of their children, whose deaths have been caused by you."
The Oak and the Woodcutters
THE WOODCUTTER cut down a Mountain Oak and split it in pieces, making wedges of its own
branches for dividing the trunk. The Oak said with a sigh, "I do not care about the
blows of the axe aimed at my roots, but I do grieve at being torn in pieces by these
wedges made from my own branches."
Misfortunes springing from ourselves are the hardest to bear.
The Hen and the Golden Eggs
A COTTAGER and his wife had a Hen that laid a golden egg every day. They supposed that
the Hen must contain a great lump of gold in its inside, and in order to get the gold they
killed it. Having done so, they found to their surprise that the Hen differed in no
respect from their other hens. The foolish pair, thus hoping to become rich all at once,
deprived themselves of the gain of which they were assured day by day.
The Ass and the Frogs
AN ASS, carrying a load of wood, passed through a pond. As he was crossing through the
water he lost his footing, stumbled and fell, and not being able to rise on account of his
load, groaned heavily. Some Frogs frequenting the pool heard his lamentation, and said,
"What would you do if you had to live here always as we do, when you make such a fuss
about a mere fall into the water?"
Men often bear little grievances with less courage than they do large
misfortunes.
The Crow and the Raven
A CROW was jealous of the Raven, because he was considered a bird of good omen and
always attracted the attention of men, who noted by his flight the good or evil course of
future events. Seeing some travelers approaching, the Crow flew up into a tree, and
perching herself on one of the branches, cawed as loudly as she could. The travelers
turned towards the sound and wondered what it foreboded, when one of them said to his
companion, "Let us proceed on our journey, my friend, for it is only the caw of a
crow, and her cry, you know, is no omen."
Those who assume a character which does not belong to them, only make
themselves ridiculous.
The Trees and the Axe
A MAN came into a forest and asked the Trees to provide him a handle for his axe. The
Trees consented to his request and gave him a young ash-tree. No sooner had the man fitted
a new handle to his axe from it, than he began to use it and quickly felled with his
strokes the noblest giants of the forest. An old oak, lamenting when too late the
destruction of his companions, said to a neighboring cedar, "The first step has lost
us all. If we had not given up the rights of the ash, we might yet have retained our own
privileges and have stood for ages."
The Crab and the Fox
A CRAB, forsaking the seashore, chose a neighboring green meadow as its feeding ground.
A Fox came across him, and being very hungry ate him up. Just as he was on the point of
being eaten, the Crab said, "I well deserve my fate, for what business had I on the
land, when by my nature and habits I am only adapted for the sea?'
Contentment with our lot is an element of happiness.
The Woman and Her Hen
A WOMAN possessed a Hen that gave her an egg every day. She often pondered how she
might obtain two eggs daily instead of one, and at last, to gain her purpose, determined
to give the Hen a double allowance of barley. From that day the Hen became fat and sleek,
and never once laid another egg.
The Ass and the Old Shepherd
A SHEPHERD, watching his Ass feeding in a meadow, was alarmed all of a sudden by the
cries of the enemy. He appealed to the Ass to fly with him, lest they should both be
captured, but the animal lazily replied, "Why should I, pray? Do you think it likely
the conqueror will place on me two sets of panniers?' "No," rejoined the
Shepherd. "Then," said the Ass, "as long as I carry the panniers, what
matters it to me whom I serve?'
In a change of government the poor change nothing beyond the name of
their master.
The Kites and the Swans
TEE KITES of olden times, as well as the Swans, had the privilege of song. But having
heard the neigh of the horse, they were so enchanted with the sound, that they tried to
imitate it; and, in trying to neigh, they forgot how to sing.
The desire for imaginary benefits often involves the loss of present
blessings.
The Wolves and the Sheepdogs
THE WOLVES thus addressed the Sheepdogs: "Why should you, who are like us in so
many things, not be entirely of one mind with us, and live with us as brothers should? We
differ from you in one point only. We live in freedom, but you bow down to and slave for
men, who in return for your services flog you with whips and put collars on your necks.
They make you also guard their sheep, and while they eat the mutton throw only the bones
to you. If you will be persuaded by us, you will give us the sheep, and we will enjoy them
in common, till we all are surfeited." The Dogs listened favorably to these
proposals, and, entering the den of the Wolves, they were set upon and torn to pieces.
The Hares and the Foxes
THE HARES waged war with the Eagles, and called upon the Foxes to help them. They
replied, "We would willingly have helped you, if we had not known who you were, and
with whom you were fighting."
Count the cost before you commit yourselves.
The Bowman and Lion
A VERY SKILLFUL BOWMAN went to the mountains in search of game, but all the beasts of
the forest fled at his approach. The Lion alone challenged him to combat. The Bowman
immediately shot out an arrow and said to the Lion: "I send thee my messenger, that
from him thou mayest learn what I myself shall be when I assail thee." The wounded
Lion rushed away in great fear, and when a Fox who had seen it all happen told him to be
of good courage and not to back off at the first attack he replied: "You counsel me
in vain; for if he sends so fearful a messenger, how shall I abide the attack of the man
himself?'
Be on guard against men who can strike from a distance.
The Camel
WHEN MAN first saw the Camel, he was so frightened at his vast size that he ran away.
After a time, perceiving the meekness and gentleness of the beast's temper, he summoned
courage enough to approach him. Soon afterwards, observing that he was an animal
altogether deficient in spirit, he assumed such boldness as to put a bridle in his mouth,
and to let a child drive him.
Use serves to overcome dread.
The Wasp and the Snake
A WASP seated himself upon the head of a Snake and, striking him unceasingly with his
stings, wounded him to death. The Snake, being in great torment and not knowing how to rid
himself of his enemy, saw a wagon heavily laden with wood, and went and purposely placed
his head under the wheels, saying, "At least my enemy and I shall perish
together."
The Dog and the Hare
A HOUND having started a Hare on the hillside pursued her for some distance, at one
time biting her with his teeth as if he would take her life, and at another fawning upon
her, as if in play with another dog. The Hare said to him, "I wish you would act
sincerely by me, and show yourself in your true colors. If you are a friend, why do you
bite me so hard? If an enemy, why do you fawn on me?'
No one can be a friend if you know not whether to trust or distrust him.
The Bull and the Calf
A BULL was striving with all his might to squeeze himself through a narrow passage
which led to his stall. A young Calf came up, and offered to go before and show him the
way by which he could manage to pass. "Save yourself the trouble," said the
Bull; "I knew that way long before you were born."
The Stag, the Wolf, and the Sheep
A STAG asked a Sheep to lend him a measure of wheat, and said that the Wolf would be
his surety. The Sheep, fearing some fraud was intended, excused herself, saying, "The
Wolf is accustomed to seize what he wants and to run off; and you, too, can quickly
outstrip me in your rapid flight. How then shall I be able to find you, when the day of
payment comes?'
Two blacks do not make one white.
The Peacock and the Crane
A PEACOCK spreading its gorgeous tail mocked a Crane that passed by, ridiculing the
ashen hue of its plumage and saying, "I am robed, like a king, in gold and purple and
all the colors of the rainbow; while you have not a bit of color on your wings."
"True," replied the Crane; "but I soar to the heights of heaven and lift up
my voice to the stars, while you walk below, like a cock, among the birds of the
dunghill."
Fine feathers don't make fine birds.
The Fox and the Hedgehog
A FOX swimming across a rapid river was carried by the force of the current into a very
deep ravine, where he lay for a long time very much bruised, sick, and unable to move. A
swarm of hungry blood-sucking flies settled upon him. A Hedgehog, passing by, saw his
anguish and inquired if he should drive away the flies that were tormenting him. "By
no means," replied the Fox; "pray do not molest them." "How is this?'
said the Hedgehog; "do you not want to be rid of them?' "No," returned the
Fox, "for these flies which you see are full of blood, and sting me but little, and
if you rid me of these which are already satiated, others more hungry will come in their
place, and will drink up all the blood I have left."
The Eagle, the Cat, and the Wild Sow
AN EAGLE made her nest at the top of a lofty oak; a Cat, having found a convenient
hole, moved into the middle of the trunk; and a Wild Sow, with her young, took shelter in
a hollow at its foot. The Cat cunningly resolved to destroy this chance-made colony. To
carry out her design, she climbed to the nest of the Eagle, and said, "Destruction is
preparing for you, and for me too, unfortunately. The Wild Sow, whom you see daily digging
up the earth, wishes to uproot the oak, so she may on its fall seize our families as food
for her young." Having thus frightened the Eagle out of her senses, she crept down to
the cave of the Sow, and said, "Your children are in great danger; for as soon as you
go out with your litter to find food, the Eagle is prepared to pounce upon one of your
little pigs." Having instilled these fears into the Sow, she went and pretended to
hide herself in the hollow of the tree. When night came she went forth with silent foot
and obtained food for herself and her kittens, but feigning to be afraid, she kept a
lookout all through the day. Meanwhile, the Eagle, full of fear of the Sow, sat still on
the branches, and the Sow, terrified by the Eagle, did not dare to go out from her cave.
And thus they both, along with their families, perished from hunger, and afforded ample
provision for the Cat and her kittens.
The Thief and the Innkeeper
A THIEF hired a room in a tavern and stayed a while in the hope of stealing something
which should enable him to pay his reckoning. When he had waited some days in vain, he saw
the Innkeeper dressed in a new and handsome coat and sitting before his door. The Thief
sat down beside him and talked with him. As the conversation began to flag, the Thief
yawned terribly and at the same time howled like a wolf. The Innkeeper said, "Why do
you howl so fearfully?' "I will tell you," said the Thief, "but first let
me ask you to hold my clothes, or I shall tear them to pieces. I know not, sir, when I got
this habit of yawning, nor whether these attacks of howling were inflicted on me as a
judgment for my crimes, or for any other cause; but this I do know, that when I yawn for
the third time, I actually turn into a wolf and attack men." With this speech he
commenced a second fit of yawning and again howled like a wolf, as he had at first. The
Innkeeper. hearing his tale and believing what he said, became greatly alarmed and, rising
from his seat, attempted to run away. The Thief laid hold of his coat and entreated him to
stop, saying, "Pray wait, sir, and hold my clothes, or I shall tear them to pieces in
my fury, when I turn into a wolf." At the same moment he yawned the third time and
set up a terrible howl. The Innkeeper, frightened lest he should be attacked, left his new
coat in the Thief's hand and ran as fast as he could into the inn for safety. The Thief
made off with the coat and did not return again to the inn.
Every tale is not to be believed.
The Mule
A MULE, frolicsome from lack of work and from too much corn, galloped about in a very
extravagant manner, and said to himself: "My father surely was a high-mettled racer,
and I am his own child in speed and spirit." On the next day, being driven a long
journey, and feeling very wearied, he exclaimed in a disconsolate tone: "I must have
made a mistake; my father, after all, could have been only an ass."
The Hart and the Vine
A HART, hard pressed in the chase, hid himself beneath the large leaves of a Vine. The
huntsmen, in their haste, overshot the place of his concealment. Supposing all danger to
have passed, the Hart began to nibble the tendrils of the Vine. One of the huntsmen,
attracted by the rustling of the leaves, looked back, and seeing the Hart, shot an arrow
from his bow and struck it. The Hart, at the point of death, groaned: "I am rightly
served, for I should not have maltreated the Vine that saved me."
The Serpent and the Eagle
A SERPENT and an Eagle were struggling with each other in deadly conflict. The Serpent
had the advantage, and was about to strangle the bird. A countryman saw them, and running
up, loosed the coil of the Serpent and let the Eagle go free. The Serpent, irritated at
the escape of his prey, injected his poison into the drinking horn of the countryman. The
rustic, ignorant of his danger, was about to drink, when the Eagle struck his hand with
his wing, and, seizing the drinking horn in his talons, carried it aloft.
The Crow and the Pitcher
A CROW perishing with thirst saw a pitcher, and hoping to find water, flew to it with
delight. When he reached it, he discovered to his grief that it contained so little water
that he could not possibly get at it. He tried everything he could think of to reach the
water, but all his efforts were in vain. At last he collected as many stones as he could
carry and dropped them one by one with his beak into the pitcher, until he brought the
water within his reach and thus saved his life.
Necessity is the mother of invention.
The Two Frogs
TWO FROGS were neighbors. One inhabited a deep pond, far removed from public view; the
other lived in a gully containing little water, and traversed by a country road. The Frog
that lived in the pond warned his friend to change his residence and entreated him to come
and live with him, saying that he would enjoy greater safety from danger and more abundant
food. The other refused, saying that he felt it so very hard to leave a place to which he
had become accustomed. A few days afterwards a heavy wagon passed through the gully and
crushed him to death under its wheels.
A willful man will have his way to his own hurt.
The Wolf and the Fox
AT ONE TIME a very large and strong Wolf was born among the wolves, who exceeded all
his fellow-wolves in strength, size, and swiftness, so that they unanimously decided to
call him "Lion." The Wolf, with a lack of sense proportioned to his enormous
size, thought that they gave him this name in earnest, and, leaving his own race,
consorted exclusively with the lions. An old sly Fox, seeing this, said, "May I never
make myself so ridiculous as you do in your pride and self-conceit; for even though you
have the size of a lion among wolves, in a herd of lions you are definitely a wolf."
The Walnut-Tree
A WALNUT TREE standing by the roadside bore an abundant crop of fruit. For the sake of
the nuts, the passers-by broke its branches with stones and sticks. The Walnut-Tree
piteously exclaimed, "O wretched me! that those whom I cheer with my fruit should
repay me with these painful requitals!"
The Gnat and the Lion
A GNAT came and said to a Lion, "I do not in the least fear you, nor are you
stronger than I am. For in what does your strength consist? You can scratch with your
claws and bite with your teeth an a woman in her quarrels. I repeat that I am altogether
more powerful than you; and if you doubt it, let us fight and see who will conquer."
The Gnat, having sounded his horn, fastened himself upon the Lion and stung him on the
nostrils and the parts of the face devoid of hair. While trying to crush him, the Lion
tore himself with his claws, until he punished himself severely. The Gnat thus prevailed
over the Lion, and, buzzing about in a song of triumph, flew away. But shortly afterwards
he became entangled in the meshes of a cobweb and was eaten by a spider. He greatly
lamented his fate, saying, "Woe is me! that I, who can wage war successfully with the
hugest beasts, should perish myself from this spider, the most inconsiderable of
insects!"
The Monkey and the Dolphin
A SAILOR, bound on a long voyage, took with him a Monkey to amuse him while on
shipboard. As he sailed off the coast of Greece, a violent tempest arose in which the ship
was wrecked and he, his Monkey, and all the crew were obliged to swim for their lives. A
Dolphin saw the Monkey contending with the waves, and supposing him to be a man (whom he
is always said to befriend), came and placed himself under him, to convey him on his back
in safety to the shore. When the Dolphin arrived with his burden in sight of land not far
from Athens, he asked the Monkey if he were an Athenian. The latter replied that he was,
and that he was descended from one of the most noble families in that city. The Dolphin
then inquired if he knew the Piraeus (the famous harbor of Athens). Supposing that a man
was meant, the Monkey answered that he knew him very well and that he was an intimate
friend. The Dolphin, indignant at these falsehoods, dipped the Monkey under the water and
drowned him.
The Jackdaw and the Doves
A JACKDAW, seeing some Doves in a cote abundantly provided with food, painted himself
white and joined them in order to share their plentiful maintenance. The Doves, as long as
he was silent, supposed him to be one of themselves and admitted him to their cote. But
when one day he forgot himself and began to chatter, they discovered his true character
and drove him forth, pecking him with their beaks. Failing to obtain food among the Doves,
he returned to the Jackdaws. They too, not recognizing him on account of his color.
expelled him from living with them. So desiring two ends, he obtained neither.
The Horse and the Stag
AT ONE TIME the Horse had the plain entirely to himself. Then a Stag intruded into his
domain and shared his pasture. The Horse, desiring to revenge himself on the stranger,
asked a man if he were willing to help him in punishing the Stag. The man replied that if
the Horse would receive a bit in his mouth and agree to carry him, he would contrive
effective weapons against the Stag. The Horse consented and allowed the man to mount him.
From that hour he found that instead of obtaining revenge on the Stag, he had enslaved
himself to the service of man.
The Kid and the Wolf
A KID, returning without protection from the pasture, was pursued by a Wolf. Seeing he
could not escape, he turned round, and said: "I know, friend Wolf, that I must be
your prey, but before I die I would ask of you one favor you will play me a tune to which
I may dance." The Wolf complied, and while he was piping and the Kid was dancing,
some hounds hearing the sound ran up and began chasing the Wolf. Turning to the Kid, he
said, "It is just what I deserve; for I, who am only a butcher, should not have
turned piper to please you."
The Prophet
A WIZARD, sitting in the marketplace, was telling the fortunes of the passers-by when a
person ran up in great haste, and announced to him that the doors of his house had been
broken open and that all his goods were being stolen. He sighed heavily and hastened away
as fast as he could run. A neighbor saw him running and said, "Oh! you fellow there!
you say you can foretell the fortunes of others; how is it you did not foresee your own?'
The Fox and the Monkey
A FOX and a Monkey were traveling together on the same road. As they journeyed, they
passed through a cemetery full of monuments. "All these monuments which you
see," said the Monkey, "are erected in honor of my ancestors, who were in their
day freedmen and citizens of great renown." The Fox replied, "You have chosen a
most appropriate subject for your falsehoods, as I am sure none of your ancestors will be
able to contradict you."
A false tale often betrays itself.
The Thief and the Housedog
A THIEF came in the night to break into a house. He brought with him several slices of
meat in order to pacify the Housedog, so that he would not alarm his master by barking. As
the Thief threw him the pieces of meat, the Dog said, "If you think to stop my mouth,
you will be greatly mistaken. This sudden kindness at your hands will only make me more
watchful, lest under these unexpected favors to myself, you have some private ends to
accomplish for your own benefit, and for my master's injury."
The Man, the Horse, the Ox, and the Dog
A HORSE, Ox, and Dog, driven to great straits by the cold, sought shelter and
protection from Man. He received them kindly, lighted a fire, and warmed them. He let the
Horse make free with his oats, gave the Ox an abundance of hay, and fed the Dog with meat
from his own table. Grateful for these favors, the animals determined to repay him to the
best of their ability. For this purpose, they divided the term of his life between them,
and each endowed one portion of it with the qualities which chiefly characterized himself.
The Horse chose his earliest years and gave them his own attributes: hence every man is in
his youth impetuous, headstrong, and obstinate in maintaining his own opinion. The Ox took
under his patronage the next term of life, and therefore man in his middle age is fond of
work, devoted to labor, and resolute to amass wealth and to husband his resources. The end
of life was reserved for the Dog, wherefore the old man is often snappish, irritable, hard
to please, and selfish, tolerant only of his own household, but averse to strangers and to
all who do not administer to his comfort or to his necessities.
The Apes and the Two Travelers
TWO MEN, one who always spoke the truth and the other who told nothing but lies, were
traveling together and by chance came to the land of Apes. One of the Apes, who had raised
himself to be king, commanded them to be seized and brought before him, that he might know
what was said of him among men. He ordered at the same time that all the Apes be arranged
in a long row on his right hand and on his left, and that a throne be placed for him, as
was the custom among men. After these preparations he signified that the two men should be
brought before him, and greeted them with this salutation: "What sort of a king do I
seem to you to be, O strangers?' The Lying Traveler replied, "You seem to me a most
mighty king." "And what is your estimate of those you see around me?'
"These," he made answer, "are worthy companions of yourself, fit at least
to be ambassadors and leaders of armies." The Ape and all his court, gratified with
the lie, commanded that a handsome present be given to the flatterer. On this the truthful
Traveler thought to himself, "If so great a reward be given for a lie, with what gift
may not I be rewarded, if, according to my custom, I tell the truth?' The Ape quickly
turned to him. "And pray how do I and these my friends around me seem to you?'
"Thou art," he said, "a most excellent Ape, and all these thy companions
after thy example are excellent Apes too." The King of the Apes, enraged at hearing
these truths, gave him over to the teeth and claws of his companions.
The Wolf and the Shepherd
A WOLF followed a flock of sheep for a long time and did not attempt to injure one of
them. The Shepherd at first stood on his guard against him, as against an enemy, and kept
a strict watch over his movements. But when the Wolf, day after day, kept in the company
of the sheep and did not make the slightest effort to seize them, the Shepherd began to
look upon him as a guardian of his flock rather than as a plotter of evil against it; and
when occasion called him one day into the city, he left the sheep entirely in his charge.
The Wolf, now that he had the opportunity, fell upon the sheep, and destroyed the greater
part of the flock. When the Shepherd returned to find his flock destroyed, he exclaimed:
"I have been rightly served; why did I trust my sheep to a Wolf?'
The Hares and the Lions
THE HARES harangued the assembly, and argued that all should be equal. The Lions made
this reply: "Your words, O Hares! are good; but they lack both claws and teeth such
as we have."
The Lark and Her Young Ones
A LARK had made her nest in the early spring on the young green wheat. The brood had
almost grown to their full strength and attained the use of their wings and the full
plumage of their feathers, when the owner of the field, looking over his ripe crop, said,
"The time has come when I must ask all my neighbors to help me with my harvest."
One of the young Larks heard his speech and related it to his mother, inquiring of her to
what place they should move for safety. "There is no occasion to move yet, my
son," she replied; "the man who only sends to his friends to help him with his
harvest is not really in earnest." The owner of the field came again a few days later
and saw the wheat shedding the grain from excess of ripeness. He said, "I will come
myself tomorrow with my laborers, and with as many reapers as I can hire, and will get in
the harvest." The Lark on hearing these words said to her brood, "It is time now
to be off, my little ones, for the man is in earnest this time; he no longer trusts his
friends, but will reap the field himself."
Self-help is the best help.
The Fox and the Lion
WHEN A FOX who had never yet seen a Lion, fell in with him by chance for the first time
in the forest, he was so frightened that he nearly died with fear. On meeting him for the
second time, he was still much alarmed, but not to the same extent as at first. On seeing
him the third time, he so increased in boldness that he went up to him and commenced a
familiar conversation with him.
Acquaintance softens prejudices.
The Weasel and the Mice
A WEASEL, inactive from age and infirmities, was not able to catch mice as he once did.
He therefore rolled himself in flour and lay down in a dark corner. A Mouse, supposing him
to be food, leaped upon him, and was instantly caught and squeezed to death. Another
perished in a similar manner, and then a third, and still others after them. A very old
Mouse, who had escaped many a trap and snare, observed from a safe distance the trick of
his crafty foe and said, "Ah! you that lie there, may you prosper just in the same
proportion as you are what you pretend to be!"
The Boy Bathing
A BOY bathing in a river was in danger of being drowned. He called out to a passing
traveler for help, but instead of holding out a helping hand, the man stood by
unconcernedly, and scolded the boy for his imprudence. "Oh, sir!" cried the
youth, "pray help me now and scold me afterwards."
Counsel without help is useless.
The Ass and the Wolf
AN ASS feeding in a meadow saw a Wolf approaching to seize him, and immediately
pretended to be lame. The Wolf, coming up, inquired the cause of his lameness. The Ass
replied that passing through a hedge he had trod with his foot upon a sharp thorn. He
requested that the Wolf pull it out, lest when he ate him it should injure his throat. The
Wolf consented and lifted up the foot, and was giving his whole mind to the discovery of
the thorn, when the Ass, with his heels, kicked his teeth into his mouth and galloped
away. The Wolf, being thus fearfully mauled, said, "I am rightly served, for why did
I attempt the art of healing, when my father only taught me the trade of a butcher?'
The Seller of Images
A CERTAIN MAN made a wooden image of Mercury and offered it for sale. When no one
appeared willing to buy it, in order to attract purchasers, he cried out that he had the
statue to sell of a benefactor who bestowed wealth and helped to heap up riches. One of
the bystanders said to him, "My good fellow, why do you sell him, being such a one as
you describe, when you may yourself enjoy the good things he has to give?'
"Why," he replied, "I am in need of immediate help, and he is wont to give
his good gifts very slowly."
The Fox and the Grapes
A FAMISHED FOX saw some clusters of ripe black grapes hanging from a
trellised vine. She resorted to all her tricks to get at them, but wearied herself in
vain, for she could not reach them. At last she turned away, hiding her disappointment and
saying: "The Grapes are sour, and not ripe as I thought."
The Man and His Wife
A MAN had a Wife who made herself hated by all the members of his household. Wishing to
find out if she had the same effect on the persons in her father's house, he made some
excuse to send her home on a visit to her father. After a short time she returned, and
when he inquired how she had got on and how the servants had treated her, she replied,
"The herdsmen and shepherds cast on me looks of aversion." He said, "O
Wife, if you were disliked by those who go out early in the morning with their flocks and
return late in the evening, what must have been felt towards you by those with whom you
passed the whole day!"
Straws show how the wind blows.
The Peacock and Juno
THE PEACOCK made complaint to Juno that, while the nightingale pleased every ear with
his song, he himself no sooner opened his mouth than he became a laughingstock to all who
heard him. The Goddess, to console him, said, "But you far excel in beauty and in
size. The splendor of the emerald shines in your neck and you unfold a tail gorgeous with
painted plumage." "But for what purpose have I," said the bird, "this
dumb beauty so long as I am surpassed in song?' "The lot of each," replied Juno,
"has been assigned by the will of the Fates--to thee, beauty; to the eagle, strength;
to the nightingale, song; to the raven, favorable, and to the crow, unfavorable auguries.
These are all contented with the endowments allotted to them."
The Hawk and the Nightingale
A NIGHTINGALE, sitting aloft upon an oak and singing according to his wont, was seen by
a Hawk who, being in need of food, swooped down and seized him. The Nightingale, about to
lose his life, earnestly begged the Hawk to let him go, saying that he was not big enough
to satisfy the hunger of a Hawk who, if he wanted food, ought to pursue the larger birds.
The Hawk, interrupting him, said: "I should indeed have lost my senses if I should
let go food ready in my hand, for the sake of pursuing birds which are not yet even within
sight."
The Dog, the Cock, and the Fox
A DOG and a Cock being great friends, agreed to travel together. At nightfall they took
shelter in a thick wood. The Cock flying up, perched himself on the branches of a tree,
while the Dog found a bed beneath in the hollow trunk. When the morning dawned, the Cock,
as usual, crowed very loudly several times. A Fox heard the sound, and wishing to make a
breakfast on him, came and stood under the branches, saying how earnestly he desired to
make the acquaintance of the owner of so magnificent a voice. The Cock, suspecting his
civilities, said: "Sir, I wish you would do me the favor of going around to the
hollow trunk below me, and waking my porter, so that he may open the door and let you
in." When the Fox approached the tree, the Dog sprang out and caught him, and tore
him to pieces.
The Wolf and the Goat
A WOLF saw a Goat feeding at the summit of a steep precipice, where he had no chance of
reaching her. He called to her and earnestly begged her to come lower down, lest she fall
by some mishap; and he added that the meadows lay where he was standing, and that the
herbage was most tender. She replied, "No, my friend, it is not for the pasture that
you invite me, but for yourself, who are in want of food."
The Lion and the Bull
A LION, greatly desiring to capture a Bull, and yet afraid to attack him on account of
his great size, resorted to a trick to ensure his destruction. He approached the Bull and
said, "I have slain a fine sheep, my friend; and if you will come home and partake of
him with me, I shall be delighted to have your company." The Lion said this in the
hope that, as the Bull was in the act of reclining to eat, he might attack him to
advantage, and make his meal on him. The Bull, on approaching the Lion's den, saw the huge
spits and giant caldrons, and no sign whatever of the sheep, and, without saying a word,
quietly took his departure. The Lion inquired why he went off so abruptly without a word
of salutation to his host, who had not given him any cause for offense. "I have
reasons enough," said the Bull. "I see no indication whatever of your having
slaughtered a sheep, while I do see very plainly every preparation for your dining on a
bull."
The Goat and the Ass
A MAN once kept a Goat and an Ass. The Goat, envying the Ass on account of his greater
abundance of food, said, "How shamefully you are treated: at one time grinding in the
mill, and at another carrying heavy burdens"; and he further advised him to pretend
to be epileptic and fall into a ditch and so obtain rest. The Ass listened to his words,
and falling into a ditch, was very much bruised. His master, sending for a leech, asked
his advice. He bade him pour upon the wounds the lungs of a Goat. They at once killed the
Goat, and so healed the Ass.
The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse
A COUNTRY MOUSE invited a Town Mouse, an intimate friend, to pay him a visit and
partake of his country fare. As they were on the bare plowlands, eating there wheat-stocks
and roots pulled up from the hedgerow, the Town Mouse said to his friend, "You live
here the life of the ants, while in my house is the horn of plenty. I am surrounded by
every luxury, and if you will come with me, as I wish you would, you shall have an ample
share of my dainties." The Country Mouse was easily persuaded, and returned to town
with his friend. On his arrival, the Town Mouse placed before him bread, barley, beans,
dried figs, honey, raisins, and, last of all, brought a dainty piece of cheese from a
basket. The Country Mouse, being much delighted at the sight of such good cheer, expressed
his satisfaction in warm terms and lamented his own hard fate. Just as they were beginning
to eat, someone opened the door, and they both ran off squeaking, as fast as they could,
to a hole so narrow that two could only find room in it by squeezing. They had scarcely
begun their repast again when someone else entered to take something out of a cupboard,
whereupon the two Mice, more frightened than before, ran away and hid themselves. At last
the Country Mouse, almost famished, said to his friend: "Although you have prepared
for me so dainty a feast, I must leave you to enjoy it by yourself. It is surrounded by
too many dangers to please me. I prefer my bare plowlands and roots from the hedgerow,
where I can live in safety, and without fear."
The Wolf, the Fox, and the Ape
A WOLF accused a Fox of theft, but the Fox entirely denied the charge. An Ape undertook
to adjudge the matter between them. When each had fully stated his case the Ape announced
this sentence: "I do not think you, Wolf, ever lost what you claim; and I do believe
you, Fox, to have stolen what you so stoutly deny."
The dishonest, if they act honestly, get no credit.
The Fly and the Draught-Mule
A FLY sat on the axle-tree of a chariot, and addressing the Draught-Mule said,
"How slow you are! Why do you not go faster? See if I do not prick your neck with my
sting." The Draught-Mule replied, "I do not heed your threats; I only care for
him who sits above you, and who quickens my pace with his whip, or holds me back with the
reins. Away, therefore, with your insolence, for I know well when to go fast, and when to
go slow."
The Fishermen
SOME FISHERMEN were out trawling their nets. Perceiving them to be very heavy, they
danced about for joy and supposed that they had taken a large catch. When they had dragged
the nets to the shore they found but few fish: the nets were full of sand and stones, and
the men were beyond measure cast downso much at the disappointment which had befallen
them, but because they had formed such very different expectations. One of their company,
an old man, said, "Let us cease lamenting, my mates, for, as it seems to me, sorrow
is always the twin sister of joy; and it was only to be looked for that we, who just now
were over-rejoiced, should next have something to make us sad."
The Lion and the Three Bulls
THREE BULLS for a long time pastured together. A Lion lay in ambush in the hope of
making them his prey, but was afraid to attack them while they kept together. Having at
last by guileful speeches succeeded in separating them, he attacked them without fear as
they fed alone, and feasted on them one by one at his own leisure.
Union is strength.
The Fowler and the Viper
A FOWLER, taking his bird-lime and his twigs, went out to catch birds. Seeing a thrush
sitting upon a tree, he wished to take it, and fitting his twigs to a proper length,
watched intently, having his whole thoughts directed towards the sky. While thus looking
upwards, he unknowingly trod upon a Viper asleep just before his feet. The Viper, turning
about, stung him, and falling into a swoon, the man said to himself, "Woe is me! that
while I purposed to hunt another, I am myself fallen unawares into the snares of
death."
The Horse and the Ass
A HORSE, proud of his fine trappings, met an Ass on the highway. The Ass, being heavily
laden, moved slowly out of the way. "Hardly," said the Horse, "can I resist
kicking you with my heels." The Ass held his peace, and made only a silent appeal to
the justice of the gods. Not long afterwards the Horse, having become broken-winded, was
sent by his owner to the farm. The Ass, seeing him drawing a dungcart, thus derided him:
"Where, O boaster, are now all thy gay trappings, thou who are thyself reduced to the
condition you so lately treated with contempt?'
The Fox and the Mask
A FOX entered the house of an actor and, rummaging through all his properties, came
upon a Mask, an admirable imitation of a human head. He placed his paws on it and said,
"What a beautiful head! Yet it is of no value, as it entirely lacks brains."
The Geese and the Cranes
THE GEESE and the Cranes were feeding in the same meadow, when a birdcatcher came to
ensnare them in his nets. The Cranes, being light of wing, fled away at his approach;
while the Geese, being slower of flight and heavier in their bodies, were captured.
The Blind Man and the Whelp
A BLIND MAN was accustomed to distinguishing different animals by touching them with
his hands. The whelp of a Wolf was brought him, with a request that he would feel it, and
say what it was. He felt it, and being in doubt, said: "I do not quite know whether
it is the cub of a Fox, or the whelp of a Wolf, but this I know full well. It would not be
safe to admit him to the sheepfold."
Evil tendencies are shown in early life.
The Dogs and the Fox
SOME DOGS, finding the skin of a lion, began to tear it in pieces with their teeth. A
Fox, seeing them, said, "If this lion were alive, you would soon find out that his
claws were stronger than your teeth."
It is easy to kick a man that is down.
The Cobbler Turned Doctor
A COBBLER unable to make a living by his trade and made desperate by poverty, began to
practice medicine in a town in which he was not known. He sold a drug, pretending that it
was an antidote to all poisons, and obtained a great name for himself by long-winded puffs
and advertisements. When the Cobbler happened to fall sick himself of a serious illness,
the Governor of the town determined to test his skill. For this purpose he called for a
cup, and while filling it with water, pretended to mix poison with the Cobbler's antidote,
commanding him to drink it on the promise of a reward. The Cobbler, under the fear of
death, confessed that he had no knowledge of medicine, and was only made famous by the
stupid clamors of the crowd. The Governor then called a public assembly and addressed the
citizens: "Of what folly have you been guilty? You have not hesitated to entrust your
heads to a man, whom no one could employ to make even the shoes for their feet."
The Wolf and the Horse
A WOLF coming out of a field of oats met a Horse and thus addressed him: "I would
advise you to go into that field. It is full of fine oats, which I have left untouched for
you, as you are a friend whom I would love to hear enjoying good eating." The Horse
replied, "If oats had been the food of wolves, you would never have indulged your
ears at the cost of your belly."
Men of evil reputation, when they perform a good deed, fail to get
credit for it.
The Brother and the Sister
A FATHER had one son and one daughter, the former remarkable for his good looks, the
latter for her extraordinary ugliness. While they were playing one day as children, they
happened by chance to look together into a mirror that was placed on their mother's chair.
The boy congratulated himself on his good looks; the girl grew angry, and could not bear
the self-praises of her Brother, interpreting all he said (and how could she do
otherwise?) into reflection on herself. She ran off to her father. to be avenged on her
Brother, and spitefully accused him of having, as a boy, made use of that which belonged
only to girls. The father embraced them both, and bestowing his kisses and affection
impartially on each, said, "I wish you both would look into the mirror every day:
you, my son, that you may not spoil your beauty by evil conduct; and you, my daughter,
that you may make up for your lack of beauty by your virtues."
The Wasps, the Partridges, and the Farmer
THE WASPS and the Partridges, overcome with thirst, came to a Farmer and besought him
to give them some water to drink. They promised amply to repay him the favor which they
asked. The Partridges declared that they would dig around his vines and make them produce
finer grapes. The Wasps said that they would keep guard and drive off thieves with their
stings. But the Farmer interrupted them, saying: "I have already two oxen, who,
without making any promises, do all these things. It is surely better for me to give the
water to them than to you."
The Crow and Mercury
A CROW caught in a snare prayed to Apollo to release him, making a vow to offer some
frankincense at his shrine. But when rescued from his danger, he forgot his promise.
Shortly afterwards, again caught in a snare, he passed by Apollo and made the same promise
to offer frankincense to Mercury. Mercury soon appeared and said to him, "O thou most
base fellow? how can I believe thee, who hast disowned and wronged thy former patron?'
The North Wind and the Sun
THE NORTH WIND and the Sun disputed as to which was the most powerful, and agreed that
he should be declared the victor who could first strip a wayfaring man of his clothes. The
North Wind first tried his power and blew with all his might, but the keener his blasts,
the closer the Traveler wrapped his cloak around him, until at last, resigning all hope of
victory, the Wind called upon the Sun to see what he could do. The Sun suddenly shone out
with all his warmth. The Traveler no sooner felt his genial rays than he took off one
garment after another, and at last, fairly overcome with heat, undressed and bathed in a
stream that lay in his path.
Persuasion is better than Force.
The Two Men Who Were Enemies
TWO MEN, deadly enemies to each other, were sailing in the same vessel. Determined to
keep as far apart as possible, the one seated himself in the stem, and the other in the
prow of the ship. A violent storm arose, and with the vessel in great danger of sinking,
the one in the stern inquired of the pilot which of the two ends of the ship would go down
first. On his replying that he supposed it would be the prow, the Man said, "Death
would not be grievous to me, if I could only see my Enemy die before me."
The Gamecocks and the Partridge
A MAN had two Gamecocks in his poultry-yard. One day by chance he found a tame
Partridge for sale. He purchased it and brought it home to be reared with his Gamecocks.
When the Partridge was put into the poultry-yard, they struck at it and followed it about,
so that the Partridge became grievously troubled and supposed that he was thus evilly
treated because he was a stranger. Not long afterwards he saw the Cocks fighting together
and not separating before one had well beaten the other. He then said to himself, "I
shall no longer distress myself at being struck at by these Gamecocks, when I see that
they cannot even refrain from quarreling with each other."
The Quack Frog
A FROG once upon a time came forth from his home in the marsh and proclaimed to all the
beasts that he was a learned physician, skilled in the use of drugs and able to heal all
diseases. A Fox asked him, "How can you pretend to prescribe for others, when you are
unable to heal your own lame gait and wrinkled skin?'
The Lion, the Wolf, and the Fox
A LION, growing old, lay sick in his cave. All the beasts came to visit their king,
except the Fox. The Wolf therefore, thinking that he had a capital opportunity, accused
the Fox to the Lion of not paying any respect to him who had the rule over them all and of
not coming to visit him. At that very moment the Fox came in and heard these last words of
the Wolf. The Lion roaring out in a rage against him, the Fox sought an opportunity to
defend himself and said, "And who of all those who have come to you have benefited
you so much as I, who have traveled from place to place in every direction, and have
sought and learnt from the physicians the means of healing you?' The Lion commanded him
immediately to tell him the cure, when he replied, "You must flay a wolf alive and
wrap his skin yet warm around you." The Wolf was at once taken and flayed; whereon
the Fox, turning to him, said with a smile, "You should have moved your master not to
ill, but to good, will."
The Dog's House
IN THE WINTERTIME, a Dog curled up in as small a space as possible on account of the
cold, determined to make himself a house. However when the summer returned again, he lay
asleep stretched at his full length and appeared to himself to be of a great size. Now he
considered that it would be neither an easy nor a necessary work to make himself such a
house as would accommodate him.
The Wolf and the Lion
ROAMING BY the mountainside at sundown, a Wolf saw his own shadow become greatly
extended and magnified, and he said to himself, "Why should I, being of such an
immense size and extending nearly an acre in length, be afraid of the Lion? Ought I not to
be acknowledged as King of all the collected beasts?' While he was indulging in these
proud thoughts, a Lion fell upon him and killed him. He exclaimed with a too late
repentance, "Wretched me! this overestimation of myself is the cause of my
destruction."
The Birds, the Beasts, and the Bat
THE BIRDS waged war with the Beasts, and each were by turns the conquerors. A Bat,
fearing the uncertain issues of the fight, always fought on the side which he felt was the
strongest. When peace was proclaimed, his deceitful conduct was apparent to both
combatants. Therefore being condemned by each for his treachery, he was driven forth from
the light of day, and henceforth concealed himself in dark hiding-places, flying always
alone and at night.
The Spendthrift and the Swallow
A YOUNG MAN, a great spendthrift, had run through all his patrimony and had but one
good cloak left. One day he happened to see a Swallow, which had appeared before its
season, skimming along a pool and twittering gaily. He supposed that summer had come, and
went and sold his cloak. Not many days later, winter set in again with renewed frost and
cold. When he found the unfortunate Swallow lifeless on the ground, he said, "Unhappy
bird! what have you done? By thus appearing before the springtime you have not only killed
yourself, but you have wrought my destruction also."
The Fox and the Lion
A FOX saw a Lion confined in a cage, and standing near him, bitterly reviled him. The
Lion said to the Fox, "It is not thou who revilest me; but this mischance which has
befallen me."
The Owl and the Birds
AN OWL, in her wisdom, counseled the Birds that when the acorn first began to sprout,
to pull it all up out of the ground and not allow it to grow. She said acorns would
produce mistletoe, from which an irremediable poison, the bird- lime, would be extracted
and by which they would be captured. The Owl next advised them to pluck up the seed of the
flax, which men had sown, as it was a plant which boded no good to them. And, lastly, the
Owl, seeing an archer approach, predicted that this man, being on foot, would contrive
darts armed with feathers which would fly faster than the wings of the Birds themselves.
The Birds gave no credence to these warning words, but considered the Owl to be beside
herself and said that she was mad. But afterwards, finding her words were true, they
wondered at her knowledge and deemed her to be the wisest of birds. Hence it is that when
she appears they look to her as knowing all things, while she no longer gives them advice,
but in solitude laments their past folly.
The Trumpeter Taken Prisoner
A TRUMPETER, bravely leading on the soldiers, was captured by the enemy. He cried out
to his captors, "Pray spare me, and do not take my life without cause or without
inquiry. I have not slain a single man of your troop. I have no arms, and carry nothing
but this one brass trumpet." "That is the very reason for which you should be
put to death," they said; "for, while you do not fight yourself, your trumpet
stirs all the others to battle."
The Ass in the Lion's Skin
AN ASS, having put on the Lion's skin, roamed about in the forest and amused himself by
frightening all the foolish animals he met in his wanderings. At last coming upon a Fox,
he tried to frighten him also, but the Fox no sooner heard the sound of his voice than he
exclaimed, "I might possibly have been frightened myself, if I had not heard your
bray."
The Sparrow and the Hare
A HARE pounced upon by an eagle sobbed very much and uttered cries like a child. A
Sparrow upbraided her and said, "Where now is thy remarkable swiftness of foot? Why
were your feet so slow?" While the Sparrow was thus speaking, a hawk suddenly seized
him and killed him. The Hare was comforted in her death, and expiring said, "Ah! you
who so lately, when you supposed yourself safe, exulted over my calamity, have now reason
to deplore a similar misfortune."
The Flea and the Ox
A FLEA thus questioned an Ox: "What ails you, that being so huge and strong, you
submit to the wrongs you receive from men and slave for them day by day, while I, being so
small a creature, mercilessly feed on their flesh and drink their blood without stint?'
The Ox replied: "I do not wish to be ungrateful, for I am loved and well cared for by
men, and they often pat my head and shoulders." "Woe's me!" said the flea;
"this very patting which you like, whenever it happens to me, brings with it my
inevitable destruction."
The Goods and the Ills
ALL the Goods were once driven out by the Ills from that common share which they each
had in the affairs of mankind; for the Ills by reason of their numbers had prevailed to
possess the earth. The Goods wafted themselves to heaven and asked for a righteous
vengeance on their persecutors. They entreated Jupiter that they might no longer be
associated with the Ills, as they had nothing in common and could not live together, but
were engaged in unceasing warfare; and that an indissoluble law might be laid down for
their future protection. Jupiter granted their request and decreed that henceforth the
Ills should visit the earth in company with each other, but that the Goods should one by
one enter the habitations of men. Hence it arises that Ills abound, for they come not one
by one, but in troops, and by no means singly: while the Goods proceed from Jupiter, and
are given, not alike to all, but singly, and separately; and one by one to those who are
able to discern them.
The Dove and the Crow
A DOVE shut up in a cage was boasting of the large number of young ones which she had
hatched. A Crow hearing her, said: "My good friend, cease from this unseasonable
boasting. The larger the number of your family, the greater your cause of sorrow, in
seeing them shut up in this prison-house."
Mercury and the Workmen
A WORKMAN, felling wood by the side of a river, let his axe drop - by accident into a
deep pool. Being thus deprived of the means of his livelihood, he sat down on the bank and
lamented his hard fate. Mercury appeared and demanded the cause of his tears. After he
told him his misfortune, Mercury plunged into the stream, and, bringing up a golden axe,
inquired if that were the one he had lost. On his saying that it was not his, Mercury
disappeared beneath the water a second time, returned with a silver axe in his hand, and
again asked the Workman if it were his. When the Workman said it was not, he dived into
the pool for the third time and brought up the axe that had been lost. The Workman claimed
it and expressed his joy at its recovery. Mercury, pleased with his honesty, gave him the
golden and silver axes in addition to his own. The Workman, on his return to his house,
related to his companions all that had happened. One of them at once resolved to try and
secure the same good fortune for himself. He ran to the river and threw his axe on purpose
into the pool at the same place, and sat down on the bank to weep. Mercury appeared to him
just as he hoped he would; and having learned the cause of his grief, plunged into the
stream and brought up a golden axe, inquiring if he had lost it. The Workman seized it
greedily, and declared that truly it was the very same axe that he had lost. Mercury,
displeased at his knavery, not only took away the golden axe, but refused to recover for
him the axe he had thrown into the pool.
The Eagle and the Jackdaw
AN EAGLE, flying down from his perch on a lofty rock, seized upon a lamb and carried
him aloft in his talons. A Jackdaw, who witnessed the capture of the lamb, was stirred
with envy and determined to emulate the strength and flight of the Eagle. He flew around
with a great whir of his wings and settled upon a large ram, with the intention of
carrying him off, but his claws became entangled in the ram's fleece and he was not able
to release himself, although he fluttered with his feathers as much as he could. The
shepherd, seeing what had happened, ran up and caught him. He at once clipped the
Jackdaw's wings, and taking him home at night, gave him to his children. On their saying,
"Father, what kind of bird is it?' he replied, "To my certain knowledge he is a
Daw; but he would like you to think an Eagle."
The Fox and the Crane
A FOX invited a Crane to supper and provided nothing for his entertainment but some
soup made of pulse, which was poured out into a broad flat stone dish. The soup fell out
of the long bill of the Crane at every mouthful, and his vexation at not being able to eat
afforded the Fox much amusement. The Crane, in his turn, asked the Fox to sup with him,
and set before her a flagon with a long narrow mouth, so that he could easily insert his
neck and enjoy its contents at his leisure. The Fox, unable even to taste it, met with a
fitting requital, after the fashion of her own hospitality.
Jupiter, Neptune, Minerva, and Momus
ACCORDING to an ancient legend, the first man was made by Jupiter, the first bull by
Neptune, and the first house by Minerva. On the completion of their labors, a dispute
arose as to which had made the most perfect work. They agreed to appoint Momus as judge,
and to abide by his decision. Momus, however, being very envious of the handicraft of
each, found fault with all. He first blamed the work of Neptune because he had not made
the horns of the bull below his eyes, so he might better see where to strike. He then
condemned the work of Jupiter, because he had not placed the heart of man on the outside,
that everyone might read the thoughts of the evil disposed and take precautions against
the intended mischief. And, lastly, he inveighed against Minerva because she had not
contrived iron wheels in the foundation of her house, so its inhabitants might more easily
remove if a neighbor proved unpleasant. Jupiter, indignant at such inveterate
faultfinding, drove him from his office of judge, and expelled him from the mansions of
Olympus.
The Eagle and the Fox
AN EAGLE and a Fox formed an intimate friendship and decided to live near each other.
The Eagle built her nest in the branches of a tall tree, while the Fox crept into the
underwood and there produced her young. Not long after they had agreed upon this plan, the
Eagle, being in want of provision for her young ones, swooped down while the Fox was out,
seized upon one of the little cubs, and feasted herself and her brood. The Fox on her
return, discovered what had happened, but was less grieved for the death of her young than
for her inability to avenge them. A just retribution, however, quickly fell upon the
Eagle. While hovering near an altar, on which some villagers were sacrificing a goat, she
suddenly seized a piece of the flesh, and carried it, along with a burning cinder, to her
nest. A strong breeze soon fanned the spark into a flame, and the eaglets, as yet
unfledged and helpless, were roasted in their nest and dropped down dead at the bottom of
the tree. There, in the sight of the Eagle, the Fox gobbled them up.
The Man and the Satyr
A MAN and a Satyr once drank together in token of a bond of alliance being formed
between them. One very cold wintry day, as they talked, the Man put his fingers to his
mouth and blew on them. When the Satyr asked the reason for this, he told him that he did
it to warm his hands because they were so cold. Later on in the day they sat down to eat,
and the food prepared was quite scalding. The Man raised one of the dishes a little
towards his mouth and blew in it. When the Satyr again inquired the reason, he said that
he did it to cool the meat, which was too hot. "I can no longer consider you as a
friend," said the Satyr, "a fellow who with the same breath blows hot and
cold."
The Ass and His Purchaser
A MAN wished to purchase an Ass, and agreed with its owner that he should try out the
animal before he bought him. He took the Ass home and put him in the straw-yard with his
other Asses, upon which the new animal left all the others and at once joined the one that
was most idle and the greatest eater of them all. Seeing this, the man put a halter on him
and led him back to his owner. On being asked how, in so short a time, he could have made
a trial of him, he answered, "I do not need a trial; I know that he will be just the
same as the one he chose for his companion."
A man is known by the company he keeps.
The Two Bags
EVERY MAN, according to an ancient legend, is born into the world with two bags
suspended from his neck all bag in front full of his neighbors' faults, and a large bag
behind filled with his own faults. Hence it is that men are quick to see the faults of
others, and yet are often blind to their own failings.
The Stag at the Pool
A STAG overpowered by heat came to a spring to drink. Seeing his own shadow reflected
in the water, he greatly admired the size and variety of his horns, but felt angry with
himself for having such slender and weak feet. While he was thus contemplating himself, a
Lion appeared at the pool and crouched to spring upon him. The Stag immediately took to
flight, and exerting his utmost speed, as long as the plain was smooth and open kept
himself easily at a safe distance from the Lion. But entering a wood he became entangled
by his horns, and the Lion quickly came up to him and caught him. When too late, he thus
reproached himself: "Woe is me! How I have deceived myself! These feet which would
have saved me I despised, and I gloried in these antlers which have proved my
destruction."
What is most truly valuable is often underrated.
The Jackdaw and the Fox
A HALF-FAMISHED JACKDAW seated himself on a fig-tree, which had produced some fruit
entirely out of season, and waited in the hope that the figs would ripen. A Fox seeing him
sitting so long and learning the reason of his doing so, said to him, "You are
indeed, sir, sadly deceiving yourself; you are indulging a hope strong enough to cheat
you, but which will never reward you with enjoyment."
The Lark Burying Her Father
THE LARK (according to an ancient legend) was created before the earth itself, and when
her father died, as there was no earth, she could find no place of burial for him. She let
him lie uninterred for five days, and on the sixth day, not knowing what else to do, she
buried him in her own head. Hence she obtained her crest, which is popularly said to be
her father's grave-hillock.
Youth's first duty is reverence to parents.
The Gnat and the Bull
A GNAT settled on the horn of a Bull, and sat there a long time. Just as he was about
to fly off, he made a buzzing noise, and inquired of the Bull if he would like him to go.
The Bull replied, "I did not know you had come, and I shall not miss you when you go
away."
Some men are of more consequence in their own eyes than in the eyes of
their neighbors.
The Bitch and Her Whelps
A BITCH, ready to whelp, earnestly begged a shepherd for a place where she might
litter. When her request was granted, she besought permission to rear her puppies in the
same spot. The shepherd again consented. But at last the Bitch, protected by the bodyguard
of her Whelps, who had now grown up and were able to defend themselves, asserted her
exclusive right to the place and would not permit the shepherd to approach.
The Dogs and the Hides
SOME DOGS famished with hunger saw a number of cowhides steeping in a river. Not being
able to reach them, they agreed to drink up the river, but it happened that they burst
themselves with drinking long before they reached the hides.
Attempt not impossibilities.
The Shepherd and the Sheep
A SHEPHERD driving his Sheep to a wood, saw an oak of unusual size full of acorns, and
spreading his cloak under the branches, he climbed up into the tree and shook them down.
The Sheep eating the acorns inadvertently frayed and tore the cloak. When the Shepherd
came down and saw what was done, he said, "O you most ungrateful creatures! You
provide wool to make garments for all other men, but you destroy the clothes of him who
feeds you."
The Grasshopper and the Owl
AN OWL, accustomed to feed at night and to sleep during the day, was greatly disturbed
by the noise of a Grasshopper and earnestly besought her to stop chirping. The Grasshopper
refused to desist, and chirped louder and louder the more the Owl entreated. When she saw
that she could get no redress and that her words were despised, the Owl attacked the
chatterer by a stratagem. "Since I cannot sleep," she said, "on account of
your song which, believe me, is sweet as the lyre of Apollo, I shall indulge myself in
drinking some nectar which Pallas lately gave me. If you do not dislike it, come to me and
we will drink it together." The Grasshopper, who was thirsty, and pleased with the
praise of her voice, eagerly flew up. The Owl came forth from her hollow, seized her, and
put her to death.
The Monkey and the Camel
THE BEASTS of the forest gave a splendid entertainment at which the Monkey stood up and
danced. Having vastly delighted the assembly, he sat down amidst universal applause. The
Camel, envious of the praises bestowed on the Monkey and desiring to divert to himself the
favor of the guests, proposed to stand up in his turn and dance for their amusement. He
moved about in so utterly ridiculous a manner that the Beasts, in a fit of indignation,
set upon him with clubs and drove him out of the assembly.
It is absurd to ape our betters.
The Peasant and the Apple-Tree
A PEASANT had in his garden an Apple-Tree which bore no fruit but only served as a
harbor for the sparrows and grasshoppers. He resolved to cut it down, and taking his axe
in his hand, made a bold stroke at its roots. The grasshoppers and sparrows entreated him
not to cut down the tree that sheltered them, but to spare it, and they would sing to him
and lighten his labors. He paid no attention to their request, but gave the tree a second
and a third blow with his axe. When he reached the hollow of the tree, he found a hive
full of honey. Having tasted the honeycomb, he threw down his axe, and looking on the tree
as sacred, took great care of it.
Self-interest alone moves some men.
The Two Soldiers and the Robber
TWO SOLDIERS traveling together were set upon by a Robber. The one fled away; the other
stood his ground and defended himself with his stout right hand. The Robber being slain,
the timid companion ran up and drew his sword, and then, throwing back his traveling cloak
said, "I'll at him, and I'll take care he shall learn whom he has attacked." On
this, he who had fought with the Robber made answer, "I only wish that you had helped
me just now, even if it had been only with those words, for I should have been the more
encouraged, believing them to be true; but now put up your sword in its sheath and hold
your equally useless tongue, till you can deceive others who do not know you. I, indeed,
who have experienced with what speed you run away, know right well that no dependence can
be placed on your valor."
The Trees Under the Protection of the Gods
THE GODS, according to an ancient legend, made choice of certain trees to be under
their special protection. Jupiter chose the oak, Venus the myrtle, Apollo the laurel,
Cybele the pine, and Hercules the poplar. Minerva, wondering why they had preferred trees
not yielding fruit, inquired the reason for their choice. Jupiter replied, "It is
lest we should seem to covet the honor for the fruit." But said Minerva, "Let
anyone say what he will the olive is more dear to me on account of its fruit." Then
said Jupiter, "My daughter, you are rightly called wise; for unless what we do is
useful, the glory of it is vain."
The Mother and the Wolf
A FAMISHED WOLF was prowling about in the morning in search of food. As he passed the
door of a cottage built in the forest, he heard a Mother say to her child, "Be quiet,
or I will throw you out of the window, and the Wolf shall eat you." The Wolf sat all
day waiting at the door. In the evening he heard the same woman fondling her child and
saying: "You are quiet now, and if the Wolf should come, we will kill him." The
Wolf, hearing these words, went home, gasping with cold and hunger. When he reached his
den, Mistress Wolf inquired of him why he returned wearied and supperless, so contrary to
his wont. He replied: "Why, forsooth! use I gave credence to the words of a
woman!"
The Ass and the Horse
AN ASS besought a Horse to spare him a small portion of his feed. "Yes," said
the Horse; "if any remains out of what I am now eating I will give it you for the
sake of my own superior dignity, and if you will come when I reach my own stall in the
evening, I will give you a little sack full of barley." The Ass replied, "Thank
you. But I can't think that you, who refuse me a little matter now. will by and by confer
on me a greater benefit."
Truth and the Traveler
A WAYFARING MAN, traveling in the desert, met a woman standing alone and terribly
dejected. He inquired of her, "Who art thou?" "My name is Truth," she
replied. "And for what cause," he asked, "have you left the city to dwell
alone here in the wilderness?" She made answer, "Because in former times,
falsehood was with few, but is now with all men."
The Manslayer
A MAN committed a murder, and was pursued by the relations of the man whom he murdered.
On his reaching the river Nile he saw a Lion on its bank and being fearfully afraid,
climbed up a tree. He found a serpent in the upper branches of the tree, and again being
greatly alarmed, he threw himself into the river, where a crocodile caught him and ate
him. Thus the earth, the air, and the water alike refused shelter to a murderer.
The Lion and the Fox
A FOX entered into partnership with a Lion on the pretense of becoming his servant.
Each undertook his proper duty in accordance with his own nature and powers. The Fox
discovered and pointed out the prey; the Lion sprang on it and seized it. The Fox soon
became jealous of the Lion carrying off the Lion's share, and said that he would no longer
find out the prey, but would capture it on his own account. The next day he attempted to
snatch a lamb from the fold, but he himself fell prey to the huntsmen and hounds.
The Lion and the Eagle
AN EAGLE stayed his flight and entreated a Lion to make an alliance with him to their
mutual advantage. The Lion replied, "I have no objection, but you must excuse me for
requiring you to find surety for your good faith, for how can I trust anyone as a friend
who is able to fly away from his bargain whenever he pleases?'
Try before you trust.
The Hen and the Swallow
A HEN finding the eggs of a viper and carefully keeping them warm, nourished them into
life. A Swallow, observing what she had done, said, "You silly creature! why have you
hatched these vipers which, when they shall have grown, will inflict injury on all,
beginning with yourself?'
The Buffoon and the Countryman
A RICH NOBLEMAN once opened the theaters without charge to the people, and gave a
public notice that he would handsomely reward any person who invented a new amusement for
the occasion. Various public performers contended for the prize. Among them came a Buffoon
well known among the populace for his jokes, and said that he had a kind of entertainment
which had never been brought out on any stage before. This report being spread about made
a great stir, and the theater was crowded in every part. The Buffoon appeared alone upon
the platform, without any apparatus or confederates, and the very sense of expectation
caused an intense silence. He suddenly bent his head towards his bosom and imitated the
squeaking of a little pig so admirably with his voice that the audience declared he had a
porker under his cloak, and demanded that it should be shaken out. When that was done and
nothing was found, they cheered the actor, and loaded him with the loudest applause. A
Countryman in the crowd, observing all that has passed, said, "So help me, Hercules,
he shall not beat me at that trick!" and at once proclaimed that he would do the same
thing on the next day, though in a much more natural way. On the morrow a still larger
crowd assembled in the theater, but now partiality for their favorite actor very generally
prevailed, and the audience came rather to ridicule the Countryman than to see the
spectacle. Both of the performers appeared on the stage. The Buffoon grunted and squeaked
away first, and obtained, as on the preceding day, the applause and cheers of the
spectators. Next the Countryman commenced, and pretending that he concealed a little pig
beneath his clothes (which in truth he did, but not suspected by the audience ) contrived
to take hold of and to pull his ear causing the pig to squeak. The Crowd, however, cried
out with one consent that the Buffoon had given a far more exact imitation, and clamored
for the Countryman to be kicked out of the theater. On this the rustic produced the little
pig from his cloak and showed by the most positive proof the greatness of their mistake.
"Look here," he said, "this shows what sort of judges you are."
The Crow and the Serpent
A CROW in great want of food saw a Serpent asleep in a sunny nook, and flying down,
greedily seized him. The Serpent, turning about, bit the Crow with a mortal wound. In the
agony of death, the bird exclaimed: "O unhappy me! who have found in that which I
deemed a happy windfall the source of my destruction."
The Hunter and the Horseman
A CERTAIN HUNTER, having snared a hare, placed it upon his shoulders and set out
homewards. On his way he met a man on horseback who begged the hare of him, under the
pretense of purchasing it. However, when the Horseman got the hare, he rode off as fast as
he could. The Hunter ran after him, as if he was sure of overtaking him, but the Horseman
increased more and more the distance between them. The Hunter, sorely against his will,
called out to him and said, "Get along with you! for I will now make you a present of
the hare."
The King's Son and the Painted Lion
A KING, whose only son was fond of martial exercises, had a dream in which he was
warned that his son would be killed by a lion. Afraid the dream should prove true, he
built for his son a pleasant palace and adorned its walls for his amusement with all kinds
of life-sized animals, among which was the picture of a lion. When the young Prince saw
this, his grief at being thus confined burst out afresh, and, standing near the lion, he
said: "O you most detestable of animals! through a lying dream of my father's, which
he saw in his sleep, I am shut up on your account in this palace as if I had been a girl:
what shall I now do to you?' With these words he stretched out his hands toward a
thorn-tree, meaning to cut a stick from its branches so that he might beat the lion. But
one of the tree's prickles pierced his finger and caused great pain and inflammation, so
that the young Prince fell down in a fainting fit. A violent fever suddenly set in, from
which he died not many days later.
We had better bear our troubles bravely than try to escape them.
The Cat and Venus
A CAT fell in love with a handsome young man, and entreated Venus to change her into
the form of a woman. Venus consented to her request and transformed her into a beautiful
damsel, so that the youth saw her and loved her, and took her home as his bride. While the
two were reclining in their chamber, Venus wishing to discover if the Cat in her change of
shape had also altered her habits of life, let down a mouse in the middle of the room. The
Cat, quite forgetting her present condition, started up from the couch and pursued the
mouse, wishing to eat it. Venus was much disappointed and again caused her to return to
her former shape.
Nature exceeds nurture.
The She-Goats and Their Beards
THE SHE-GOATS having obtained a beard by request to Jupiter, the He-Goats were sorely
displeased and made complaint that the females equaled them in dignity. "Allow
them," said Jupiter, "to enjoy an empty honor and to assume the badge of your
nobler sex, so long as they are not your equals in strength or courage."
It matters little if those who are inferior to us in merit should be
like us in outside appearances.
The Camel and the Arab
AN ARAB CAMEL-DRIVER, after completing the loading of his Camel, asked him which he
would like best, to go up hill or down. The poor beast replied, not without a touch of
reason: "Why do you ask me? Is it that the level way through the desert is
closed?"
The Miller, His Son, and Their Ass
A MILLER and his son were driving their Ass to a neighboring fair to sell him. They had
not gone far when they met with a troop of women collected round a well, talking and
laughing. "Look there," cried one of them, "did you ever see such fellows,
to be trudging along the road on foot when they might ride?' The old man hearing this,
quickly made his son mount the Ass, and continued to walk along merrily by his side.
Presently they came up to a group of old men in earnest debate. "There," said
one of them, "it proves what I was a-saying. What respect is shown to old age in
these days? Do you see that idle lad riding while his old father has to walk? Get down,
you young scapegrace, and let the old man rest his weary limbs." Upon this the old
man made his son dismount, and got up himself. In this manner they had not proceeded far
when they met a company of women and children: "Why, you lazy old fellow," cried
several tongues at once, "how can you ride upon the beast, while that poor little lad
there can hardly keep pace by the side of you?' The good-natured Miller immediately took
up his son behind him. They had now almost reached the town. "Pray, honest
friend," said a citizen, "is that Ass your own?' "Yes," replied the
old man. "O, one would not have thought so," said the other, "by the way
you load him. Why, you two fellows are better able to carry the poor beast than he
you." "Anything to please you," said the old man; "we can but
try." So, alighting with his son, they tied the legs of the Ass together and with the
help of a pole endeavored to carry him on their shoulders over a bridge near the entrance
to the town. This entertaining sight brought the people in crowds to laugh at it, till the
Ass, not liking the noise nor the strange handling that he was subject to, broke the cords
that bound him and, tumbling off the pole, fell into the river. Upon this, the old man,
vexed and ashamed, made the best of his way home again, convinced that by endeavoring to
please everybody he had pleased nobody, and lost his Ass in the bargain.
The Crow and the Sheep
A TROUBLESOME CROW seated herself on the back of a Sheep. The Sheep, much against his
will, carried her backward and forward for a long time, and at last said, "If you had
treated a dog in this way, you would have had your deserts from his sharp teeth." To
this the Crow replied, "I despise the weak and yield to the strong. I know whom I may
bully and whom I must flatter; and I thus prolong my life to a good old age."
The Fox and the Bramble
A FOX was mounting a hedge when he lost his footing and caught hold of a Bramble to
save himself. Having pricked and grievously tom the soles of his feet, he accused the
Bramble because, when he had fled to her for assistance, she had used him worse than the
hedge itself. The Bramble, interrupting him, said, "But you really must have been out
of your senses to fasten yourself on me, who am myself always accustomed to fasten upon
others."
The Wolf and the Lion
A WOLF, having stolen a lamb from a fold, was carrying him off to his lair. A Lion met
him in the path, and seizing the lamb, took it from him. Standing at a safe distance, the
Wolf exclaimed, "You have unrighteously taken that which was mine from me!" To
which the Lion jeeringly replied, "It was righteously yours, eh? The gift of a
friend?'
The Dog and the Oyster
A DOG, used to eating eggs, saw an Oyster and, opening his mouth to its widest extent,
swallowed it down with the utmost relish, supposing it to be an egg. Soon afterwards
suffering great pain in his stomach, he said, "I deserve all this torment, for my
folly in thinking that everything round must be an egg."
They who act without sufficient thought, will often fall into
unsuspected danger.
The Ant and the Dove
AN ANT went to the bank of a river to quench its thirst, and being carried away by the
rush of the stream, was on the point of drowning. A Dove sitting on a tree overhanging the
water plucked a leaf and let it fall into the stream close to her. The Ant climbed onto it
and floated in safety to the bank. Shortly afterwards a birdcatcher came and stood under
the tree, and laid his lime-twigs for the Dove, which sat in the branches. The Ant,
perceiving his design, stung him in the foot. In pain the birdcatcher threw down the
twigs, and the noise made the Dove take wing.
The Partridge and the Fowler
A FOWLER caught a Partridge and was about to kill it. The Partridge earnestly begged
him to spare his life, saying, "Pray, master, permit me to live and I will entice
many Partridges to you in recompense for your mercy to me." The Fowler replied,
"I shall now with less scruple take your life, because you are willing to save it at
the cost of betraying your friends and relations."
The Flea and the Man
A MAN, very much annoyed with a Flea, caught him at last, and said, "Who are you
who dare to feed on my limbs, and to cost me so much trouble in catching you?' The Flea
replied, "O my dear sir, pray spare my life, and destroy me not, for I cannot
possibly do you much harm." The Man, laughing, replied, "Now you shall certainly
die by mine own hands, for no evil, whether it be small or large, ought to be
tolerated."
The Thieves and the Cock
SOME THIEVES broke into a house and found nothing but a Cock, whom they stole, and got
off as fast as they could. Upon arriving at home they prepared to kill the Cock, who thus
pleaded for his life: "Pray spare me; I am very serviceable to men. I wake them up in
the night to their work." "That is the very reason why we must the more kill
you," they replied; "for when you wake your neighbors, you entirely put an end
to our business."
The safeguards of virtue are hateful to those with evil intentions.
The Dog and the Cook
A RICH MAN gave a great feast, to which he invited many friends and acquaintances. His
Dog availed himself of the occasion to invite a stranger Dog, a friend of his, saying,
"My master gives a feast, and there is always much food remaining; come and sup with
me tonight." The Dog thus invited went at the hour appointed, and seeing the
preparations for so grand an entertainment, said in the joy of his heart, "How glad I
am that I came! I do not often get such a chance as this. I will take care and eat enough
to last me both today and tomorrow." While he was congratulating himself and wagging
his tail to convey his pleasure to his friend, the Cook saw him moving about among his
dishes and, seizing him by his fore and hind paws, bundled him without ceremony out of the
window. He fell with force upon the ground and limped away, howling dreadfully. His
yelling soon attracted other street dogs, who came up to him and inquired how he had
enjoyed his supper. He replied, "Why, to tell you the truth, I drank so much wine
that I remember nothing. I do not know how I got out of the house."
The Travelers and the Plane-Tree
TWO TRAVELERS, worn out by the heat of the summer's sun, laid themselves down at noon
under the widespreading branches of a Plane-Tree. As they rested under its shade, one of
the Travelers said to the other, "What a singularly useless tree is the Plane! It
bears no fruit, and is not of the least service to man." The Plane-Tree, interrupting
him, said, "You ungrateful fellows! Do you, while receiving benefits from me and
resting under my shade, dare to describe me as useless, and unprofitable?'
Some men underrate their best blessings.
The Hares and the Frogs
THE HARES, oppressed by their own exceeding timidity and weary of the perpetual alarm
to which they were exposed, with one accord determined to put an end to themselves and
their troubles by jumping from a lofty precipice into a deep lake below. As they scampered
off in large numbers to carry out their resolve, the Frogs lying on the banks of the lake
heard the noise of their feet and rushed helter-skelter to the deep water for safety. On
seeing the rapid disappearance of the Frogs, one of the Hares cried out to his companions:
"Stay, my friends, do not do as you intended; for you now see that there are
creatures who are still more timid than ourselves."
The Lion, Jupiter, and the Elephant
THE LION wearied Jupiter with his frequent complaints. "It is true, O
Jupiter!" he said, "that I am gigantic in strength, handsome in shape, and
powerful in attack. I have jaws well provided with teeth, and feet furnished with claws,
and I lord it over all the beasts of the forest, and what a disgrace it is, that being
such as I am, I should be frightened by the crowing of a cock." Jupiter replied,
"Why do you blame me without a cause? I have given you all the attributes which I
possess myself, and your courage never fails you except in this one instance." On
hearing this the Lion groaned and lamented very much and, reproaching himself with his
cowardice, wished that he might die. As these thoughts passed through his mind, he met an
Elephant and came close to hold a conversation with him. After a time he observed that the
Elephant shook his ears very often, and he inquired what was the matter and why his ears
moved with such a tremor every now and then. Just at that moment a Gnat settled on the
head of the Elephant, and he replied, "Do you see that little buzzing insect? If it
enters my ear, my fate is sealed. I should die presently." The Lion said, "Well,
since so huge a beast is afraid of a tiny gnat, I will no more complain, nor wish myself
dead. I find myself, even as I am, better off than the Elephant."
The Lamb and the Wolf
A WOLF pursued a Lamb, which fled for refuge to a certain Temple. The Wolf called out
to him and said, "The Priest will slay you in sacrifice, if he should catch
you." On which the Lamb replied, "It would be better for me to be sacrificed in
the Temple than to be eaten by you."
The Rich Man and the Tanner
A RICH MAN lived near a Tanner, and not being able to bear the unpleasant smell of the
tan-yard, he pressed his neighbor to go away. The Tanner put off his departure from time
to time, saying that he would leave soon. But as he still continued to stay, as time went
on, the rich man became accustomed to the smell, and feeling no manner of inconvenience,
made no further complaints.
The Shipwrecked Man and the Sea
A SHIPWRECKED MAN, having been cast upon a certain shore, slept after his buffetings
with the deep. After a while he awoke, and looking upon the Sea, loaded it with
reproaches. He argued that it enticed men with the calmness of its looks, but when it had
induced them to plow its waters, it grew rough and destroyed them. The Sea, assuming the
form of a woman, replied to him: "Blame not me, my good sir, but the winds, for I am
by my own nature as calm and firm even as this earth; but the winds suddenly falling on me
create these waves, and lash me into fury."
The Mules and the Robbers
TWO MULES well-laden with packs were trudging along. One carried panniers filled with
money, the other sacks weighted with grain. The Mule carrying the treasure walked with
head erect, as if conscious of the value of his burden, and tossed up and down the
clear-toned bells fastened to his neck. His companion followed with quiet and easy step.
All of a sudden Robbers rushed upon them from their hiding-places, and in the scuffle with
their owners, wounded with a sword the Mule carrying the treasure, which they greedily
seized while taking no notice of the grain. The Mule which had been robbed and wounded
bewailed his misfortunes. The other replied, "I am indeed glad that I was thought so
little of, for I have lost nothing, nor am I hurt with any wound."
The Viper and the File
A LION, entering the workshop of a smith, sought from the tools the means of satisfying
his hunger. He more particularly addressed himself to a File, and asked of him the favor
of a meal. The File replied, "You must indeed be a simple-minded fellow if you expect
to get anything from me, who am accustomed to take from everyone, and never to give
anything in return."
The Lion and the Shepherd
A LION, roaming through a forest, trod upon a thorn. Soon afterward he came up to a
Shepherd and fawned upon him, wagging his tail as if to say, "I am a suppliant, and
seek your aid." The Shepherd boldly examined the beast, discovered the thorn, and
placing his paw upon his lap, pulled it out; thus relieved of his pain, the Lion returned
into the forest. Some time after, the Shepherd, being imprisoned on a false accusation,
was condemned "to be cast to the Lions" as the punishment for his imputed crime.
But when the Lion was released from his cage, he recognized the Shepherd as the man who
healed him, and instead of attacking him, approached and placed his foot upon his lap. The
King, as soon as he heard the tale, ordered the Lion to be set free again in the forest,
and the Shepherd to be pardoned and restored to his friends.
The Camel and Jupiter
THE CAMEL, when he saw the Bull adorned with horns, envied him and wished that he
himself could obtain the same honors. He went to Jupiter, and besought him to give him
horns. Jupiter, vexed at his request because he was not satisfied with his size and
strength of body, and desired yet more, not only refused to give him horns, but even
deprived him of a portion of his ears.
The Panther and the Shepherds
A PANTHER, by some mischance, fell into a pit. The Shepherds discovered him, and some
threw sticks at him and pelted him with stones, while others, moved with compassion
towards one about to die even though no one should hurt him, threw in some food to prolong
his life. At night they returned home, not dreaming of any danger, but supposing that on
the morrow they would find him dead. The Panther, however, when he had recruited his
feeble strength, freed himself with a sudden bound from the pit, and hastened to his den
with rapid steps. After a few days he came forth and slaughtered the cattle, and, killing
the Shepherds who had attacked him, raged with angry fury. Then they who had spared his
life, fearing for their safety, surrendered to him their flocks and begged only for their
lives. To them the Panther made this reply: "I remember alike those who sought my
life with stones, and those who gave me food aside, therefore, your fears. I return as an
enemy only to those who injured me."
The Ass and the Charger
AN ASS congratulated a Horse on being so ungrudgingly and carefully provided for, while
he himself had scarcely enough to eat and not even that without hard work. But when war
broke out, a heavily armed soldier mounted the Horse, and riding him to the charge, rushed
into the very midst of the enemy. The Horse was wounded and fell dead on the battlefield.
Then the Ass, seeing all these things, changed his mind, and commiserated the Horse.
The Eagle and His Captor
AN EAGLE was once captured by a man, who immediately clipped his wings and put him into
his poultry-yard with the other birds, at which treatment the Eagle was weighed down with
grief. Later, another neighbor purchased him and allowed his feathers to grow again. The
Eagle took flight, and pouncing upon a hare, brought it at once as an offering to his
benefactor. A Fox, seeing this, exclaimed, "Do not cultivate the favor of this man,
but of your former owner, lest he should again hunt for you and deprive you a second time
of your wings."
The Bald Man and the Fly
A FLY bit the bare head of a Bald Man who, endeavoring to destroy it, gave himself a
heavy slap. Escaping, the Fly said mockingly, "You who have wished to revenge, even
with death, the Prick of a tiny insect, see what you have done to yourself to add insult
to injury?' The Bald Man replied, "I can easily make peace with myself, because I
know there was no intention to hurt. But you, an ill-favored and contemptible insect who
delights in sucking human blood, I wish that I could have killed you even if I had
incurred a heavier penalty."
The Olive-Tree and the Fig-Tree
THE OLIVE-TREE ridiculed the Fig-Tree because, while she was green all the year round,
the Fig-Tree changed its leaves with the seasons. A shower of snow fell upon them, and,
finding the Olive full of foliage, it settled upon its branches and broke them down with
its weight, at once despoiling it of its beauty and killing the tree. But finding the
Fig-Tree denuded of leaves, the snow fell through to the ground, and did not injure it at
all.
The Eagle and the Kite
AN EAGLE, overwhelmed with sorrow, sat upon the branches of a tree in company with a
Kite. "Why," said the Kite, "do I see you with such a rueful look?' "I
seek," she replied, "a mate suitable for me, and am not able to find one."
"Take me," returned the Kite, "I am much stronger than you are."
"Why, are you able to secure the means of living by your plunder?' "Well, I have
often caught and carried away an ostrich in my talons." The Eagle, persuaded by these
words, accepted him as her mate. Shortly after the nuptials, the Eagle said, "Fly off
and bring me back the ostrich you promised me." The Kite, soaring aloft into the air,
brought back the shabbiest possible mouse, stinking from the length of time it had lain
about the fields. "Is this," said the Eagle, "the faithful fulfillment of
your promise to me?' The Kite replied, "That I might attain your royal hand, there is
nothing that I would not have promised, however much I knew that I must fail in the
performance."
The Ass and His Driver
AN ASS, being driven along a high road, suddenly started off and bolted to the brink of
a deep precipice. While he was in the act of throwing himself over, his owner seized him
by the tail, endeavoring to pull him back. When the Ass persisted in his effort, the man
let him go and said, "Conquer, but conquer to your cost."
The Thrush and the Fowler
A THRUSH was feeding on a myrtle-tree and did not move from it because its berries were
so delicious. A Fowler observed her staying so long in one spot, and having well
bird-limed his reeds, caught her. The Thrush, being at the point of death, exclaimed,
"O foolish creature that I am! For the sake of a little pleasant food I have deprived
myself of my life."
The Rose and the Amaranth
AN AMARANTH planted in a garden near a Rose-Tree, thus addressed it: "What a
lovely flower is the Rose, a favorite alike with Gods and with men. I envy you your beauty
and your perfume." The Rose replied, "I indeed, dear Amaranth, flourish but for
a brief season! If no cruel hand pluck me from my stem, yet I must perish by an early
doom. But thou art immortal and dost never fade, but bloomest for ever in renewed
youth."
The Frogs' Complaint Against the Sun
ONCE UPON A TIME, when the Sun announced his intention to take a wife, the Frogs lifted
up their voices in clamor to the sky. Jupiter, disturbed by the noise of their croaking,
inquired the cause of their complaint. One of them said, "The Sun, now while he is
single, parches up the marsh, and compels us to die miserably in our arid homes. What will
be our future condition if he should beget other suns?'
LIFE OF AESOP
THE LIFE and History of Aesop is involved, like that of Homer, the most famous of Greek
poets, in much obscurity. Sardis, the capital of Lydia; Samos, a Greek island; Mesembria,
an ancient colony in Thrace; and Cotiaeum, the chief city of a province of Phrygia,
contend for the distinction of being the birthplace of Aesop. Although the honor thus
claimed cannot be definitely assigned to any one of these places, yet there are a few
incidents now generally accepted by scholars as established facts, relating to the birth,
life, and death of Aesop. He is, by an almost universal consent, allowed to have been born
about the year 620 B.C., and to have been by birth a slave. He was owned by two masters in
succession, both inhabitants of Samos, Xanthus and Jadmon, the latter of whom gave him his
liberty as a reward for his learning and wit. One of the privileges of a freedman in the
ancient republics of Greece, was the permission to take an active interest in public
affairs; and Aesop, like the philosophers Phaedo, Menippus, and Epictetus, in later times,
raised himself from the indignity of a servile condition to a position of high renown. In
his desire alike to instruct and to be instructed, he travelled through many countries,
and among others came to Sardis, the capital of the famous king of Lydia, the great
patron, in that day, of learning and of learned men. He met at the court of Croesus with
Solon, Thales, and other sages, and is related so to have pleased his royal master, by the
part he took in the conversations held with these philosophers, that he applied to him an
expression which has since passed into a proverb, "The Phrygian has spoken better
than all."
On the invitation of Croesus he fixed his residence at Sardis, and was employed by that
monarch in various difficult and delicate affairs of State. In his discharge of these
commissions he visited the different petty republics of Greece. At one time he is found in
Corinth, and at another in Athens, endeavouring, by the narration of some of his wise
fables, to reconcile the inhabitants of those cities to the administration of their
respective rulers Periander and Pisistratus. One of these ambassadorial missions,
undertaken at the command of Croesus, was the occasion of his death. Having been sent to
Delphi with a large sum of gold for distribution among the citizens, he was so provoked at
their covetousness that he refused to divide the money, and sent it back to his master.
The Delphians, enraged at this treatment, accused him of impiety, and, in spite of his
sacred character as ambassador, executed him as a public criminal. This cruel death of
Aesop was not unavenged. The citizens of Delphi were visited with a series of calamities,
until they made a public reparation of their crime; and, "The blood of Aesop"
became a well- known adage, bearing witness to the truth that deeds of wrong would not
pass unpunished. Neither did the great fabulist lack posthumous honors; for a statue was
erected to his memory at Athens, the work of Lysippus, one of the most famous of Greek
sculptors. Phaedrus thus immortalizes the event:
Aesopo ingentem statuam posuere Attici, Servumque collocarunt aeterna in basi: Patere
honoris scirent ut cuncti viam; Nec generi tribui sed virtuti gloriam.
These few facts are all that can be relied on with any degree of certainty, in
reference to the birth, life, and death of Aesop. They were first brought to light, after
a patient search and diligent perusal of ancient authors, by a Frenchman, M. Claude
Gaspard Bachet de Mezeriac, who declined the honor of being tutor to Louis XIII of France,
from his desire to devote himself exclusively to literature. He published his Life of
Aesop, Anno Domini 1632. The later investigations of a host of English and German scholars
have added very little to the facts given by M. Mezeriac. The substantial truth of his
statements has been confirmed by later criticism and inquiry. It remains to state, that
prior to this publication of M. Mezeriac, the life of Aesop was from the pen of Maximus
Planudes, a monk of Constantinople, who was sent on an embassy to Venice by the Byzantine
Emperor Andronicus the elder, and who wrote in the early part of the fourteenth century.
His life was prefixed to all the early editions of these fables, and was republished as
late as 1727 by Archdeacon Croxall as the introduction to his edition of Aesop. This life
by Planudes contains, however, so small an amount of truth, and is so full of absurd
pictures of the grotesque deformity of Aesop, of wondrous apocryphal stories, of lying
legends, and gross anachronisms, that it is now universally condemned as false, puerile,
and unauthentic. l It is given up in the present day, by general consent, as unworthy of
the slightest credit. G.F.T.
1 M. Bayle thus characterises this Life of Aesop by Planudes, "Tous les habiles
gens conviennent que c'est un roman, et que les absurdites grossieres qui l'on y trouve le
rendent indigne de toute." Dictionnaire Historique. Art. Esope.
*********Preface********
PREFACE
THE TALE, the Parable, and the Fable are all common and popular modes of conveying
instruction. Each is distinguished by its own special characteristics. The Tale consists
simply in the narration of a story either founded on facts, or created solely by the
imagination, and not necessarily associated with the teaching of any moral lesson. The
Parable is the designed use of language purposely intended to convey a hidden and secret
meaning other than that contained in the words themselves; and which may or may not bear a
special reference to the hearer, or reader. The Fable partly agrees with, and partly
differs from both of these. It will contain, like the Tale, a short but real narrative; it
will seek, like the Parable, to convey a hidden meaning, and that not so much by the use
of language, as by the skilful introduction of fictitious characters; and yet unlike to
either Tale or Parable, it will ever keep in view, as its high prerogative, and
inseparable attribute, the great purpose of instruction, and will necessarily seek to
inculcate some moral maxim, social duty, or political truth. The true Fable, if it rise to
its high requirements, ever aims at one great end and purpose representation of human
motive, and the improvement of human conduct, and yet it so conceals its design under the
disguise of fictitious characters, by clothing with speech the animals of the field, the
birds of the air, the trees of the wood, or the beasts of the forest, that the reader
shall receive advice without perceiving the presence of the adviser. Thus the superiority
of the counsellor, which often renders counsel unpalatable, is kept out of view, and the
lesson comes with the greater acceptance when the reader is led, unconsciously to himself,
to have his sympathies enlisted in behalf of what is pure, honorable, and praiseworthy,
and to have his indignation excited against what is low, ignoble, and unworthy. The true
fabulist, therefore, discharges a most important function. He is neither a narrator, nor
an allegorist. He is a great teacher, a corrector of morals, a censor of vice, and a
commender of virtue. In this consists the superiority of the Fable over the Tale or the
Parable. The fabulist is to create a laugh, but yet, under a merry guise, to convey
instruction. Phaedrus, the great imitator of Aesop, plainly indicates this double purpose
to be the true office of the writer of fables.
Duplex libelli dos est: quod risum movet, Et quod prudenti vitam consilio monet.
The continual observance of this twofold aim creates the charm, and accounts for the
universal favor, of the fables of Aesop. "The fable," says Professor K. O.
Mueller, "originated in Greece in an intentional travestie of human affairs. The
'ainos,' as its name denotes, is an admonition, or rather a reproof veiled, either from
fear of an excess of frankness, or from a love of fun and jest, beneath the fiction of an
occurrence happening among beasts; and wherever we have any ancient and authentic account
of the Aesopian fables, we find it to be the same." l
The construction of a fable involves a minute attention to (1) the narration itself;
(2) the deduction of the moral; and (3) a careful maintenance of the individual
characteristics of the fictitious personages introduced into it. The narration should
relate to one simple action, consistent with itself, and neither be overladen with a
multiplicity of details, nor distracted by a variety of circumstances. The moral or lesson
should be so plain, and so intimately interwoven with, and so necessarily dependent on,
the narration, that every reader should be compelled to give to it the same undeniable
interpretation. The introduction of the animals or fictitious characters should be marked
with an unexceptionable care and attention to their natural attributes, and to the
qualities attributed to them by universal popular consent. The Fox should be always
cunning, the Hare timid, the Lion bold, the Wolf cruel, the Bull strong, the Horse proud,
and the Ass patient. Many of these fables are characterized by the strictest observance of
these rules. They are occupied with one short narrative, from which the moral naturally
flows, and with which it is intimately associated. "'Tis the simple manner,"
says Dodsley, 2 "in which the morals of Aesop are interwoven with his fables that
distinguishes him, and gives him the preference over all other mythologists. His 'Mountain
delivered of a Mouse,' produces the moral of his fable in ridicule of pompous pretenders;
and his Crow, when she drops her cheese, lets fall, as it were by accident, the strongest
admonition against the power of flattery. There is no need of a separate sentence to
explain it; no possibility of impressing it deeper, by that load we too often see of
accumulated reflections." 3 An equal amount of praise is due for the consistency with
which the characters of the animals, fictitiously introduced, are marked. While they are
made to depict the motives and passions of men, they retain, in an eminent degree, their
own special features of craft or counsel, of cowardice or courage, of generosity or
rapacity.
These terms of praise, it must be confessed, cannot be bestowed on all the fables in
this collection. Many of them lack that unity of design, that close connection of the
moral with the narrative, that wise choice in the introduction of the animals, which
constitute the charm and excellency of true Aesopian fable. This inferiority of some to
others is sufficiently accounted for in the history of the origin and descent of these
fables. The great bulk of them are not the immediate work of Aesop. Many are obtained from
ancient authors prior to the time in which he lived. Thus, the fable of the "Hawk and
the Nightingale" is related by Hesiod; 4 the "Eagle wounded by an Arrow, winged
with its own Feathers," by Aeschylus; 5 the "Fox avenging his wrongs on the
Eagle," by Archilochus. 6 Many of them again are of later origin, and are to be
traced to the monks of the middle ages: and yet this collection, though thus made up of
fables both earlier and later than the era of Aesop, rightfully bears his name, because he
composed so large a number (all framed in the same mould, and conformed to the same
fashion, and stamped with the same lineaments, image, and superscription) as to secure to
himself the right to be considered the father of Greek fables, and the founder of this
class of writing, which has ever since borne his name, and has secured for him, through
all succeeding ages, the position of the first of moralists.7
The fables were in the first instance only narrated by Aesop, and for a long time were
handed down by the uncertain channel of oral tradition. Socrates is mentioned by Plato 8
as having employed his time while in prison, awaiting the return of the sacred ship from
Delphos which was to be the signal of his death, in turning some of these fables into
verse, but he thus versified only such as he remembered. Demetrius Phalereus, a
philosopher at Athens about 300 B.C., is said to have made the first collection of these
fables. Phaedrus, a slave by birth or by subsequent misfortunes, and admitted by Augustus
to the honors of a freedman, imitated many of these fables in Latin iambics about the
commencement of the Christian era. Aphthonius, a rhetorician of Antioch, A.D. 315, wrote a
treatise on, and converted into Latin prose, some of these fables. This translation is the
more worthy of notice, as it illustrates a custom of common use, both in these and in
later times. The rhetoricians and philosophers were accustomed to give the Fables of Aesop
as an exercise to their scholars, not only inviting them to discuss the moral of the tale,
but also to practice and to perfect themselves thereby in style and rules of grammar, by
making for themselves new and various versions of the fables. Ausonius, 9 the friend of
the Emperor Valentinian, and the latest poet of eminence in the Western Empire, has handed
down some of these fables in verse, which Julianus Titianus, a contemporary writer of no
great name, translated into prose. Avienus, also a contemporary of Ausonius, put some of
these fables into Latin elegiacs, which are given by Nevelet (in a book we shall refer to
hereafter), and are occasionally incorporated with the editions of Phaedrus.
Seven centuries elapsed before the next notice is found of the Fables of Aesop. During
this long period these fables seem to have suffered an eclipse, to have disappeared and to
have been forgotten; and it is at the commencement of the fourteenth century, when the
Byzantine emperors were the great patrons of learning, and amidst the splendors of an
Asiatic court, that we next find honors paid to the name and memory of Aesop. Maximus
Planudes, a learned monk of Constantinople, made a collection of about a hundred and fifty
of these fables. Little is known of his history. Planudes, however, was no mere recluse,
shut up in his monastery. He took an active part in public affairs. In 1327 A.D. he was
sent on a diplomatic mission to Venice by the Emperor Andronicus the Elder. This brought
him into immediate contact with the Western Patriarch, whose interests he henceforth
advocated with so much zeal as to bring on him suspicion and persecution from the rulers
of the Eastern Church. Planudes has been exposed to a two-fold accusation. He is charged
on the one hand with having had before him a copy of Babrias (to whom we shall have
occasion to refer at greater length in the end of this Preface), and to have had the bad
taste "to transpose," or to turn his poetical version into prose: and he is
asserted, on the other hand, never to have seen the Fables of Aesop at all, but to have
himself invented and made the fables which he palmed off under the name of the famous
Greek fabulist. The truth lies between these two extremes. Planudes may have invented some
few fables, or have inserted some that were current in his day; but there is an abundance
of unanswerable internal evidence to prove that he had an acquaintance with the veritable
fables of Aesop, although the versions he had access to were probably corrupt, as
contained in the various translations and disquisitional exercises of the rhetoricians and
philosophers. His collection is interesting and important, not only as the parent source
or foundation of the earlier printed versions of Aesop, but as the direct channel of
attracting to these fables the attention of the learned.
The eventual re-introduction, however, of these Fables of Aesop to their high place in
the general literature of Christendom, is to be looked for in the West rather than in the
East. The calamities gradually thickening round the Eastern Empire, and the fall of
Constantinople, 1453 A.D. combined with other events to promote the rapid restoration of
learning in Italy; and with that recovery of learning the revival of an interest in the
Fables of Aesop is closely identified. These fables, indeed, were among the first writings
of an earlier antiquity that attracted attention. They took their place beside the Holy
Scriptures and the ancient classic authors, in the minds of the great students of that
day. Lorenzo Valla, one of the most famous promoters of Italian learning, not only
translated into Latin the Iliad of Homer and the Histories of Herodotus and Thucydides,
but also the Fables of Aesop.
These fables, again, were among the books brought into an extended circulation by the
agency of the printing press. Bonus Accursius, as early as 1475-1480, printed the
collection of these fables, made by Planudes, which, within five years afterwards, Caxton
translated into English, and printed at his press in West- minster Abbey, 1485. 10 It must
be mentioned also that the learning of this age has left permanent traces of its influence
on these fables, ll by causing the interpolation with them of some of those amusing
stories which were so frequently introduced into the public discourses of the great
preachers of those days, and of which specimens are yet to be found in the extant sermons
of Jean Raulin, Meffreth, and Gabriel Barlette. 12 The publication of this era which most
probably has influenced these fables, is the "Liber Facetiarum," l3 a book
consisting of a hundred jests and stories, by the celebrated Poggio Bracciolini, published
A.D. 1471, from which the two fables of the "Miller, his Son, and the Ass," and
the "Fox and the Woodcutter," are undoubtedly selected.
The knowledge of these fables rapidly spread from Italy into Germany, and their
popularity was increased by the favor and sanction given to them by the great fathers of
the Reformation, who frequently used them as vehicles for satire and protest against the
tricks and abuses of the Romish ecclesiastics. The zealous and renowned Camerarius, who
took an active part in the preparation of the Confession of Augsburgh, found time, amidst
his numerous avocations, to prepare a version for the students in the university of
Tubingen, in which he was a professor. Martin Luther translated twenty of these fables,
and was urged by Melancthon to complete the whole; while Gottfried Arnold, the celebrated
Lutheran theologian, and librarian to Frederick I, king of Prussia, mentions that the
great Reformer valued the Fables of Aesop next after the Holy Scriptures. In 1546 A.D. the
second printed edition of the collection of the Fables made by Planudes, was issued from
the printing-press of Robert Stephens, in which were inserted some additional fables from
a MS. in the Bibliotheque du Roy at Paris.
The greatest advance, however, towards a re-introduction of the Fables of Aesop to a
place in the literature of the world, was made in the early part of the seventeenth
century. In the year 1610, a learned Swiss, Isaac Nicholas Nevelet, sent forth the third
printed edition of these fables, in a work entitled "Mythologia Aesopica." This
was a noble effort to do honor to the great fabulist, and was the most perfect collection
of Aesopian fables ever yet published. It consisted, in addition to the collection of
fables given by Planudes and reprinted in the various earlier editions, of one hundred and
thirty-six new fables (never before published) from MSS. in the Library of the Vatican, of
forty fables attributed to Aphthonius, and of forty-three from Babrias. It also contained
the Latin versions of the same fables by Phaedrus, Avienus, and other authors. This volume
of Nevelet forms a complete "Corpus Fabularum Aesopicarum;" and to his labors
Aesop owes his restoration to universal favor as one of the wise moralists and great
teachers of mankind. During the interval of three centuries which has elapsed since the
publication of this volume of Nevelet's, no book, with the exception of the Holy
Scriptures, has had a wider circulation than Aesop's Fables. They have been translated
into the greater number of the languages both of Europe and of the East, and have been
read, and will be read, for generations, alike by Jew, Heathen, Mohammedan, and Christian.
They are, at the present time, not only engrafted into the literature of the civilized
world, but are familiar as household words in the common intercourse and daily
conversation of the inhabitants of all countries.
This collection of Nevelet's is the great culminating point in the history of the
revival of the fame and reputation of Aesopian Fables. It is remarkable, also, as
containing in its preface the germ of an idea, which has been since proved to have been
correct by a strange chain of circumstances. Nevelet intimates an opinion, that a writer
named Babrias would be found to be the veritable author of the existing form of Aesopian
Fables. This intimation has since given rise to a series of inquiries, the knowledge of
which is necessary, in the present day, to a full understanding of the true position of
Aesop in connection with the writings that bear his name.
The history of Babrias is so strange and interesting, that it might not unfitly be
enumerated among the curiosities of literature. He is generally supposed to have been a
Greek of Asia Minor, of one of the Ionic Colonies, but the exact period in which he lived
and wrote is yet unsettled. He is placed, by one critic, l4 as far back as the institution
of the Achaian League, B.C. 250; by another as late as the Emperor Severus, who died A.D.
235; while others make him a contemporary with Phaedrus in the time of Augustus. At
whatever time he wrote his version of Aesop, by some strange accident it seems to have
entirely disappeared, and to have been lost sight of. His name is mentioned by Avienus; by
Suidas, a celebrated critic, at the close of the eleventh century, who gives in his
lexicon several isolated verses of his version of the fables; and by John Tzetzes, a
grammarian and poet of Constantinople, who lived during the latter half of the twelfth
century. Nevelet, in the preface to the volume which we have described, points out that
the Fables of Planudes could not be the work of Aesop, as they contain a reference in two
places to "Holy monks," and give a verse from the Epistle of St. James as an
"Epimith" to one of the fables, and suggests Babrias as their author. Francis
Vavassor, 15 a learned French jesuit, entered at greater length on this subject, and
produced further proofs from internal evidence, from the use of the word Piraeus in
describing the harbour of Athens, a name which was not given till two hundred years after
Aesop, and from the introduction of other modern words, that many of these fables must
have been at least committed to writing posterior to the time of Aesop, and more boldly
suggests Babrias as their author or collector. 16 These various references to Babrias
induced Dr. Plichard Bentley, at the close of the seventeenth century, to examine more
minutely the existing versions of Aesop's Fables, and he maintained that many of them
could, with a slight change of words, be resolved into the Scazonic l7 iambics, in which
Babrias is known to have written: and, with a greater freedom than the evidence then
justified, he put forth, in behalf of Babrias, a claim to the exclusive authorship of
these fables. Such a seemingly extravagant theory, thus roundly asserted, excited much
opposition. Dr. Bentley l8 met with an able antagonist in a member of the University of
Oxford, the Hon. Mr. Charles Boyle, 19 afterwards Earl of Orrery. Their letters and
disputations on this subject, enlivened on both sides with much wit and learning, will
ever bear a conspicuous place in the literary history of the seventeenth century. The
arguments of Dr. Bentley were yet further defended a few years later by Mr. Thomas
Tyrwhitt, a well-read scholar, who gave up high civil distinctions that he might devote
himself the more unreservedly to literary pursuits. Mr. Tyrwhitt published, A.D. 1776, a
Dissertation on Babrias, and a collection of his fables in choliambic meter found in a MS.
in the Bodleian Library at Oxford. Francesco de Furia, a learned Italian, contributed
further testimony to the correctness of the supposition that Babrias had made a veritable
collection of fables by printing from a MS. contained in the Vatican library several
fables never before published. In the year 1844, however, new and unexpected light was
thrown upon this subject. A veritable copy of Babrias was found in a manner as singular as
were the MSS. of Quinctilian's Institutes, and of Cicero's Orations by Poggio in the
monastery of St. Gall A.D. 1416. M. Menoides, at the suggestion of M. Villemain, Minister
of Public Instruction to King Louis Philippe, had been entrusted with a commission to
search for ancient MSS., and in carrying out his instructions he found a MS. at the
convent of St. Laura, on Mount Athos, which proved to be a copy of the long suspected and
wished-for choliambic version of Babrias. This MS. was found to be divided into two books,
the one containing a hundred and twenty-five, and the other ninety-five fables. This
discovery attracted very general attention, not only as confirming, in a singular manner,
the conjectures so boldly made by a long chain of critics, but as bringing to light
valuable literary treasures tending to establish the reputation, and to confirm the
antiquity and authenticity of the great mass of Aesopian Fable. The Fables thus recovered
were soon published. They found a most worthy editor in the late distinguished Sir George
Cornewall Lewis, and a translator equally qualified for his task, in the Reverend James
Davies, M.A., sometime a scholar of Lincoln College, Oxford, and himself a relation of
their English editor. Thus, after an eclipse of many centuries, Babrias shines out as the
earliest, and most reliable collector of veritable Aesopian Fables.
The following are the sources from which the present translation has been prepared:
Babrii Fabulae Aesopeae. George Cornewall Lewis. Oxford, 1846. Babrii Fabulae Aesopeae. E
codice manuscripto partem secundam edidit. George Cornewall Lewis. London: Parker, 1857.
Mythologica Aesopica. Opera et studia Isaaci Nicholai Neveleti. Frankfort, 1610. Fabulae
Aesopiacae, quales ante Planudem ferebantur cura et studio Francisci de Furia. Lipsiae,
1810. ??????????????. Ex recognitione Caroli Halmii. Lipsiae, Phaedri Fabulae Esopiae.
Delphin Classics. 1822.
GEORGE FYLER TOWNSEND
FOOTNOTES
1 A History of the Literature of Ancient Greece, by K. O. Mueller. Vol. i, p. l9l.
London, Parker, 1858.
2 Select Fables of Aesop, and other Fabulists. In three books, translated by Robert
Dodsley, accompanied with a selection of notes, and an Essay on Fable. Birmingham, 1864.
P. 60.
3 Some of these fables had, no doubt, in the first instance, a primary and private
interpretation. On the first occasion of their being composed they were intended to refer
to some passing event, or to some individual acts of wrong-doing. Thus, the fables of the
"Eagle and the Fox" and of the "Fox and Monkey' are supposed to have been
written by Archilochus, to avenge the injuries done him by Lycambes. So also the fables of
the "Swollen Fox" and of the "Frogs asking a King" were spoken by
Aesop for the immediate purpose of reconciling the inhabitants of Samos and Athens to
their respective rulers, Periander and Pisistratus; while the fable of the "Horse and
Stag" was composed to caution the inhabitants of Himera against granting a bodyguard
to Phalaris. In a similar manner, the fable from Phaedrus, the "Marriage of the
Sun," is supposed to have reference to the contemplated union of Livia, the daughter
of Drusus, with Sejanus the favourite, and minister of Trajan. These fables, however,
though thus originating in special events, and designed at first to meet special
circumstances, are so admirably constructed as to be fraught with lessons of general
utility, and of universal application.
4 Hesiod. Opera et Dies, verse 202.
5 Aeschylus. Fragment of the Myrmidons. Aeschylus speaks of this fable as existing
before his day. See Scholiast on the Aves of Aristophanes, line 808.
6 Fragment. 38, ed. Gaisford. See also Mueller's History of the Literature of Ancient
Greece, vol. i. pp. 190-193.
7 M. Bayle has well put this in his account of Aesop. "Il n'y a point d'apparence
que les fables qui portent aujourd'hui son nom soient les memes qu'il avait faites; elles
viennent bien de lui pour la plupart, quant a la matiere et la pensee; mais les paroles
sont d'un autre." And again, "C'est donc a Hesiode, que j'aimerais mieux
attribuer la gloire de l'invention; mais sans doute il laissa la chose tres imparfaite.
Esope la perfectionne si heureusement, qu'on l'a regarde comme le vrai pere de cette sorte
de production." M. Bayle. Dictionnaire Historique.
8 Plato in Phaedone.
9 Apologos en! misit tibi Ab usque Rheni limite Ausonius nomen Italum Praeceptor
Augusti tui Aesopiam trimetriam; Quam vertit exili stylo Pedestre concinnans opus Fandi
Titianus artifex. Ausonii Epistola, xvi. 75-80.
10 Both these publications are in the British Museum, and are placed in the library in
cases under glass, for the inspection of the curious.
11. Fables may possibly have been not entirely unknown to the mediaeval scholars. There
are two celebrated works which might by some be classed amongst works of this description.
The one is the "Speculum Sapientiae," attributed to St. Cyril, Archbishop of
Jerusalem, but of a considerably later origin, and existing only in Latin. It is divided
into four books, and consists of long conversations conducted by fictitious characters
under the figures the beasts of the field and forest, and aimed at the rebuke of
particular classes of men, the boastful, the proud, the luxurious, the wrathful, &c.
None of the stories are precisely those of Aesop, and none have the concinnity, terseness,
and unmistakable deduction of the lesson intended to be taught by the fable, so
conspicuous in the great Greek fabulist. The exact title of the book is this:
"Speculum Sapientiae, B. Cyrilli Episcopi: alias quadripartitus apologeticus vocatus,
in cujus quidem proverbiis omnis et totius sapientiae speculum claret et feliciter
incipit." The other is a larger work in two volumes, published in the fourteenth
century by Caesar Heisterbach, a Cistercian monk, under the title of "Dialogus
Miraculorum," reprinted in 1851. This work consists of conversations in which many
stories are interwoven on all kinds of subjects. It has no correspondence with the pure
Aesopian fable.
12 Post-medieval Preachers, by S. Baring-Gould. Rivingtons, 1865.
13 For an account of this work see the Life of Poggio Bracciolini, by the Rev. William
Shepherd. Liverpool. 1801.
14 Professor Theodore Bergh. See Classical Museum, No. viii. July, 1849.
15 Vavassor's treatise, entitled "De Ludicra Dictione" was written A.D. 1658,
at the request of the celebrated M. Balzac (though published after his death), for the
purpose of showing that the burlesque style of writing adopted by Scarron and D'Assouci,
and at that time so popular in France, had no sanction from the ancient classic writers.
Francisci Vavassoris opera omnia. Amsterdam. 1709.
16 The claims of Babrias also found a warm advocate in the learned Frenchman, M. Bayle,
who, in his admirable dictionary, (Dictionnaire Historique et Critique de Pierre Bayle.
Paris, 1820,) gives additional arguments in confirmation of the opinions of his learned
predecessors, Nevelet and Vavassor.
17 Scazonic, or halting, iambics; a choliambic (a lame, halting iambic) differs from
the iambic Senarius in always having a spondee or trichee for its last foot; the fifth
foot, to avoid shortness of meter, being generally an iambic. See Fables of Babrias,
translated by Rev. James Davies. Lockwood, 1860. Preface, p. 27.
18 See Dr. Bentley's Dissertations upon the Epistles of Phalaris.
19 Dr. Bentley's Dissertations on the Epistles of Phalaris, and Fables of Aesop
examined. By the Honorable Charles Boyle.
***End of Project Gutenberg 10th Edition of Aesop's Fables***