AESOP'S FABLES 

II 

THE TRUMPETER TAKEN PRISONER 

A Trumpeter marched into battle in the 
van of the army and put courage into 
his comrades by his warlike tunes. 
Being captured by the enemy, he begged 
for his life, and said, "Do not put me 
to death; I have killed no one: indeed, 
I have no weapons, but carry with me 
only my trumpet here." But his captors 
replied, "That is only the more reason 
why we should take your life; for, 
though you do not fight yourself, you 
stir up others to do so." 



THE WOLF AND THE CRANE 

A Wolf once got a bone stuck in his 
throat. So he went to a Crane and 
begged her to put her long bill down 
his throat and pull it out. "I'll make 
it worth your while," he added. The 
Crane did as she was asked, and got the 
bone out quite easily. The Wolf thanked 
her warmly, and was just turning away, 
when she cried, "What about that fee of 
mine?" "Well, what about it?" snapped 
the Wolf, baring his teeth as he spoke; 
"you can go about boasting that you 
once put your head into a Wolf's mouth 
and didn't get it bitten off. What more 
do you want?" 



THE EAGLE, THE CAT, AND THE WILD SOW 

An Eagle built her nest at the top of a 
high tree; a Cat with her family 
occupied a hollow in the trunk half-way 
down; and a Wild Sow and her young took 
up their quarters at the foot. They 
might have got on very well as 
neighbours had it not been for the evil 
cunning of the Cat. Climbing up to the 
Eagle's nest she said to the Eagle, 
"You and I are in the greatest possible 
danger. That dreadful creature, the 
Sow, who is always to be seen grubbing 
away at the foot of the tree, means to 
uproot it, that she may devour your 
family and mine at her ease." Having 
thus driven the Eagle almost out of her 
senses with terror, the Cat climbed 
down the tree, and said to the Sow, "I 
must warn you against that dreadful 
bird, the Eagle. She is only waiting 
her chance to fly down and carry off 
one of your little pigs when you take 
them out, to feed her brood with." She 
succeeded in frightening the Sow as 
much as the Eagle. Then she returned to 
her hole in the trunk, from which, 
feigning to be afraid, she never came 
forth by day. Only by night did she 
creep out unseen to procure food for 
her kittens. The Eagle, meanwhile was 
afraid to stir from her nest, and the 
Sow dared not leave her home among the 
roots: so that in time both they and 
their families perished of hunger, and 
their dead bodies supplied the Cat with 
ample food for her growing family. 



THE WOLF AND THE SHEEP 

A Wolf was worried and badly bitten by 
dogs, and lay a long time for dead. By 
and by he began to revive, and, feeling 
very hungry, called out to a passing 
Sheep and said, "Would you kindly bring 
me some water from the stream close by? 
I can manage about meat, if only I 
could get something to drink." But this 
Sheep was no fool. "I can quite 
understand", said he, "that if I 
brought you the water, you would have 
no difficulty about the meat. 
Good-morning." 



THE TUNNY-FISH AND THE DOLPHIN 

A Tunny-fish was chased by a Dolphin 
and splashed through the water at a 
great rate, but the Dolphin gradually 
gained upon him, and was just about to 
seize him when the force of his flight 
carried the Tunny on to a sandbank. In 
the heat of the chase the Dolphin 
followed him, and there they both lay 
out of the water, gasping for dear 
life. When the Tunny saw that his enemy 
was doomed like himself, he said, "I 
don't mind having to die now: for I see 
that he who is the cause of my death is 
about to share the same fate." 



THE THREE TRADESMEN 

The citizens of a certain city were 
debating about the best material to use 
in the fortifications which were about 
to be erected for the greater security 
of the town. A Carpenter got up and 
advised the use of wood, which he said 
was readily procurable and easily 
worked. A Stone-mason objected to wood 
on the ground that it was so 
inflammable, and recommended stones 
instead. Then a Tanner got on his legs 
and said, "In my opinion there's 
nothing like leather."

 Every man for himself. 



THE MOUSE AND THE BULL 

A Bull gave chase to a Mouse which had 
bitten him in the nose: but the Mouse 
was too quick for him and slipped into 
a hole in a wall. The Bull charged 
furiously into the wall again and again 
until he was tired out, and sank down 
on the ground exhausted with his 
efforts. When all was quiet, the Mouse 
darted out and bit him again. Beside 
himself with rage he started to his 
feet, but by that time the Mouse was 
back in his hole again, and he could do 
nothing but bellow and fume in helpless 
anger. Presently he heard a shrill 
little voice say from inside the wall, 
"You big fellows don't always have it 
your own way, you see: sometimes we 
little ones come off best."

 The battle is not always to the 
strong. 



THE HARE AND THE HOUND 

A Hound started a Hare from her form, 
and pursued her for some distance; but 
as she gradually gained upon him, he 
gave up the chase. A rustic who had 
seen the race met the Hound as he was 
returning, and taunted him with his 
defeat. "The little one was too much 
for you," said he. "Ah, well," said the 
Hound, "don't forget it's one thing to 
be running for your dinner, but quite 
another to be running for your life." 



THE TOWN MOUSE AND THE COUNTRY MOUSE 

A Town Mouse and a Country Mouse were 
acquaintances, and the Country Mouse 
one day invited his friend to come and 
see him at his home in the fields. The 
Town Mouse came, and they sat down to a 
dinner of barleycorns and roots, the 
latter of which had a distinctly earthy 
flavour. The fare was not much to the 
taste of the guest, and presently he 
broke out with "My poor dear friend, 
you live here no better than the ants. 
Now, you should just see how I fare! My 
larder is a regular horn of plenty. You 
must come and stay with me, and I 
promise you you shall live on the fat 
of the land." So when he returned to 
town he took the Country Mouse with 
him, and showed him into a larder 
containing flour and oatmeal and figs 
and honey and dates. The Country Mouse 
had never seen anything like it, and 
sat down to enjoy the luxuries his 
friend provided: but before they had 
well begun, the door of the larder 
opened and some one came in. The two 
Mice scampered off and hid themselves 
in a narrow and exceedingly 
uncomfortable hole. Presently, when all 
was quiet, they ventured out again; but 
some one else came in, and off they 
scuttled again. This was too much for 
the visitor. "Good-bye," said he, "I'm 
off. You live in the lap of luxury, I 
can see, but you are surrounded by 
dangers; whereas at home I can enjoy my 
simple dinner of roots and corn in 
peace." 



THE LION AND THE BULL 

A Lion saw a fine fat Bull pasturing 
among a herd of cattle and cast about 
for some means of getting him into his 
clutches; so he sent him word that he 
was sacrificing a sheep, and asked if 
he would do him the honour of dining 
with him. The Bull accepted the 
invitation, but, on arriving at the 
Lion's den, he saw a great array of 
saucepans and spits, but no sign of a 
sheep; so he turned on his heel and 
walked quietly away. The Lion called 
after him in an injured tone to ask the 
reason, and the Bull turned round and 
said, "I have reason enough. When I saw 
all your preparations it struck me at 
once that the victim was to be a Bull 
and not a sheep."

 The net is spread in vain in sight of 
the bird. 



THE WOLF, THE FOX, AND THE APE 

A Wolf charged a Fox with theft, which 
he denied, and the case was brought 
before an Ape to be tried. When he had 
heard the evidence on both sides, the 
Ape gave judgment as follows: "I do not 
think," he said, "that you, O Wolf, 
ever lost what you claim; but all the 
same I believe that you, Fox, are 
guilty of the theft, in spite of all 
your denials."

 The dishonest get no credit, even if 
they act honestly. 



THE EAGLE AND THE COCKS 

There were two Cocks in the same 
farmyard, and they fought to decide who 
should be master. When the fight was 
over, the beaten one went and hid 
himself in a dark corner; while the 
victor flew up on to the roof of the 
stables and crowed lustily. But an 
Eagle espied him from high up in the 
sky, and swooped down and carried him 
off. Forthwith the other Cock came out 
of his corner and ruled the roost 
without a rival.

 Pride comes before a fall. 



THE ESCAPED JACKDAW 

A Man caught a Jackdaw and tied a piece 
of string to one of its legs, and then 
gave it to his children for a pet. But 
the Jackdaw didn't at all like having 
to live with people; so, after a while, 
when he seemed to have become fairly 
tame and they didn't watch him so 
closely, he slipped away and flew back 
to his old haunts. Unfortunately, the 
string was still on his leg, and before 
long it got entangled in the branches 
of a tree and the Jackdaw couldn't get 
free, try as he would. He saw it was 
all up with him, and cried in despair, 
"Alas, in gaining my freedom I have 
lost my life." 



THE FARMER AND THE FOX 

A Farmer was greatly annoyed by a Fox, 
which came prowling about his yard at 
night and carried off his fowls. So he 
set a trap for him and caught him; and 
in order to be revenged upon him, he 
tied a bunch of tow to his tail and set 
fire to it and let him go. As ill-luck 
would have it, however, the Fox made 
straight for the fields where the corn 
was standing ripe and ready for 
cutting. It quickly caught fire and was 
all burnt up, and the Farmer lost all 
his harvest.

 Revenge is a two-edged sword. 



VENUS AND THE CAT 

A Cat fell in love with a handsome 
young man, and begged the goddess Venus 
to change her into a woman. Venus was 
very gracious about it, and changed her 
at once into a beautiful maiden, whom 
the young man fell in love with at 
first sight and shortly afterwards 
married. One day Venus thought she 
would like to see whether the Cat had 
changed her habits as well as her form; 
so she let a mouse run loose in the 
room where they were. Forgetting 
everything, the young woman had no 
sooner seen the mouse than up she 
jumped and was after it like a shot: at 
which the goddess was so disgusted that 
she changed her back again into a Cat. 



THE CROW AND THE SWAN 

A Crow was filled with envy on seeing 
the beautiful white plumage of a Swan, 
and thought it was due to the water in 
which the Swan constantly bathed and 
swam. So he left the neighbourhood of 
the altars, where he got his living by 
picking up bits of the meat offered in 
sacrifice, and went and lived among the 
pools and streams. But though he bathed 
and washed his feathers many times a 
day, he didn't make them any whiter, 
and at last died of hunger into the 
bargain.

 You may change your habits, but not 
your nature. 



THE STAG WITH ONE EYE 

A Stag, blind of one eye, was grazing 
close to the sea-shore and kept his 
sound eye turned towards the land, so 
as to be able to perceive the approach 
of the hounds, while the blind eye he 
turned towards the sea, never 
suspecting that any danger would 
threaten him from that quarter. As it 
fell out, however, some sailors, 
coasting along the shore, spied him and 
shot an arrow at him, by which he was 
mortally wounded. As he lay dying, he 
said to himself, "Wretch that I am! I 
bethought me of the dangers of the 
land, whence none assailed me: but I 
feared no peril from the sea, yet 
thence has come my ruin."

 Misfortune often assails us from an 
unexpected quarter. 



THE FLY AND THE DRAUGHT-MULE 

A Fly sat on one of the shafts of a 
cart and said to the Mule who was 
pulling it, "How slow you are! Do mend 
your pace, or I shall have to use my 
sting as a goad." The Mule was not in 
the least disturbed. "Behind me, in the 
cart," said he, "sits my master. He 
holds the reins, and flicks me with his 
whip, and him I obey, but I don't want 
any of your impertinence. _I_ know when 
I may dawdle and when I may not." 



THE COCK AND THE JEWEL 

A Cock, scratching the ground for 
something to eat, turned up a Jewel 
that had by chance been dropped there. 
"Ho!" said he, "a fine thing you are, 
no doubt, and, had your owner found 
you, great would his joy have been. But 
for me! give me a single grain of corn 
before all the jewels in the world." 



THE WOLF AND THE SHEPHERD 

A Wolf hung about near a flock of sheep 
for a long time, but made no attempt to 
molest them. The Shepherd at first kept 
a sharp eye on him, for he naturally 
thought he meant mischief: but as time 
went by and the Wolf showed no 
inclination to meddle with the flock, 
he began to look upon him more as a 
protector than as an enemy: and when 
one day some errand took him to the 
city, he felt no uneasiness at leaving 
the Wolf with the sheep. But as soon as 
his back was turned the Wolf attacked 
them and killed the greater number. 
When the Shepherd returned and saw the 
havoc he had wrought, he cried, "It 
serves me right for trusting my flock 
to a Wolf." 



THE FARMER AND THE STORK 

A Farmer set some traps in a field 
which he had lately sown with corn, in 
order to catch the cranes which came to 
pick up the seed. When he returned to 
look at his traps he found several 
cranes caught, and among them a Stork, 
which begged to be let go, and said, 
"You ought not to kill me: I am not a 
crane, but a Stork, as you can easily 
see by my feathers, and I am the most 
honest and harmless of birds." But the 
Farmer replied, "It's nothing to me 
what you are: I find you among these 
cranes, who ruin my crops, and, like 
them, you shall suffer."

 If you choose bad companions no one 
will believe that you are anything but 
bad yourself. 



THE CHARGER AND THE MILLER 

A Horse, who had been used to carry his 
rider into battle, felt himself growing 
old and chose to work in a mill 
instead. He now no longer found himself 
stepping out proudly to the beating of 
the drums, but was compelled to slave 
away all day grinding the corn. 
Bewailing his hard lot, he said one day 
to the Miller, "Ah me! I was once a 
splendid war-horse, gaily caparisoned, 
and attended by a groom whose sole duty 
was to see to my wants. How different 
is my present condition! I wish I had 
never given up the battlefield for the 
mill." The Miller replied with 
asperity, "It's no use your regretting 
the past. Fortune has many ups and 
downs: you must just take them as they 
come." 



THE GRASSHOPPER AND THE OWL 

An Owl, who lived in a hollow tree, was 
in the habit of feeding by night and 
sleeping by day; but her slumbers were 
greatly disturbed by the chirping of a 
Grasshopper, who had taken up his abode 
in the branches. She begged him 
repeatedly to have some consideration 
for her comfort, but the Grasshopper, 
if anything, only chirped the louder. 
At last the Owl could stand it no 
longer, but determined to rid herself 
of the pest by means of a trick. 
Addressing herself to the Grasshopper, 
she said in her pleasantest manner, "As 
I cannot sleep for your song, which, 
believe me, is as sweet as the notes of 
Apollo's lyre, I have a mind to taste 
some nectar, which Minerva gave me the 
other day. Won't you come in and join 
me?" The Grasshopper was flattered by 
the praise of his song, and his mouth, 
too, watered at the mention of the 
delicious drink, so he said he would be 
delighted. No sooner had he got inside 
the hollow where the Owl was sitting 
than she pounced upon him and ate him 
up. 



THE GRASSHOPPER AND THE ANTS 

One fine day in winter some Ants were 
busy drying their store of corn, which 
had got rather damp during a long spell 
of rain. Presently up came a 
Grasshopper and begged them to spare 
her a few grains, "For," she said, "I'm 
simply starving." The Ants stopped work 
for a moment, though this was against 
their principles. "May we ask," said 
they, "what you were doing with 
yourself all last summer? Why didn't 
you collect a store of food for the 
winter?" "The fact is," replied the 
Grasshopper, "I was so busy singing 
that I hadn't the time." "If you spent 
the summer singing," replied the Ants, 
"you can't do better than spend the 
winter dancing." And they chuckled and 
went on with their work. 



THE FARMER AND THE VIPER 

One winter a Farmer found a Viper 
frozen and numb with cold, and out of 
pity picked it up and placed it in his 
bosom. The Viper was no sooner revived 
by the warmth than it turned upon its 
benefactor and inflicted a fatal bite 
upon him; and as the poor man lay 
dying, he cried, "I have only got what 
I deserved, for taking compassion on so 
villainous a creature."

 Kindness is thrown away upon the evil. 



THE TWO FROGS 

Two Frogs were neighbours. One lived in 
a marsh, where there was plenty of 
water, which frogs love: the other in a 
lane some distance away, where all the 
water to be had was that which lay in 
the ruts after rain. The Marsh Frog 
warned his friend and pressed him to 
come and live with him in the marsh, 
for he would find his quarters there 
far more comfortable and--what was 
still more important--more safe. But 
the other refused, saying that he could 
not bring himself to move from a place 
to which he had become accustomed. A 
few days afterwards a heavy waggon came 
down the lane, and he was crushed to 
death under the wheels. 



THE COBBLER TURNED DOCTOR 

A very unskilful Cobbler, finding 
himself unable to make a living at his 
trade, gave up mending boots and took 
to doctoring instead. He gave out that 
he had the secret of a universal 
antidote against all poisons, and 
acquired no small reputation, thanks to 
his talent for puffing himself. One 
day, however, he fell very ill; and the 
King of the country bethought him that 
he would test the value of his remedy. 
Calling, therefore, for a cup, he 
poured out a dose of the antidote, and, 
under pretence of mixing poison with 
it, added a little water, and commanded 
him to drink it. Terrified by the fear 
of being poisoned, the Cobbler 
confessed that he knew nothing about 
medicine, and that his antidote was 
worthless. Then the King summoned his 
subjects and addressed them as follows: 
"What folly could be greater than 
yours? Here is this Cobbler to whom no 
one will send his boots to be mended, 
and yet you have not hesitated to 
entrust him with your lives!" 



THE ASS, THE COCK, AND THE LION 

An Ass and a Cock were in a cattle-pen 
together. Presently a Lion, who had 
been starving for days, came along and 
was just about to fall upon the Ass and 
make a meal of him when the Cock, 
rising to his full height and flapping 
his wings vigorously, uttered a 
tremendous crow. Now, if there is one 
thing that frightens a Lion, it is the 
crowing of a Cock: and this one had no 
sooner heard the noise than he fled. 
The Ass was mightily elated at this, 
and thought that, if the Lion couldn't 
face a Cock, he would be still less 
likely to stand up to an Ass: so he ran 
out and pursued him. But when the two 
had got well out of sight and hearing 
of the Cock, the Lion suddenly turned 
upon the Ass and ate him up.

 False confidence often leads to 
disaster. 



THE BELLY AND THE MEMBERS 

The Members of the Body once rebelled 
against the Belly. "You," they said to 
the Belly, "live in luxury and sloth, 
and never do a stroke of work; while we 
not only have to do all the hard work 
there is to be done, but are actually 
your slaves and have to minister to all 
your wants. Now, we will do so no 
longer, and you can shift for yourself 
for the future." They were as good as 
their word, and left the Belly to 
starve. The result was just what might 
have been expected: the whole Body soon 
began to fail, and the Members and all 
shared in the general collapse. And 
then they saw too late how foolish they 
had been. 



THE BALD MAN AND THE FLY 

A Fly settled on the head of a Bald Man 
and bit him. In his eagerness to kill 
it, he hit himself a smart slap. But 
the Fly escaped, and said to him in 
derision, "You tried to kill me for 
just one little bite; what will you do 
to yourself now, for the heavy smack 
you have just given yourself?" "Oh, for 
that blow I bear no grudge," he 
replied, "for I never intended myself 
any harm; but as for you, you 
contemptible insect, who live by 
sucking human blood, I'd have borne a 
good deal more than that for the 
satisfaction of dashing the life out of 
you!" 



THE ASS AND THE WOLF 

An Ass was feeding in a meadow, and, 
catching sight of his enemy the Wolf in 
the distance, pretended to be very lame 
and hobbled painfully along. When the 
Wolf came up, he asked the Ass how he 
came to be so lame, and the Ass replied 
that in going through a hedge he had 
trodden on a thorn, and he begged the 
Wolf to pull it out with his teeth, "In 
case," he said, "when you eat me, it 
should stick in your throat and hurt 
you very much." The Wolf said he would, 
and told the Ass to lift up his foot, 
and gave his whole mind to getting out 
the thorn. But the Ass suddenly let out 
with his heels and fetched the Wolf a 
fearful kick in the mouth, breaking his 
teeth; and then he galloped off at full 
speed. As soon as he could speak the 
Wolf growled to himself, "It serves me 
right: my father taught me to kill, and 
I ought to have stuck to that trade 
instead of attempting to cure." 



THE MONKEY AND THE CAMEL 

At a gathering of all the beasts the 
Monkey gave an exhibition of dancing 
and entertained the company vastly. 
There was great applause at the finish, 
which excited the envy of the Camel and 
made him desire to win the favour of 
the assembly by the same means. So he 
got up from his place and began 
dancing, but he cut such a ridiculous 
figure as he plunged about, and made 
such a grotesque exhibition of his 
ungainly person, that the beasts all 
fell upon him with ridicule and drove 
him away. 



THE SICK MAN AND THE DOCTOR 

A Sick Man received a visit from his 
Doctor, who asked him how he was. 
"Fairly well, Doctor," said he, "but I 
find I sweat a great deal." "Ah," said 
the Doctor, "that's a good sign." On 
his next visit he asked the same 
question, and his patient replied, "I'm 
much as usual, but I've taken to having 
shivering fits, which leave me cold all 
over." "Ah," said the Doctor, "that's a 
good sign too." When he came the third 
time and inquired as before about his 
patient's health, the Sick Man said 
that he felt very feverish. "A very 
good sign," said the Doctor; "you are 
doing very nicely indeed." Afterwards a 
friend came to see the invalid, and on 
asking him how he did, received this 
reply: "My dear friend, I'm dying of 
good signs." 



THE TRAVELLERS AND THE PLANE-TREE 

Two Travellers were walking along a 
bare and dusty road in the heat of a 
summer's day. Coming presently to a 
Plane-tree, they joyfully turned aside 
to shelter from the burning rays of the 
sun in the deep shade of its spreading 
branches. As they rested, looking up 
into the tree, one of them remarked to 
his companion, "What a useless tree the 
Plane is! It bears no fruit and is of 
no service to man at all." The 
Plane-tree interrupted him with 
indignation. "You ungrateful creature!" 
it cried: "you come and take shelter 
under me from the scorching sun, and 
then, in the very act of enjoying the 
cool shade of my foliage, you abuse me 
and call me good for nothing!"

 Many a service is met with 
ingratitude. 



THE FLEA AND THE OX 

A Flea once said to an Ox, "How comes 
it that a big strong fellow like you is 
content to serve mankind, and do all 
their hard work for them, while I, who 
am no bigger than you see, live on 
their bodies and drink my fill of their 
blood, and never do a stroke for it 
all?" To which the Ox replied, "Men are 
very kind to me, and so I am grateful 
to them: they feed and house me well, 
and every now and then they show their 
fondness for me by patting me on the 
head and neck." "They'd pat me, too," 
said the Flea, "if I let them: but I 
take good care they don't, or there 
would be nothing left of me." 



THE BIRDS, THE BEASTS, AND THE BAT 

The Birds were at war with the Beasts, 
and many battles were fought with 
varying success on either side. The Bat 
did not throw in his lot definitely 
with either party, but when things went 
well for the Birds he was found 
fighting in their ranks; when, on the 
other hand, the Beasts got the upper 
hand, he was to be found among the 
Beasts. No one paid any attention to 
him while the war lasted: but when it 
was over, and peace was restored, 
neither the Birds nor the Beasts would 
have anything to do with so 
double-faced a traitor, and so he 
remains to this day a solitary outcast 
from both. 



THE MAN AND HIS TWO SWEETHEARTS 

A Man of middle age, whose hair was 
turning grey, had two Sweethearts, an 
old woman and a young one. The elder of 
the two didn't like having a lover who 
looked so much younger than herself; 
so, whenever he came to see her, she 
used to pull the dark hairs out of his 
head to make him look old. The younger, 
on the other hand, didn't like him to 
look so much older than herself, and 
took every opportunity of pulling out 
the grey hairs, to make him look young. 
Between them, they left not a hair in 
his head, and he became perfectly bald. 



THE EAGLE, THE JACKDAW, AND THE 
SHEPHERD 

One day a Jackdaw saw an Eagle swoop 
down on a lamb and carry it off in its 
talons. "My word," said the Jackdaw, 
"I'll do that myself." So it flew high 
up into the air, and then came shooting 
down with a great whirring of wings on 
to the back of a big ram. It had no 
sooner alighted than its claws got 
caught fast in the wool, and nothing it 
could do was of any use: there it 
stuck, flapping away, and only making 
things worse instead of better. By and 
by up came the Shepherd. "Oho," he 
said, "so that's what you'd be doing, 
is it?" And he took the Jackdaw, and 
clipped its wings and carried it home 
to his children. It looked so odd that 
they didn't know what to make of it. 
"What sort of bird is it, father?" they 
asked. "It's a Jackdaw," he replied, 
"and nothing but a Jackdaw: but it 
wants to be taken for an Eagle."

 If you attempt what is beyond your 
power, your trouble will be wasted and 
you court not only misfortune but 
ridicule. 



THE WOLF AND THE BOY 

A Wolf, who had just enjoyed a good 
meal and was in a playful mood, caught 
sight of a Boy lying flat upon the 
ground, and, realising that he was 
trying to hide, and that it was fear of 
himself that made him do this, he went 
up to him and said, "Aha, I've found 
you, you see; but if you can say three 
things to me, the truth of which cannot 
be disputed, I will spare your life." 
The Boy plucked up courage and thought 
for a moment, and then he said, "First, 
it is a pity you saw me; secondly, I 
was a fool to let myself be seen; and 
thirdly, we all hate wolves because 
they are always making unprovoked 
attacks upon our flocks." The Wolf 
replied, "Well, what you say is true 
enough from your point of view; so you 
may go." 



THE MILLER, HIS SON, AND THEIR ASS 

A Miller, accompanied by his young Son, 
was driving his Ass to market in hopes 
of finding a purchaser for him. On the 
road they met a troop of girls, 
laughing and talking, who exclaimed, 
"Did you ever see such a pair of fools? 
To be trudging along the dusty road 
when they might be riding!" The Miller 
thought there was sense in what they 
said; so he made his Son mount the Ass, 
and himself walked at the side. 
Presently they met some of his old 
cronies, who greeted them and said, 
"You'll spoil that Son of yours, 
letting him ride while you toil along 
on foot! Make him walk, young 
lazybones! It'll do him all the good in 
the world." The Miller followed their 
advice, and took his Son's place on the 
back of the Ass while the boy trudged 
along behind. They had not gone far 
when they overtook a party of women and 
children, and the Miller heard them 
say, "What a selfish old man! He 
himself rides in comfort, but lets his 
poor little boy follow as best he can 
on his own legs!" So he made his Son 
get up behind him. Further along the 
road they met some travellers, who 
asked the Miller whether the Ass he was 
riding was his own property, or a beast 
hired for the occasion. He replied that 
it was his own, and that he was taking 
it to market to sell. "Good heavens!" 
said they, "with a load like that the 
poor beast will be so exhausted by the 
time he gets there that no one will 
look at him. Why, you'd do better to 
carry him!" "Anything to please you," 
said the old man, "we can but try." So 
they got off, tied the Ass's legs 
together with a rope and slung him on a 
pole, and at last reached the town, 
carrying him between them. This was so 
absurd a sight that the people ran out 
in crowds to laugh at it, and chaffed 
the Father and Son unmercifully, some 
even calling them lunatics. They had 
then got to a bridge over the river, 
where the Ass, frightened by the noise 
and his unusual situation, kicked and 
struggled till he broke the ropes that 
bound him, and fell into the water and 
was drowned. Whereupon the unfortunate 
Miller, vexed and ashamed, made the 
best of his way home again, convinced 
that in trying to please all he had 
pleased none, and had lost his Ass into 
the bargain. 



THE STAG AND THE VINE 

A Stag, pursued by the huntsmen, 
concealed himself under cover of a 
thick Vine. They lost track of him and 
passed by his hiding-place without 
being aware that he was anywhere near. 
Supposing all danger to be over, he 
presently began to browse on the leaves 
of the Vine. The movement drew the 
attention of the returning huntsmen, 
and one of them, supposing some animal 
to be hidden there, shot an arrow at a 
venture into the foliage. The unlucky 
Stag was pierced to the heart, and, as 
he expired, he said, "I deserve my fate 
for my treachery in feeding upon the 
leaves of my protector."

 Ingratitude sometimes brings its own 
punishment. 



THE LAMB CHASED BY A WOLF 

A Wolf was chasing a Lamb, which took 
refuge in a temple. The Wolf urged it 
to come out of the precincts, and said, 
"If you don't, the priest is sure to 
catch you and offer you up in sacrifice 
on the altar." To which the Lamb 
replied, "Thanks, I think I'll stay 
where I am: I'd rather be sacrificed 
any day than be eaten up by a Wolf." 



THE ARCHER AND THE LION 

An Archer went up into the hills to get 
some sport with his bow, and all the 
animals fled at the sight of him with 
the exception of the Lion, who stayed 
behind and challenged him to fight. But 
he shot an arrow at the Lion and hit 
him, and said, "There, you see what my 
messenger can do: just you wait a 
moment and I'll tackle you myself." The 
Lion, however, when he felt the sting 
of the arrow, ran away as fast as his 
legs could carry him. A fox, who had 
seen it all happen, said to the Lion, 
"Come, don't be a coward: why don't you 
stay and show fight?" But the Lion 
replied, "You won't get me to stay, not 
you: why, when he sends a messenger 
like that before him, he must himself 
be a terrible fellow to deal with."

 Give a wide berth to those who can do 
damage at a distance. 



THE WOLF AND THE GOAT 

A Wolf caught sight of a Goat browsing 
above him on the scanty herbage that 
grew on the top of a steep rock; and 
being unable to get at her, tried to 
induce her to come lower down. "You are 
risking your life up there, madam, 
indeed you are," he called out: "pray 
take my advice and come down here, 
where you will find plenty of better 
food." The Goat turned a knowing eye 
upon him. "It's little you care whether 
I get good grass or bad," said she: 
"what you want is to eat me." 



THE SICK STAG 

A Stag fell sick and lay in a clearing 
in the forest, too weak to move from 
the spot. When the news of his illness 
spread, a number of the other beasts 
came to inquire after his health, and 
they one and all nibbled a little of 
the grass that grew round the invalid 
till at last there was not a blade 
within his reach. In a few days he 
began to mend, but was still too feeble 
to get up and go in search of fodder; 
and thus he perished miserably of 
hunger owing to the thoughtlessness of 
his friends. 



THE ASS AND THE MULE 

A certain man who had an Ass and a Mule 
loaded them both up one day and set out 
upon a journey. So long as the road was 
fairly level, the Ass got on very well: 
but by and by they came to a place 
among the hills where the road was very 
rough and steep, and the Ass was at his 
last gasp. So he begged the Mule to 
relieve him of a part of his load: but 
the Mule refused. At last, from sheer 
weariness, the Ass stumbled and fell 
down a steep place and was killed. The 
driver was in despair, but he did the 
best he could: he added the Ass's load 
to the Mule's, and he also flayed the 
Ass and put his skin on the top of the 
double load. The Mule could only just 
manage the extra weight, and, as he 
staggered painfully along, he said to 
himself, "I have only got what I 
deserved: if I had been willing to help 
the Ass at first, I should not now be 
carrying his load and his skin into the 
bargain." 



BROTHER AND SISTER 

A certain man had two children, a boy 
and a girl: and the boy was as 
good-looking as the girl was plain. One 
day, as they were playing together in 
their mother's chamber, they chanced 
upon a mirror and saw their own 
features for the first time. The boy 
saw what a handsome fellow he was, and 
began to boast to his Sister about his 
good looks: she, on her part, was ready 
to cry with vexation when she was aware 
of her plainness, and took his remarks 
as an insult to herself. Running to her 
father, she told him of her Brother's 
conceit, and accused him of meddling 
with his mother's things. He laughed 
and kissed them both, and said, "My 
children, learn from now onwards to 
make a good use of the glass. You, my 
boy, strive to be as good as it shows 
you to be handsome; and you, my girl, 
resolve to make up for the plainness of 
your features by the sweetness of your 
disposition." 



THE HEIFER AND THE OX 

A Heifer went up to an Ox, who was 
straining hard at the plough, and 
sympathised with him in a rather 
patronising sort of way on the 
necessity of his having to work so 
hard. Not long afterwards there was a 
festival in the village and every one 
kept holiday: but, whereas the Ox was 
turned loose into the pasture, the 
Heifer was seized and led off to 
sacrifice. "Ah," said the Ox, with a 
grim smile, "I see now why you were 
allowed to have such an idle time: it 
was because you were always intended 
for the altar." 



THE KINGDOM OF THE LION 

When the Lion reigned over the beasts 
of the earth he was never cruel or 
tyrannical, but as gentle and just as a 
King ought to be. During his reign he 
called a general assembly of the 
beasts, and drew up a code of laws 
under which all were to live in perfect 
equality and harmony: the wolf and the 
lamb, the tiger and the stag, the 
leopard and the kid, the dog and the 
hare, all should dwell side by side in 
unbroken peace and friendship. The hare 
said, "Oh! how I have longed for this 
day when the weak take their place 
without fear by the side of the 
strong!" 



THE ASS AND HIS DRIVER 

An Ass was being driven down a mountain 
road, and after jogging along for a 
while sensibly enough he suddenly 
quitted the track and rushed to the 
edge of a precipice. He was just about 
to leap over the edge when his Driver 
caught hold of his tail and did his 
best to pull him back: but pull as he 
might he couldn't get the Ass to budge 
from the brink. At last he gave up, 
crying, "All right, then, get to the 
bottom your own way; but it's the way 
to sudden death, as you'll find out 
quick enough." 



THE LION AND THE HARE 

A Lion found a Hare sleeping in her 
form, and was just going to devour her 
when he caught sight of a passing stag. 
Dropping the Hare, he at once made for 
the bigger game; but finding, after a 
long chase, that he could not overtake 
the stag, he abandoned the attempt and 
came back for the Hare. When he reached 
the spot, however, he found she was 
nowhere to be seen, and he had to go 
without his dinner. "It serves me 
right," he said; "I should have been 
content with what I had got, instead of 
hankering after a better prize." 



THE WOLVES AND THE DOGS 

Once upon a time the Wolves said to the 
Dogs, "Why should we continue to be 
enemies any longer? You are very like 
us in most ways: the main difference 
between us is one of training only. We 
live a life of freedom; but you are 
enslaved to mankind, who beat you, and 
put heavy collars round your necks, and 
compel you to keep watch over their 
flocks and herds for them, and, to 
crown all, they give you nothing but 
bones to eat. Don't put up with it any 
longer, but hand over the flocks to us, 
and we will all live on the fat of the 
land and feast together." The Dogs 
allowed themselves to be persuaded by 
these words, and accompanied the Wolves 
into their den. But no sooner were they 
well inside than the Wolves set upon 
them and tore them to pieces.

 Traitors richly deserve their fate. 



THE BULL AND THE CALF 

A full-grown Bull was struggling to 
force his huge bulk through the narrow 
entrance to a cow-house where his stall 
was, when a young Calf came up and said 
to him, "If you'll step aside a moment, 
I'll show you the way to get through." 
The Bull turned upon him an amused 
look. "I knew that way," said he, 
"before you were born." 



THE TREES AND THE AXE 

A Woodman went into the forest and 
begged of the Trees the favour of a 
handle for his Axe. The principal Trees 
at once agreed to so modest a request, 
and unhesitatingly gave him a young ash 
sapling, out of which he fashioned the 
handle he desired. No sooner had he 
done so than he set to work to fell the 
noblest Trees in the wood. When they 
saw the use to which he was putting 
their gift, they cried, "Alas! alas! We 
are undone, but we are ourselves to 
blame. The little we gave has cost us 
all: had we not sacrificed the rights 
of the ash, we might ourselves have 
stood for ages." 



THE ASTRONOMER 

There was once an Astronomer whose 
habit it was to go out at night and 
observe the stars. One night, as he was 
walking about outside the town gates, 
gazing up absorbed into the sky and not 
looking where he was going, he fell 
into a dry well. As he lay there 
groaning, some one passing by heard 
him, and, coming to the edge of the 
well, looked down and, on learning what 
had happened, said, "If you really mean 
to say that you were looking so hard at 
the sky that you didn't even see where 
your feet were carrying you along the 
ground, it appears to me that you 
deserve all you've got." 



THE LABOURER AND THE SNAKE 

A Labourer's little son was bitten by a 
Snake and died of the wound. The father 
was beside himself with grief, and in 
his anger against the Snake he caught 
up an axe and went and stood close to 
the Snake's hole, and watched for a 
chance of killing it. Presently the 
Snake came out, and the man aimed a 
blow at it, but only succeeded in 
cutting off the tip of its tail before 
it wriggled in again. He then tried to 
get it to come out a second time, 
pretending that he wished to make up 
the quarrel. But the Snake said, "I can 
never be your friend because of my lost 
tail, nor you mine because of your lost 
child."

 Injuries are never forgotten in the 
presence of those who caused them. 



THE CAGE-BIRD AND THE BAT 

A Singing-bird was confined in a cage 
which hung outside a window, and had a 
way of singing at night when all other 
birds were asleep. One night a Bat came 
and clung to the bars of the cage, and 
asked the Bird why she was silent by 
day and sang only at night. "I have a 
very good reason for doing so," said 
the Bird: "it was once when I was 
singing in the daytime that a fowler 
was attracted by my voice, and set his 
nets for me and caught me. Since then I 
have never sung except by night." But 
the Bat replied, "It is no use your 
doing that now when you are a prisoner: 
if only you had done so before you were 
caught, you might still have been free."

 Precautions are useless after the 
event. 



THE ASS AND HIS PURCHASER 

A Man who wanted to buy an Ass went to 
market, and, coming across a 
likely-looking beast, arranged with the 
owner that he should be allowed to take 
him home on trial to see what he was 
like. When he reached home, he put him 
into his stable along with the other 
asses. The newcomer took a look round, 
and immediately went and chose a place 
next to the laziest and greediest beast 
in the stable. When the master saw this 
he put a halter on him at once, and led 
him off and handed him over to his 
owner again. The latter was a good deal 
surprised to see him back so soon, and 
said, "Why, do you mean to say you have 
tested him already?" "I don't want to 
put him through any more tests," 
replied the other: "I could see what 
sort of beast he is from the companion 
he chose for himself."

 A man is known by the company he 
keeps. 



THE KID AND THE WOLF 

A Kid strayed from the flock and was 
chased by a Wolf. When he saw he must 
be caught he turned round and said to 
the Wolf, "I know, sir, that I can't 
escape being eaten by you: and so, as 
my life is bound to be short, I pray 
you let it be as merry as may be. Will 
you not play me a tune to dance to 
before I die?" The Wolf saw no 
objection to having some music before 
his dinner: so he took out his pipe and 
began to play, while the Kid danced 
before him. Before many minutes were 
passed the gods who guarded the flock 
heard the sound and came up to see what 
was going on. They no sooner clapped 
eyes on the Wolf than they gave chase 
and drove him away. As he ran off, he 
turned and said to the Kid, "It's what 
I thoroughly deserve: my trade is the 
butcher's, and I had no business to 
turn piper to please you." 



THE DEBTOR AND HIS SOW 

A Man of Athens fell into debt and was 
pressed for the money by his creditor; 
but he had no means of paying at the 
time, so he begged for delay. But the 
creditor refused and said he must pay 
at once. Then the Debtor fetched a 
Sow--the only one he had--and took her 
to market to offer her for sale. It 
happened that his creditor was there 
too. Presently a buyer came along and 
asked if the Sow produced good litters. 
"Yes," said the Debtor, "very fine 
ones; and the remarkable thing is that 
she produces females at the Mysteries 
and males at the Panathenea." 
(Festivals these were: and the 
Athenians always sacrifice a sow at 
one, and a boar at the other; while at 
the Dionysia they sacrifice a kid.) At 
that the creditor, who was standing by, 
put in, "Don't be surprised, sir; why, 
still better, at the Dionysia this Sow 
has kids!" 



THE BALD HUNTSMAN 

A Man who had lost all his hair took to 
wearing a wig, and one day he went out 
hunting. It was blowing rather hard at 
the time, and he hadn't gone far before 
a gust of wind caught his hat and 
carried it off, and his wig too, much 
to the amusement of the hunt. But he 
quite entered into the joke, and said, 
"Ah, well! the hair that wig is made of 
didn't stick to the head on which it 
grew; so it's no wonder it won't stick 
to mine." 



THE HERDSMAN AND THE LOST BULL 

A Herdsman was tending his cattle when 
he missed a young Bull, one of the 
finest of the herd. He went at once to 
look for him, but, meeting with no 
success in his search, he made a vow 
that, if he should discover the thief, 
he would sacrifice a calf to Jupiter. 
Continuing his search, he entered a 
thicket, where he presently espied a 
lion devouring the lost Bull. Terrified 
with fear, he raised his hands to 
heaven and cried, "Great Jupiter, I 
vowed I would sacrifice a calf to thee 
if I should discover the thief: but now 
a full-grown Bull I promise thee if 
only I myself escape unhurt from his 
clutches." 



THE MULE 

One morning a Mule, who had too much to 
eat and too little to do, began to 
think himself a very fine fellow 
indeed, and frisked about saying, "My 
father was undoubtedly a high-spirited 
horse and I take after him entirely." 
But very soon afterwards he was put 
into the harness and compelled to go a 
very long way with a heavy load behind 
him. At the end of the day, exhausted 
by his unusual exertions, he said 
dejectedly to himself, "I must have 
been mistaken about my father; he can 
only have been an ass after all." 



THE HOUND AND THE FOX 

A Hound, roaming in the forest, spied a 
lion, and being well used to lesser 
game, gave chase, thinking he would 
make a fine quarry. Presently the lion 
perceived that he was being pursued; 
so, stopping short, he rounded on his 
pursuer and gave a loud roar. The Hound 
immediately turned tail and fled. A 
Fox, seeing him running away, jeered at 
him and said, "Ho! ho! There goes the 
coward who chased a lion and ran away 
the moment he roared!" 



THE FATHER AND HIS DAUGHTERS 

A Man had two Daughters, one of whom he 
gave in marriage to a gardener, and the 
other to a potter. After a time he 
thought he would go and see how they 
were getting on; and first he went to 
the gardener's wife. He asked her how 
she was, and how things were going with 
herself and her husband. She replied 
that on the whole they were doing very 
well: "But," she continued, "I do wish 
we could have some good heavy rain: the 
garden wants it badly." Then he went on 
to the potter's wife and made the same 
inquiries of her. She replied that she 
and her husband had nothing to complain 
of: "But," she went on, "I do wish we 
could have some nice dry weather, to 
dry the pottery." Her Father looked at 
her with a humorous expression on his 
face. "You want dry weather," he said, 
"and your sister wants rain. I was 
going to ask in my prayers that your 
wishes should be granted; but now it 
strikes me I had better not refer to 
the subject." 



THE THIEF AND THE INNKEEPER 

A Thief hired a room at an inn, and 
stayed there some days on the look-out 
for something to steal. No opportunity, 
however, presented itself, till one 
day, when there was a festival to be 
celebrated, the Innkeeper appeared in a 
fine new coat and sat down before the 
door of the inn for an airing. The 
Thief no sooner set eyes upon the coat 
than he longed to get possession of it. 
There was no business doing, so he went 
and took a seat by the side of the 
Innkeeper, and began talking to him. 
They conversed together for some time, 
and then the Thief suddenly yawned and 
howled like a wolf. The Innkeeper asked 
him in some concern what ailed him. The 
Thief replied, "I will tell you about 
myself, sir, but first I must beg you 
to take charge of my clothes for me, 
for I intend to leave them with you. 
Why I have these fits of yawning I 
cannot tell: maybe they are sent as a 
punishment for my misdeeds; but, 
whatever the reason, the facts are that 
when I have yawned three times I become 
a ravening wolf and fly at men's 
throats." As he finished speaking he 
yawned a second time and howled again 
as before. The Innkeeper, believing 
every word he said, and terrified at 
the prospect of being confronted with a 
wolf, got up hastily and started to run 
indoors; but the Thief caught him by 
the coat and tried to stop him, crying, 
"Stay, sir, stay, and take charge of my 
clothes, or else I shall never see them 
again." As he spoke he opened his mouth 
and began to yawn for the third time. 
The Innkeeper, mad with the fear of 
being eaten by a wolf, slipped out of 
his coat, which remained in the other's 
hands, and bolted into the inn and 
locked the door behind him; and the 
Thief then quietly stole off with his 
spoil. 



THE PACK-ASS AND THE WILD ASS 

A Wild Ass, who was wandering idly 
about, one day came upon a Pack-Ass 
lying at full length in a sunny spot 
and thoroughly enjoying himself. Going 
up to him, he said, "What a lucky beast 
you are! Your sleek coat shows how well 
you live: how I envy you!" Not long 
after the Wild Ass saw his acquaintance 
again, but this time he was carrying a 
heavy load, and his driver was 
following behind and beating him with a 
thick stick. "Ah, my friend," said the 
Wild Ass, "I don't envy you any more: 
for I see you pay dear for your 
comforts."

 Advantages that are dearly bought are 
doubtful blessings. 



THE ASS AND HIS MASTERS 

A Gardener had an Ass which had a very 
hard time of it, what with scanty food, 
heavy loads, and constant beating. The 
Ass therefore begged Jupiter to take 
him away from the Gardener and hand him 
over to another master. So Jupiter sent 
Mercury to the Gardener to bid him sell 
the Ass to a Potter, which he did. But 
the Ass was as discontented as ever, 
for he had to work harder than before: 
so he begged Jupiter for relief a 
second time, and Jupiter very 
obligingly arranged that he should be 
sold to a Tanner. But when the Ass saw 
what his new master's trade was, he 
cried in despair, "Why wasn't I content 
to serve either of my former masters, 
hard as I had to work and badly as I 
was treated? for they would have buried 
me decently, but now I shall come in 
the end to the tanning-vat."

 Servants don't know a good master till 
they have served a worse. 



THE PACK-ASS, THE WILD ASS, AND THE 
LION 

A Wild Ass saw a Pack-Ass jogging along 
under a heavy load, and taunted him 
with the condition of slavery in which 
he lived, in these words: "What a vile 
lot is yours compared with mine! I am 
free as the air, and never do a stroke 
of work; and, as for fodder, I have 
only to go to the hills and there I 
find far more than enough for my needs. 
But you! you depend on your master for 
food, and he makes you carry heavy 
loads every day and beats you 
unmercifully." At that moment a Lion 
appeared on the scene, and made no 
attempt to molest the Pack-Ass owing to 
the presence of the driver; but he fell 
upon the Wild Ass, who had no one to 
protect him, and without more ado made 
a meal of him.

 It is no use being your own master 
unless you can stand up for yourself. 



THE ANT 

Ants were once men and made their 
living by tilling the soil. But, not 
content with the results of their own 
work, they were always casting longing 
eyes upon the crops and fruits of their 
neighbours, which they stole, whenever 
they got the chance, and added to their 
own store. At last their covetousness 
made Jupiter so angry that he changed 
them into Ants. But, though their forms 
were changed, their nature remained the 
same: and so, to this day, they go 
about among the cornfields and gather 
the fruits of others' labour, and store 
them up for their own use.

 You may punish a thief, but his bent 
remains. 



THE FROGS AND THE WELL 

Two Frogs lived together in a marsh. 
But one hot summer the marsh dried up, 
and they left it to look for another 
place to live in: for frogs like damp 
places if they can get them. By and by 
they came to a deep well, and one of 
them looked down into it, and said to 
the other, "This looks a nice cool 
place: let us jump in and settle here." 
But the other, who had a wiser head on 
his shoulders, replied, "Not so fast, 
my friend: supposing this well dried up 
like the marsh, how should we get out 
again?"

 Think twice before you act. 



THE CRAB AND THE FOX 

A Crab once left the sea-shore and went 
and settled in a meadow some way 
inland, which looked very nice and 
green and seemed likely to be a good 
place to feed in. But a hungry Fox came 
along and spied the Crab and caught 
him. Just as he was going to be eaten 
up, the Crab said, "This is just what I 
deserve; for I had no business to leave 
my natural home by the sea and settle 
here as though I belonged to the land."

 Be content with your lot. 



THE FOX AND THE GRASSHOPPER 

A Grasshopper sat chirping in the 
branches of a tree. A Fox heard her, 
and, thinking what a dainty morsel she 
would make, he tried to get her down by 
a trick. Standing below in full view of 
her, he praised her song in the most 
flattering terms, and begged her to 
descend, saying he would like to make 
the acquaintance of the owner of so 
beautiful a voice. But she was not to 
be taken in, and replied, "You are very 
much mistaken, my dear sir, if you 
imagine I am going to come down: I keep 
well out of the way of you and your 
kind ever since the day when I saw 
numbers of grasshoppers' wings strewn 
about the entrance to a fox's earth." 



THE FARMER, HIS BOY, AND THE ROOKS 

A Farmer had just sown a field of 
wheat, and was keeping a careful watch 
over it, for numbers of Rooks and 
starlings kept continually settling on 
it and eating up the grain. Along with 
him went his Boy, carrying a sling: and 
whenever the Farmer asked for the sling 
the starlings understood what he said 
and warned the Rooks and they were off 
in a moment. So the Farmer hit on a 
trick. "My lad," said he, "we must get 
the better of these birds somehow. 
After this, when I want the sling, I 
won't say 'sling,' but just 'humph!' 
and you must then hand me the sling 
quickly." Presently back came the whole 
flock. "Humph!" said the Farmer; but 
the starlings took no notice, and he 
had time to sling several stones among 
them, hitting one on the head, another 
in the legs, and another in the wing, 
before they got out of range. As they 
made all haste away they met some 
cranes, who asked them what the matter 
was. "Matter?" said one of the Rooks; 
"it's those rascals, men, that are the 
matter. Don't you go near them. They 
have a way of saying one thing and 
meaning another which has just been the 
death of several of our poor friends." 



THE ASS AND THE DOG 

An Ass and a Dog were on their travels 
together, and, as they went along, they 
found a sealed packet lying on the 
ground. The Ass picked it up, broke the 
seal, and found it contained some 
writing, which he proceeded to read out 
aloud to the Dog. As he read on it 
turned out to be all about grass and 
barley and hay--in short, all the kinds 
of fodder that Asses are fond of. The 
Dog was a good deal bored with 
listening to all this, till at last his 
impatience got the better of him, and 
he cried, "Just skip a few pages, 
friend, and see if there isn't 
something about meat and bones." The 
Ass glanced all through the packet, but 
found nothing of the sort, and said so. 
Then the Dog said in disgust, "Oh, 
throw it away, do: what's the good of a 
thing like that?" 



THE ASS CARRYING THE IMAGE 

A certain man put an Image on the back 
of his Ass to take it to one of the 
temples of the town. As they went along 
the road all the people they met 
uncovered and bowed their heads out of 
reverence for the Image; but the Ass 
thought they were doing it out of 
respect for himself, and began to give 
himself airs accordingly. At last he 
became so conceited that he imagined he 
could do as he liked, and, by way of 
protest against the load he was 
carrying, he came to a full stop and 
flatly declined to proceed any further. 
His driver, finding him so obstinate, 
hit him hard and long with his stick, 
saying the while, "Oh, you 
dunder-headed idiot, do you suppose 
it's come to this, that men pay worship 
to an Ass?"

 Rude shocks await those who take to 
themselves the credit that is due to 
others. 



THE ATHENIAN AND THE THEBAN 

An Athenian and a Theban were on the 
road together, and passed the time in 
conversation, as is the way of 
travellers. After discussing a variety 
of subjects they began to talk about 
heroes, a topic that tends to be more 
fertile than edifying. Each of them was 
lavish in his praises of the heroes of 
his own city, until eventually the 
Theban asserted that Hercules was the 
greatest hero who had ever lived on 
earth, and now occupied a foremost 
place among the gods; while the 
Athenian insisted that Theseus was far 
superior, for his fortune had been in 
every way supremely blessed, whereas 
Hercules had at one time been forced to 
act as a servant. And he gained his 
point, for he was a very glib fellow, 
like all Athenians; so that the Theban, 
who was no match for him in talking, 
cried at last in some disgust, "All 
right, have your way; I only hope that, 
when our heroes are angry with us, 
Athens may suffer from the anger of 
Hercules, and Thebes only from that of 
Theseus." 



THE GOATHERD AND THE GOAT 

A Goatherd was one day gathering his 
flock to return to the fold, when one 
of his goats strayed and refused to 
join the rest. He tried for a long time 
to get her to return by calling and 
whistling to her, but the Goat took no 
notice of him at all; so at last he 
threw a stone at her and broke one of 
her horns. In dismay, he begged her not 
to tell his master: but she replied, 
"You silly fellow, my horn would cry 
aloud even if I held my tongue."

 It's no use trying to hide what can't 
be hidden. 



THE SHEEP AND THE DOG 

Once upon a time the Sheep complained 
to the shepherd about the difference in 
his treatment of themselves and his 
Dog. "Your conduct," said they, "is 
very strange and, we think, very 
unfair. We provide you with wool and 
lambs and milk and you give us nothing 
but grass, and even that we have to 
find for ourselves: but you get nothing 
at all from the Dog, and yet you feed 
him with tit-bits from your own table." 
Their remarks were overheard by the 
Dog, who spoke up at once and said, 
"Yes, and quite right, too: where would 
you be if it wasn't for me? Thieves 
would steal you! Wolves would eat you! 
Indeed, if I didn't keep constant watch 
over you, you would be too terrified 
even to graze!" The Sheep were obliged 
to acknowledge that he spoke the truth, 
and never again made a grievance of the 
regard in which he was held by his 
master. 



THE SHEPHERD AND THE WOLF 

A Shepherd found a Wolf's Cub straying 
in the pastures, and took him home and 
reared him along with his dogs. When 
the Cub grew to his full size, if ever 
a wolf stole a sheep from the flock, he 
used to join the dogs in hunting him 
down. It sometimes happened that the 
dogs failed to come up with the thief, 
and, abandoning the pursuit, returned 
home. The Wolf would on such occasions 
continue the chase by himself, and when 
he overtook the culprit, would stop and 
share the feast with him, and then 
return to the Shepherd. But if some 
time passed without a sheep being 
carried off by the wolves, he would 
steal one himself and share his plunder 
with the dogs. The Shepherd's 
suspicions were aroused, and one day he 
caught him in the act; and, fastening a 
rope round his neck, hung him on the 
nearest tree.

 What's bred in the bone is sure to 
come out in the flesh. 



THE LION, JUPITER, AND THE ELEPHANT 

The Lion, for all his size and 
strength, and his sharp teeth and 
claws, is a coward in one thing: he 
can't bear the sound of a cock crowing, 
and runs away whenever he hears it. He 
complained bitterly to Jupiter for 
making him like that; but Jupiter said 
it wasn't his fault: he had done the 
best he could for him, and, considering 
this was his only failing, he ought to 
be well content. The Lion, however, 
wouldn't be comforted, and was so 
ashamed of his timidity that he wished 
he might die. In this state of mind, he 
met the Elephant and had a talk with 
him. He noticed that the great beast 
cocked up his ears all the time, as if 
he were listening for something, and he 
asked him why he did so. Just then a 
gnat came humming by, and the Elephant 
said, "Do you see that wretched little 
buzzing insect? I'm terribly afraid of 
its getting into my ear: if it once 
gets in, I'm dead and done for." The 
Lion's spirits rose at once when he 
heard this: "For," he said to himself, 
"if the Elephant, huge as he is, is 
afraid of a gnat, I needn't be so much 
ashamed of being afraid of a cock, who 
is ten thousand times bigger than a 
gnat." 



THE PIG AND THE SHEEP 

A Pig found his way into a meadow where 
a flock of Sheep were grazing. The 
shepherd caught him, and was proceeding 
to carry him off to the butcher's when 
he set up a loud squealing and 
struggled to get free. The Sheep 
rebuked him for making such a to-do, 
and said to him, "The shepherd catches 
us regularly and drags us off just like 
that, and we don't make any fuss." "No, 
I dare say not," replied the Pig, "but 
my case and yours are altogether 
different: he only wants you for wool, 
but he wants me for bacon." 



THE GARDENER AND HIS DOG 

A Gardner's Dog fell into a deep well, 
from which his master used to draw 
water for the plants in his garden with 
a rope and a bucket. Failing to get the 
Dog out by means of these, the Gardener 
went down into the well himself in 
order to fetch him up. But the Dog 
thought he had come to make sure of 
drowning him; so he bit his master as 
soon as he came within reach, and hurt 
him a good deal, with the result that 
he left the Dog to his fate and climbed 
out of the well, remarking, "It serves 
me quite right for trying to save so 
determined a suicide." 



THE RIVERS AND THE SEA 

Once upon a time all the Rivers 
combined to protest against the action 
of the Sea in making their waters salt. 
"When we come to you," said they to the 
Sea, "we are sweet and drinkable: but 
when once we have mingled with you, our 
waters become as briny and unpalatable 
as your own." The Sea replied shortly, 
"Keep away from me and you'll remain 
sweet." 



THE LION IN LOVE 

A Lion fell deeply in love with the 
daughter of a cottager and wanted to 
marry her; but her father was unwilling 
to give her to so fearsome a husband, 
and yet didn't want to offend the Lion; 
so he hit upon the following expedient. 
He went to the Lion and said, "I think 
you will make a very good husband for 
my daughter: but I cannot consent to 
your union unless you let me draw your 
teeth and pare your nails, for my 
daughter is terribly afraid of them." 
The Lion was so much in love that he 
readily agreed that this should be 
done. When once, however, he was thus 
disarmed, the Cottager was afraid of 
him no longer, but drove him away with 
his club. 



THE BEE-KEEPER 

A Thief found his way into an apiary 
when the Bee-keeper was away, and stole 
all the honey. When the Keeper returned 
and found the hives empty, he was very 
much upset and stood staring at them 
for some time. Before long the bees 
came back from gathering honey, and, 
finding their hives overturned and the 
Keeper standing by, they made for him 
with their stings. At this he fell into 
a passion and cried, "You ungrateful 
scoundrels, you let the thief who stole 
my honey get off scot-free, and then 
you go and sting me who have always 
taken such care of you!"

 When you hit back make sure you have 
got the right man. 



THE WOLF AND THE HORSE 

A Wolf on his rambles came to a field 
of oats, but, not being able to eat 
them, he was passing on his way when a 
Horse came along. "Look," said the 
Wolf, "here's a fine field of oats. For 
your sake I have left it untouched, and 
I shall greatly enjoy the sound of your 
teeth munching the ripe grain." But the 
Horse replied, "If wolves could eat 
oats, my fine friend, you would hardly 
have indulged your ears at the cost of 
your belly."

 There is no virtue in giving to others 
what is useless to oneself. 



THE BAT, THE BRAMBLE, AND THE SEAGULL 

A Bat, a Bramble, and a Seagull went 
into partnership and determined to go 
on a trading voyage together. The Bat 
borrowed a sum of money for his 
venture; the Bramble laid in a stock of 
clothes of various kinds; and the 
Seagull took a quantity of lead: and so 
they set out. By and by a great storm 
came on, and their boat with all the 
cargo went to the bottom, but the three 
travellers managed to reach land. Ever 
since then the Seagull flies to and fro 
over the sea, and every now and then 
dives below the surface, looking for 
the lead he's lost; while the Bat is so 
afraid of meeting his creditors that he 
hides away by day and only comes out at 
night to feed; and the Bramble catches 
hold of the clothes of every one who 
passes by, hoping some day to recognise 
and recover the lost garments.

 All men are more concerned to recover 
what they lose than to acquire what 
they lack. 



THE DOG AND THE WOLF 

A Dog was lying in the sun before a 
farmyard gate when a Wolf pounced upon 
him and was just going to eat him up; 
but he begged for his life and said, 
"You see how thin I am and what a 
wretched meal I should make you now: 
but if you will only wait a few days my 
master is going to give a feast. All 
the rich scraps and pickings will fall 
to me and I shall get nice and fat: 
then will be the time for you to eat 
me." The Wolf thought this was a very 
good plan and went away. Some time 
afterwards he came to the farmyard 
again, and found the Dog lying out of 
reach on the stable roof. "Come down," 
he called, "and be eaten: you remember 
our agreement?" But the Dog said 
coolly, "My friend, if ever you catch 
me lying down by the gate there again, 
don't you wait for any feast."

 Once bitten, twice shy. 



THE WASP AND THE SNAKE 

A Wasp settled on the head of a Snake, 
and not only stung him several times, 
but clung obstinately to the head of 
his victim. Maddened with pain the 
Snake tried every means he could think 
of to get rid of the creature, but 
without success. At last he became 
desperate, and crying, "Kill you I 
will, even at the cost of my own life," 
he laid his head with the Wasp on it 
under the wheel of a passing waggon, 
and they both perished together. 



THE EAGLE AND THE BEETLE 

An Eagle was chasing a hare, which was 
running for dear life and was at her 
wits' end to know where to turn for 
help. Presently she espied a Beetle, 
and begged it to aid her. So when the 
Eagle came up the Beetle warned her not 
to touch the hare, which was under its 
protection. But the Eagle never noticed 
the Beetle because it was so small, 
seized the hare and ate her up. The 
Beetle never forgot this, and used to 
keep an eye on the Eagle's nest, and 
whenever the Eagle laid an egg it 
climbed up and rolled it out of the 
nest and broke it. At last the Eagle 
got so worried over the loss of her 
eggs that she went up to Jupiter, who 
is the special protector of Eagles, and 
begged him to give her a safe place to 
nest in: so he let her lay her eggs in 
his lap. But the Beetle noticed this 
and made a ball of dirt the size of an 
Eagle's egg, and flew up and deposited 
it in Jupiter's lap. When Jupiter saw 
the dirt, he stood up to shake it out 
of his robe, and, forgetting about the 
eggs, he shook them out too, and they 
were broken just as before. Ever since 
then, they say, Eagles never lay their 
eggs at the season when Beetles are 
about.

 The weak will sometimes find ways to 
avenge an insult, even upon the strong. 



THE FOWLER AND THE LARK 

A Fowler was setting his nets for 
little birds when a Lark came up to him 
and asked him what he was doing. "I am 
engaged in founding a city," said he, 
and with that he withdrew to a short 
distance and concealed himself. The 
Lark examined the nets with great 
curiosity, and presently, catching 
sight of the bait, hopped on to them in 
order to secure it, and became 
entangled in the meshes. The Fowler 
then ran up quickly and captured her. 
"What a fool I was!" said she: "but at 
any rate, if that's the kind of city 
you are founding, it'll be a long time 
before you find fools enough to fill 
it." 



THE FISHERMAN PIPING 

A Fisherman who could play the flute 
went down one day to the sea-shore with 
his nets and his flute; and, taking his 
stand on a projecting rock, began to 
play a tune, thinking that the music 
would bring the fish jumping out of the 
sea. He went on playing for some time, 
but not a fish appeared: so at last he 
threw down his flute and cast his net 
into the sea, and made a great haul of 
fish. When they were landed and he saw 
them leaping about on the shore, he 
cried, "You rascals! you wouldn't dance 
when I piped: but now I've stopped, you 
can do nothing else!" 



THE WEASEL AND THE MAN 

A Man once caught a Weasel, which was 
always sneaking about the house, and 
was just going to drown it in a tub of 
water, when it begged hard for its 
life, and said to him, "Surely you 
haven't the heart to put me to death? 
Think how useful I have been in 
clearing your house of the mice and 
lizards which used to infest it, and 
show your gratitude by sparing my 
life." "You have not been altogether 
useless, I grant you," said the Man: 
"but who killed the fowls? Who stole 
the meat? No, no! You do much more harm 
than good, and die you shall." 



THE PLOUGHMAN, THE ASS, AND THE OX 

A Ploughman yoked his Ox and his Ass 
together, and set to work to plough his 
field. It was a poor makeshift of a 
team, but it was the best he could do, 
as he had but a single Ox. At the end 
of the day, when the beasts were loosed 
from the yoke, the Ass said to the Ox, 
"Well, we've had a hard day: which of 
us is to carry the master home?" The Ox 
looked surprised at the question. 
"Why," said he, "you, to be sure, as 
usual." 



DEMADES AND HIS FABLE 

Demades the orator was once speaking in 
the Assembly at Athens; but the people 
were very inattentive to what he was 
saying, so he stopped and said, 
"Gentlemen, I should like to tell you 
one of AEsop's fables." This made every 
one listen intently. Then Demades 
began: "Demeter, a Swallow, and an Eel 
were once travelling together, and came 
to a river without a bridge: the 
Swallow flew over it, and the Eel swam 
across"; and then he stopped. "What 
happened to Demeter?" cried several 
people in the audience. "Demeter," he 
replied, "is very angry with you for 
listening to fables when you ought to 
be minding public business." 



THE MONKEY AND THE DOLPHIN 

When people go on a voyage they often 
take with them lap-dogs or monkeys as 
pets to wile away the time. Thus it 
fell out that a man returning to Athens 
from the East had a pet Monkey on board 
with him. As they neared the coast of 
Attica a great storm burst upon them, 
and the ship capsized. All on board 
were thrown into the water, and tried 
to save themselves by swimming, the 
Monkey among the rest. A Dolphin saw 
him, and, supposing him to be a man, 
took him on his back and began swimming 
towards the shore. When they got near 
the Piraeus, which is the port of 
Athens, the Dolphin asked the Monkey if 
he was an Athenian. The Monkey replied 
that he was, and added that he came of 
a very distinguished family. "Then, of 
course, you know the Piraeus," 
continued the Dolphin. The Monkey 
thought he was referring to some high 
official or other, and replied, "Oh, 
yes, he's a very old friend of mine." 
At that, detecting his hypocrisy, the 
Dolphin was so disgusted that he dived 
below the surface, and the unfortunate 
Monkey was quickly drowned. 



THE CROW AND THE SNAKE 

A hungry Crow spied a Snake lying 
asleep in a sunny spot, and, picking it 
up in his claws, he was carrying it off 
to a place where he could make a meal 
of it without being disturbed, when the 
Snake reared its head and bit him. It 
was a poisonous Snake, and the bite was 
fatal, and the dying Crow said, "What a 
cruel fate is mine! I thought I had 
made a lucky find, and it has cost me 
my life!" 



THE DOGS AND THE FOX 

Some Dogs once found a lion's skin, and 
were worrying it with their teeth. Just 
then a Fox came by, and said, "You 
think yourselves very brave, no doubt; 
but if that were a live lion you'd find 
his claws a good deal sharper than your 
teeth." 



THE NIGHTINGALE AND THE HAWK 

A Nightingale was sitting on a bough of 
an oak and singing, as her custom was. 
A hungry Hawk presently spied her, and 
darting to the spot seized her in his 
talons. He was just about to tear her 
in pieces when she begged him to spare 
her life: "I'm not big enough," she 
pleaded, "to make you a good meal: you 
ought to seek your prey among the 
bigger birds." The Hawk eyed her with 
some contempt. "You must think me very 
simple," said he, "if you suppose I am 
going to give up a certain prize on the 
chance of a better of which I see at 
present no signs." 



THE ROSE AND THE AMARANTH 

A Rose and an Amaranth blossomed side 
by side in a garden, and the Amaranth 
said to her neighbour, "How I envy you 
your beauty and your sweet scent! No 
wonder you are such a universal 
favourite." But the Rose replied with a 
shade of sadness in her voice, "Ah, my 
dear friend, I bloom but for a time: my 
petals soon wither and fall, and then I 
die. But your flowers never fade, even 
if they are cut; for they are 
everlasting." 



THE MAN, THE HORSE, THE OX, AND THE DOG 

One winter's day, during a severe 
storm, a Horse, an Ox, and a Dog came 
and begged for shelter in the house of 
a Man. He readily admitted them, and, 
as they were cold and wet, he lit a 
fire for their comfort: and he put oats 
before the Horse, and hay before the 
Ox, while he fed the Dog with the 
remains of his own dinner. When the 
storm abated, and they were about to 
depart, they determined to show their 
gratitude in the following way. They 
divided the life of Man among them, and 
each endowed one part of it with the 
qualities which were peculiarly his 
own. The Horse took youth, and hence 
young men are high-mettled and 
impatient of restraint; the Ox took 
middle age, and accordingly men in 
middle life are steady and 
hard-working; while the Dog took old 
age, which is the reason why old men 
are so often peevish and ill-tempered, 
and, like dogs, attached chiefly to 
those who look to their comfort, while 
they are disposed to snap at those who 
are unfamiliar or distasteful to them. 



THE WOLVES, THE SHEEP, AND THE RAM 

The Wolves sent a deputation to the 
Sheep with proposals for a lasting 
peace between them, on condition of 
their giving up the sheep-dogs to 
instant death. The foolish Sheep agreed 
to the terms; but an old Ram, whose 
years had brought him wisdom, 
interfered and said, "How can we expect 
to live at peace with you? Why, even 
with the dogs at hand to protect us, we 
are never secure from your murderous 
attacks!" 



THE SWAN 

The Swan is said to sing but once in 
its life--when it knows that it is 
about to die. A certain man, who had 
heard of the song of the Swan, one day 
saw one of these birds for sale in the 
market, and bought it and took it home 
with him. A few days later he had some 
friends to dinner, and produced the 
Swan, and bade it sing for their 
entertainment: but the Swan remained 
silent. In course of time, when it was 
growing old, it became aware of its 
approaching end and broke into a sweet, 
sad song. When its owner heard it, he 
said angrily, "If the creature only 
sings when it is about to die, what a 
fool I was that day I wanted to hear 
its song! I ought to have wrung its 
neck instead of merely inviting it to 
sing." 



THE SNAKE AND JUPITER 

A Snake suffered a good deal from being 
constantly trodden upon by man and 
beast, owing partly to the length of 
his body and partly to his being unable 
to raise himself above the surface of 
the ground: so he went and complained 
to Jupiter about the risks to which he 
was exposed. But Jupiter had little 
sympathy for him. "I dare say," said 
he, "that if you had bitten the first 
that trod on you, the others would have 
taken more trouble to look where they 
put their feet." 



THE WOLF AND HIS SHADOW 

A Wolf, who was roaming about on the 
plain when the sun was getting low in 
the sky, was much impressed by the size 
of his shadow, and said to himself, "I 
had no idea I was so big. Fancy my 
being afraid of a lion! Why, I, not he, 
ought to be King of the beasts"; and, 
heedless of danger, he strutted about 
as if there could be no doubt at all 
about it. Just then a lion sprang upon 
him and began to devour him. "Alas," he 
cried, "had I not lost sight of the 
facts, I shouldn't have been ruined by 
my fancies." 



THE PLOUGHMAN AND THE WOLF 

A Ploughman loosed his oxen from the 
plough, and led them away to the water 
to drink. While he was absent a 
half-starved Wolf appeared on the 
scene, and went up to the plough and 
began chewing the leather straps 
attached to the yoke. As he gnawed away 
desperately in the hope of satisfying 
his craving for food, he somehow got 
entangled in the harness, and, taking 
fright, struggled to get free, tugging 
at the traces as if he would drag the 
plough along with him. Just then the 
Ploughman came back, and seeing what 
was happening, he cried, "Ah, you old 
rascal, I wish you would give up 
thieving for good and take to honest 
work instead." 



MERCURY AND THE MAN BITTEN BY AN ANT 

A Man once saw a ship go down with all 
its crew, and commented severely on the 
injustice of the gods. "They care 
nothing for a man's character," said 
he, "but let the good and the bad go to 
their deaths together." There was an 
ant-heap close by where he was 
standing, and, just as he spoke, he was 
bitten in the foot by an Ant. Turning 
in a temper to the ant-heap he stamped 
upon it and crushed hundreds of 
unoffending ants. Suddenly Mercury 
appeared, and belaboured him with his 
staff, saying as he did so, "You 
villain, where's your nice sense of 
justice now?" 



THE WILY LION 

A Lion watched a fat Bull feeding in a 
meadow, and his mouth watered when he 
thought of the royal feast he would 
make, but he did not dare to attack 
him, for he was afraid of his sharp 
horns. Hunger, however, presently 
compelled him to do something: and as 
the use of force did not promise 
success, he determined to resort to 
artifice. Going up to the Bull in 
friendly fashion, he said to him, "I 
cannot help saying how much I admire 
your magnificent figure. What a fine 
head! What powerful shoulders and 
thighs! But, my dear friend, what in 
the world makes you wear those ugly 
horns? You must find them as awkward as 
they are unsightly. Believe me, you 
would do much better without them." The 
Bull was foolish enough to be persuaded 
by this flattery to have his horns cut 
off; and, having now lost his only 
means of defence, fell an easy prey to 
the Lion. 



THE PARROT AND THE CAT 

A Man once bought a Parrot and gave it 
the run of his house. It revelled in 
its liberty, and presently flew up on 
to the mantelpiece and screamed away to 
its heart's content. The noise 
disturbed the Cat, who was asleep on 
the hearthrug. Looking up at the 
intruder, she said, "Who may you be, 
and where have you come from?" The 
Parrot replied, "Your master has just 
bought me and brought me home with 
him." "You impudent bird," said the 
Cat, "how dare you, a newcomer, make a 
noise like that? Why, I was born here, 
and have lived here all my life, and 
yet, if I venture to mew, they throw 
things at me and chase me all over the 
place." "Look here, mistress," said the 
Parrot, "you just hold your tongue. My 
voice they delight in; but yours--yours 
is a perfect nuisance." 



THE STAG AND THE LION 

A Stag was chased by the hounds, and 
took refuge in a cave, where he hoped 
to be safe from his pursuers. 
Unfortunately the cave contained a 
Lion, to whom he fell an easy prey. 
"Unhappy that I am," he cried, "I am 
saved from the power of the dogs only 
to fall into the clutches of a Lion."

 Out of the frying-pan into the fire. 



THE IMPOSTOR 

A certain man fell ill, and, being in a 
very bad way, he made a vow that he 
would sacrifice a hundred oxen to the 
gods if they would grant him a return 
to health. Wishing to see how he would 
keep his vow, they caused him to 
recover in a short time. Now, he hadn't 
an ox in the world, so he made a 
hundred little oxen out of tallow and 
offered them up on an altar, at the 
same time saying, "Ye gods, I call you 
to witness that I have discharged my 
vow." The gods determined to be even 
with him, so they sent him a dream, in 
which he was bidden to go to the 
sea-shore and fetch a hundred crowns 
which he was to find there. Hastening 
in great excitement to the shore, he 
fell in with a band of robbers, who 
seized him and carried him off to sell 
as a slave: and when they sold him a 
hundred crowns was the sum he fetched.

 Do not promise more than you can 
perform. 



THE DOGS AND THE HIDES 

Once upon a time a number of Dogs, who 
were famished with hunger, saw some 
Hides steeping in a river, but couldn't 
get at them because the water was too 
deep. So they put their heads together, 
and decided to drink away at the river 
till it was shallow enough for them to 
reach the Hides. But long before that 
happened they burst themselves with 
drinking. 



THE LION, THE FOX, AND THE ASS 

A Lion, a Fox, and an Ass went out 
hunting together. They had soon taken a 
large booty, which the Lion requested 
the Ass to divide between them. The Ass 
divided it all into three equal parts, 
and modestly begged the others to take 
their choice; at which the Lion, 
bursting with fury, sprang upon the Ass 
and tore him to pieces. Then, glaring 
at the Fox, he bade him make a fresh 
division. The Fox gathered almost the 
whole in one great heap for the Lion's 
share, leaving only the smallest 
possible morsel for himself. "My dear 
friend," said the Lion, "how did you 
get the knack of it so well?" The Fox 
replied, "Me? Oh, I took a lesson from 
the Ass."

 Happy is he who learns from the 
misfortunes of others. 



THE FOWLER, THE PARTRIDGE, AND THE COCK 

One day, as a Fowler was sitting down 
to a scanty supper of herbs and bread, 
a friend dropped in unexpectedly. The 
larder was empty; so he went out and 
caught a tame Partridge, which he kept 
as a decoy, and was about to wring her 
neck when she cried, "Surely you won't 
kill me? Why, what will you do without 
me next time you go fowling? How will 
you get the birds to come to your 
nets?" He let her go at this, and went 
to his hen-house, where he had a plump 
young Cock. When the Cock saw what he 
was after, he too pleaded for his life, 
and said, "If you kill me, how will you 
know the time of night? and who will 
wake you up in the morning when it is 
time to get to work?" The Fowler, 
however, replied, "You are useful for 
telling the time, I know; but, for all 
that, I can't send my friend supperless 
to bed." And therewith he caught him 
and wrung his neck. 



THE GNAT AND THE LION 

A Gnat once went up to a Lion and said, 
"I am not in the least afraid of you: I 
don't even allow that you are a match 
for me in strength. What does your 
strength amount to after all? That you 
can scratch with your claws and bite 
with your teeth--just like a woman in a 
temper--and nothing more. But I'm 
stronger than you: if you don't believe 
it, let us fight and see." So saying, 
the Gnat sounded his horn, and darted 
in and bit the Lion on the nose. When 
the Lion felt the sting, in his haste 
to crush him he scratched his nose 
badly, and made it bleed, but failed 
altogether to hurt the Gnat, which 
buzzed off in triumph, elated by its 
victory. Presently, however, it got 
entangled in a spider's web, and was 
caught and eaten by the spider, thus 
falling a prey to an insignificant 
insect after having triumphed over the 
King of the Beasts. 



THE FARMER AND HIS DOGS 

A Farmer was snowed up in his farmstead 
by a severe storm, and was unable to go 
out and procure provisions for himself 
and his family. So he first killed his 
sheep and used them for food; then, as 
the storm still continued, he killed 
his goats; and, last of all, as the 
weather showed no signs of improving, 
he was compelled to kill his oxen and 
eat them. When his Dogs saw the various 
animals being killed and eaten in turn, 
they said to one another, "We had 
better get out of this or we shall be 
the next to go!" 



THE EAGLE AND THE FOX 

An Eagle and a Fox became great friends 
and determined to live near one 
another: they thought that the more 
they saw of each other the better 
friends they would be. So the Eagle 
built a nest at the top of a high tree, 
while the Fox settled in a thicket at 
the foot of it and produced a litter of 
cubs. One day the Fox went out foraging 
for food, and the Eagle, who also 
wanted food for her young, flew down 
into the thicket, caught up the Fox's 
cubs, and carried them up into the tree 
for a meal for herself and her family. 
When the Fox came back, and found out 
what had happened, she was not so much 
sorry for the loss of her cubs as 
furious because she couldn't get at the 
Eagle and pay her out for her 
treachery. So she sat down not far off 
and cursed her. But it wasn't long 
before she had her revenge. Some 
villagers happened to be sacrificing a 
goat on a neighbouring altar, and the 
Eagle flew down and carried off a piece 
of burning flesh to her nest. There was 
a strong wind blowing, and the nest 
caught fire, with the result that her 
fledglings fell half-roasted to the 
ground. Then the Fox ran to the spot 
and devoured them in full sight of the 
Eagle.

 False faith may escape human 
punishment, but cannot escape the 
divine. 



THE BUTCHER AND HIS CUSTOMERS 

Two Men were buying meat at a Butcher's 
stall in the market-place, and, while 
the Butcher's back was turned for a 
moment, one of them snatched up a joint 
and hastily thrust it under the other's 
cloak, where it could not be seen. When 
the Butcher turned round, he missed the 
meat at once, and charged them with 
having stolen it: but the one who had 
taken it said he hadn't got it, and the 
one who had got it said he hadn't taken 
it. The Butcher felt sure they were 
deceiving him, but he only said, "You 
may cheat me with your lying, but you 
can't cheat the gods, and they won't 
let you off so lightly."

 Prevarication often amounts to 
perjury. 



HERCULES AND MINERVA 

Hercules was once travelling along a 
narrow road when he saw lying on the 
ground in front of him what appeared to 
be an apple, and as he passed he 
stamped upon it with his heel. To his 
astonishment, instead of being crushed 
it doubled in size; and, on his 
attacking it again and smiting it with 
his club, it swelled up to an enormous 
size and blocked up the whole road. 
Upon this he dropped his club, and 
stood looking at it in amazement. Just 
then Minerva appeared, and said to him, 
"Leave it alone, my friend; that which 
you see before you is the apple of 
discord: if you do not meddle with it, 
it remains small as it was at first, 
but if you resort to violence it swells 
into the thing you see." 



THE FOX WHO SERVED A LION 

A Lion had a Fox to attend on him, and 
whenever they went hunting the Fox 
found the prey and the Lion fell upon 
it and killed it, and then they divided 
it between them in certain proportions. 
But the Lion always got a very large 
share, and the Fox a very small one, 
which didn't please the latter at all; 
so he determined to set up on his own 
account. He began by trying to steal a 
lamb from a flock of sheep: but the 
shepherd saw him and set his dogs on 
him. The hunter was now the hunted, and 
was very soon caught and despatched by 
the dogs.

 Better servitude with safety than 
freedom with danger. 



THE QUACK DOCTOR 

A certain man fell sick and took to his 
bed. He consulted a number of doctors 
from time to time, and they all, with 
one exception, told him that his life 
was in no immediate danger, but that 
his illness would probably last a 
considerable time. The one who took a 
different view of his case, who was 
also the last to be consulted, bade him 
prepare for the worst: "You have not 
twenty-four hours to live," said he, 
"and I fear I can do nothing." As it 
turned out, however, he was quite 
wrong; for at the end of a few days the 
sick man quitted his bed and took a 
walk abroad, looking, it is true, as 
pale as a ghost. In the course of his 
walk he met the Doctor who had 
prophesied his death. "Dear me," said 
the latter, "how do you do? You are 
fresh from the other world, no doubt. 
Pray, how are our departed friends 
getting on there?" "Most comfortably," 
replied the other, "for they have drunk 
the water of oblivion, and have 
forgotten all the troubles of life. By 
the way, just before I left, the 
authorities were making arrangements to 
prosecute all the doctors, because they 
won't let sick men die in the course of 
nature, but use their arts to keep them 
alive. They were going to charge you 
along with the rest, till I assured 
them that you were no doctor, but a 
mere impostor." 



THE LION, THE WOLF, AND THE FOX 

A Lion, infirm with age, lay sick in 
his den, and all the beasts of the 
forest came to inquire after his health 
with the exception of the Fox. The Wolf 
thought this was a good opportunity for 
paying off old scores against the Fox, 
so he called the attention of the Lion 
to his absence, and said, "You see, 
sire, that we have all come to see how 
you are except the Fox, who hasn't come 
near you, and doesn't care whether you 
are well or ill." Just then the Fox 
came in and heard the last words of the 
Wolf. The Lion roared at him in deep 
displeasure, but he begged to be 
allowed to explain his absence, and 
said, "Not one of them cares for you so 
much as I, sire, for all the time I 
have been going round to the doctors 
and trying to find a cure for your 
illness." "And may I ask if you have 
found one?" said the Lion. "I have, 
sire," said the Fox, "and it is this: 
you must flay a Wolf and wrap yourself 
in his skin while it is still warm." 
The Lion accordingly turned to the Wolf 
and struck him dead with one blow of 
his paw, in order to try the Fox's 
prescription; but the Fox laughed and 
said to himself, "That's what comes of 
stirring up ill-will." 



HERCULES AND PLUTUS 

When Hercules was received among the 
gods and was entertained at a banquet 
by Jupiter, he responded courteously to 
the greetings of all with the exception 
of Plutus, the god of wealth. When 
Plutus approached him, he cast his eyes 
upon the ground, and turned away and 
pretended not to see him. Jupiter was 
surprised at this conduct on his part, 
and asked why, after having been so 
cordial with all the other gods, he had 
behaved like that to Plutus. "Sire," 
said Hercules, "I do not like Plutus, 
and I will tell you why. When we were 
on earth together I always noticed that 
he was to be found in the company of 
scoundrels." 



THE FOX AND THE LEOPARD 

A Fox and a Leopard were disputing 
about their looks, and each claimed to 
be the more handsome of the two. The 
Leopard said, "Look at my smart coat; 
you have nothing to match that." But 
the Fox replied, "Your coat may be 
smart, but my wits are smarter still." 



THE FOX AND THE HEDGEHOG 

A Fox, in swimming across a rapid 
river, was swept away by the current 
and carried a long way downstream in 
spite of his struggles, until at last, 
bruised and exhausted, he managed to 
scramble on to dry ground from a 
backwater. As he lay there unable to 
move, a swarm of horseflies settled on 
him and sucked his blood undisturbed, 
for he was too weak even to shake them 
off. A Hedgehog saw him, and asked if 
he should brush away the flies that 
were tormenting him; but the Fox 
replied, "Oh, please, no, not on any 
account, for these flies have sucked 
their fill and are taking very little 
from me now; but, if you drive them 
off, another swarm of hungry ones will 
come and suck all the blood I have 
left, and leave me without a drop in my 
veins." 



THE CROW AND THE RAVEN 

A Crow became very jealous of a Raven, 
because the latter was regarded by men 
as a bird of omen which foretold the 
future, and was accordingly held in 
great respect by them. She was very 
anxious to get the same sort of 
reputation herself; and, one day, 
seeing some travellers approaching, she 
flew on to a branch of a tree at the 
roadside and cawed as loud as she 
could. The travellers were in some 
dismay at the sound, for they feared it 
might be a bad omen; till one of them, 
spying the Crow, said to his 
companions, "It's all right, my 
friends, we can go on without fear, for 
it's only a crow and that means 
nothing."

 Those who pretend to be something they 
are not only make themselves 
ridiculous. 



THE WITCH 

A Witch professed to be able to avert 
the anger of the gods by means of 
charms, of which she alone possessed 
the secret; and she drove a brisk 
trade, and made a fat livelihood out of 
it. But certain persons accused her of 
black magic and carried her before the 
judges, and demanded that she should be 
put to death for dealings with the 
Devil. She was found guilty and 
condemned to death: and one of the 
judges said to her as she was leaving 
the dock, "You say you can avert the 
anger of the gods. How comes it, then, 
that you have failed to disarm the 
enmity of men?" 



THE OLD MAN AND DEATH 

An Old Man cut himself a bundle of 
faggots in a wood and started to carry 
them home. He had a long way to go, and 
was tired out before he had got much 
more than half-way. Casting his burden 
on the ground, he called upon Death to 
come and release him from his life of 
toil. The words were scarcely out of 
his mouth when, much to his dismay, 
Death stood before him and professed 
his readiness to serve him. He was 
almost frightened out of his wits, but 
he had enough presence of mind to 
stammer out, "Good sir, if you'd be so 
kind, pray help me up with my burden 
again." 



THE MISER 

A Miser sold everything he had, and 
melted down his hoard of gold into a 
single lump, which he buried secretly 
in a field. Every day he went to look 
at it, and would sometimes spend long 
hours gloating over his treasure. One 
of his men noticed his frequent visits 
to the spot, and one day watched him 
and discovered his secret. Waiting his 
opportunity, he went one night and dug 
up the gold and stole it. Next day the 
Miser visited the place as usual, and, 
finding his treasure gone, fell to 
tearing his hair and groaning over his 
loss. In this condition he was seen by 
one of his neighbours, who asked him 
what his trouble was. The Miser told 
him of his misfortune; but the other 
replied, "Don't take it so much to 
heart, my friend; put a brick into the 
hole, and take a look at it every day: 
you won't be any worse off than before, 
for even when you had your gold it was 
of no earthly use to you." 



THE FOXES AND THE RIVER 

A number of Foxes assembled on the bank 
of a river and wanted to drink; but the 
current was so strong and the water 
looked so deep and dangerous that they 
didn't dare to do so, but stood near 
the edge encouraging one another not to 
be afraid. At last one of them, to 
shame the rest, and show how brave he 
was, said, "I am not a bit frightened! 
See, I'll step right into the water!" 
He had no sooner done so than the 
current swept him off his feet. When 
the others saw him being carried 
down-stream they cried, "Don't go and 
leave us! Come back and show us where 
we too can drink with safety." But he 
replied, "I'm afraid I can't yet: I 
want to go to the seaside, and this 
current will take me there nicely. When 
I come back I'll show you with 
pleasure." 



THE HORSE AND THE STAG 

There was once a Horse who used to 
graze in a meadow which he had all to 
himself. But one day a Stag came into 
the meadow, and said he had as good a 
right to feed there as the Horse, and 
moreover chose all the best places for 
himself. The Horse, wishing to be 
revenged upon his unwelcome visitor, 
went to a man and asked if he would 
help him to turn out the Stag. "Yes," 
said the man, "I will by all means; but 
I can only do so if you let me put a 
bridle in your mouth and mount on your 
back." The Horse agreed to this, and 
the two together very soon turned the 
Stag out of the pasture: but when that 
was done, the Horse found to his dismay 
that in the man he had got a master for 
good. 



THE FOX AND THE BRAMBLE 

In making his way through a hedge a Fox 
missed his footing and caught at a 
Bramble to save himself from falling. 
Naturally, he got badly scratched, and 
in disgust he cried to the Bramble, "It 
was your help I wanted, and see how you 
have treated me! I'd sooner have fallen 
outright." The Bramble, interrupting 
him, replied, "You must have lost your 
wits, my friend, to catch at me, who am 
myself always catching at others." 



THE FOX AND THE SNAKE 

A Snake, in crossing a river, was 
carried away by the current, but 
managed to wriggle on to a bundle of 
thorns which was floating by, and was 
thus carried at a great rate 
down-stream. A Fox caught sight of it 
from the bank as it went whirling 
along, and called out, "Gad! the 
passenger fits the ship!" 



THE LION, THE FOX, AND THE STAG 

A Lion lay sick in his den, unable to 
provide himself with food. So he said 
to his friend the Fox, who came to ask 
how he did, "My good friend, I wish you 
would go to yonder wood and beguile the 
big Stag, who lives there, to come to 
my den: I have a fancy to make my 
dinner off a stag's heart and brains." 
The Fox went to the wood and found the 
Stag and said to him, "My dear sir, 
you're in luck. You know the Lion, our 
King: well, he's at the point of death, 
and has appointed you his successor to 
rule over the beasts. I hope you won't 
forget that I was the first to bring 
you the good news. And now I must be 
going back to him; and, if you take my 
advice, you'll come too and be with him 
at the last." The Stag was highly 
flattered, and followed the Fox to the 
Lion's den, suspecting nothing. No 
sooner had he got inside than the Lion 
sprang upon him, but he misjudged his 
spring, and the Stag got away with only 
his ears torn, and returned as fast as 
he could to the shelter of the wood. 
The Fox was much mortified, and the 
Lion, too, was dreadfully disappointed, 
for he was getting very hungry in spite 
of his illness. So he begged the Fox to 
have another try at coaxing the Stag to 
his den. "It'll be almost impossible 
this time," said the Fox, "but I'll 
try"; and off he went to the wood a 
second time, and found the Stag resting 
and trying to recover from his fright. 
As soon as he saw the Fox he cried, 
"You scoundrel, what do you mean by 
trying to lure me to my death like 
that? Take yourself off, or I'll do you 
to death with my horns." But the Fox 
was entirely shameless. "What a coward 
you were," said he; "surely you didn't 
think the Lion meant any harm? Why, he 
was only going to whisper some royal 
secrets into your ear when you went off 
like a scared rabbit. You have rather 
disgusted him, and I'm not sure he 
won't make the wolf King instead, 
unless you come back at once and show 
you've got some spirit. I promise you 
he won't hurt you, and I will be your 
faithful servant." The Stag was foolish 
enough to be persuaded to return, and 
this time the Lion made no mistake, but 
overpowered him, and feasted right 
royally upon his carcase. The Fox, 
meanwhile, watched his chance and, when 
the Lion wasn't looking, filched away 
the brains to reward him for his 
trouble. Presently the Lion began 
searching for them, of course without 
success: and the Fox, who was watching 
him, said, "I don't think it's much use 
your looking for the brains: a creature 
who twice walked into a Lion's den 
can't have got any." 



THE MAN WHO LOST HIS SPADE 

A Man was engaged in digging over his 
vineyard, and one day on coming to work 
he missed his Spade. Thinking it may 
have been stolen by one of his 
labourers, he questioned them closely, 
but they one and all denied any 
knowledge of it. He was not convinced 
by their denials, and insisted that 
they should all go to the town and take 
oath in a temple that they were not 
guilty of the theft. This was because 
he had no great opinion of the simple 
country deities, but thought that the 
thief would not pass undetected by the 
shrewder gods of the town. When they 
got inside the gates the first thing 
they heard was the town crier 
proclaiming a reward for information 
about a thief who had stolen something 
from the city temple. "Well," said the 
Man to himself, "it strikes me I had 
better go back home again. If these 
town gods can't detect the thieves who 
steal from their own temples, it's 
scarcely likely they can tell me who 
stole my Spade." 



THE PARTRIDGE AND THE FOWLER 

A Fowler caught a Partridge in his 
nets, and was just about to wring its 
neck when it made a piteous appeal to 
him to spare its life and said, "Do not 
kill me, but let me live and I will 
repay you for your kindness by decoying 
other partridges into your nets." "No," 
said the Fowler, "I will not spare you. 
I was going to kill you anyhow, and 
after that treacherous speech you 
thoroughly deserve your fate." 



THE RUNAWAY SLAVE 

A Slave, being discontented with his 
lot, ran away from his master. He was 
soon missed by the latter, who lost no 
time in mounting his horse and setting 
out in pursuit of the fugitive. He 
presently came up with him, and the 
Slave, in the hope of avoiding capture, 
slipped into a treadmill and hid 
himself there. "Aha," said his master, 
"that's the very place for you, my 
man!" 



THE HUNTER AND THE WOODMAN 

A Hunter was searching in the forest 
for the tracks of a lion, and, catching 
sight presently of a Woodman engaged in 
felling a tree, he went up to him and 
asked him if he had noticed a lion's 
footprints anywhere about, or if he 
knew where his den was. The Woodman 
answered, "If you will come with me, I 
will show you the lion himself." The 
Hunter turned pale with fear, and his 
teeth chattered as he replied, "Oh, I'm 
not looking for the lion, thanks, but 
only for his tracks." 



THE SERPENT AND THE EAGLE 

An Eagle swooped down upon a Serpent 
and seized it in his talons with the 
intention of carrying it off and 
devouring it. But the Serpent was too 
quick for him and had its coils round 
him in a moment; and then there ensued 
a life-and-death struggle between the 
two. A countryman, who was a witness of 
the encounter, came to the assistance 
of the Eagle, and succeeded in freeing 
him from the Serpent and enabling him 
to escape. In revenge the Serpent spat 
some of his poison into the man's 
drinking-horn. Heated with his 
exertions, the man was about to slake 
his thirst with a draught from the 
horn, when the Eagle knocked it out of 
his hand, and spilled its contents upon 
the ground.

 One good turn deserves another. 



THE ROGUE AND THE ORACLE 

A Rogue laid a wager that he would 
prove the Oracle at Delphi to be 
untrustworthy by procuring from it a 
false reply to an inquiry by himself. 
So he went to the temple on the 
appointed day with a small bird in his 
hand, which he concealed under the 
folds of his cloak, and asked whether 
what he held in his hand were alive or 
dead. If the Oracle said "dead," he 
meant to produce the bird alive: if the 
reply was "alive," he intended to wring 
its neck and show it to be dead. But 
the Oracle was one too many for him, 
for the answer he got was this: 
"Stranger, whether the thing that you 
hold in your hand be alive or dead is a 
matter that depends entirely on your 
own will." 



THE HORSE AND THE ASS 

A Horse, proud of his fine harness, met 
an Ass on the high-road. As the Ass 
with his heavy burden moved slowly out 
of the way to let him pass, the Horse 
cried out impatiently that he could 
hardly resist kicking him to make him 
move faster. The Ass held his peace, 
but did not forget the other's 
insolence. Not long afterwards the 
Horse became broken-winded, and was 
sold by his owner to a farmer. One day, 
as he was drawing a dung-cart, he met 
the Ass again, who in turn derided him 
and said, "Aha! you never thought to 
come to this, did you, you who were so 
proud! Where are all your gay trappings 
now?" 



THE DOG CHASING A WOLF 

A Dog was chasing a Wolf, and as he ran 
he thought what a fine fellow he was, 
and what strong legs he had, and how 
quickly they covered the ground. "Now, 
there's this Wolf," he said to himself, 
"what a poor creature he is: he's no 
match for me, and he knows it and so he 
runs away." But the Wolf looked round 
just then and said, "Don't you imagine 
I'm running away from you, my friend: 
it's your master I'm afraid of." 



GRIEF AND HIS DUE 

When Jupiter was assigning the various 
gods their privileges, it so happened 
that Grief was not present with the 
rest: but when all had received their 
share, he too entered and claimed his 
due. Jupiter was at a loss to know what 
to do, for there was nothing left for 
him. However, at last he decided that 
to him should belong the tears that are 
shed for the dead. Thus it is the same 
with Grief as it is with the other 
gods. The more devoutly men render to 
him his due, the more lavish is he of 
that which he has to bestow. It is not 
well, therefore, to mourn long for the 
departed; else Grief, whose sole 
pleasure is in such mourning, will be 
quick to send fresh cause for tears. 



THE HAWK, THE KITE, AND THE PIGEONS 

The Pigeons in a certain dovecote were 
persecuted by a Kite, who every now and 
then swooped down and carried off one 
of their number. So they invited a Hawk 
into the dovecote to defend them 
against their enemy. But they soon 
repented of their folly: for the Hawk 
killed more of them in a day than the 
Kite had done in a year. 



THE WOMAN AND THE FARMER 

A Woman, who had lately lost her 
husband, used to go every day to his 
grave and lament her loss. A Farmer, 
who was engaged in ploughing not far 
from the spot, set eyes upon the Woman 
and desired to have her for his wife: 
so he left his plough and came and sat 
by her side, and began to shed tears 
himself. She asked him why he wept; and 
he replied, "I have lately lost my 
wife, who was very dear to me, and 
tears ease my grief." "And I," said 
she, "have lost my husband." And so for 
a while they mourned in silence. Then 
he said, "Since you and I are in like 
case, shall we not do well to marry and 
live together? I shall take the place 
of your dead husband, and you, that of 
my dead wife." The Woman consented to 
the plan, which indeed seemed 
reasonable enough: and they dried their 
tears. Meanwhile, a thief had come and 
stolen the oxen which the Farmer had 
left with his plough. On discovering 
the theft, he beat his breast and 
loudly bewailed his loss. When the 
Woman heard his cries, she came and 
said, "Why, are you weeping still?" To 
which he replied, "Yes, and I mean it 
this time." 



PROMETHEUS AND THE MAKING OF MAN 

At the bidding of Jupiter, Prometheus 
set about the creation of Man and the 
other animals. Jupiter, seeing that 
Mankind, the only rational creatures, 
were far outnumbered by the irrational 
beasts, bade him redress the balance by 
turning some of the latter into men. 
Prometheus did as he was bidden, and 
this is the reason why some people have 
the forms of men but the souls of 
beasts. 

 

THE TROLL AND THE BLIND MAN

An old blind man was drawing water from 
a well. A young troll sat besides him 
and picked a flower apart. When the 
bucket came up from below, a spider 
leapt out of it and unto the troll's 
nose. The troll screamed in disgust. 
The old blind man, not seeing what was 
the cause for all this, asked for the 
reason of the trolls' scream. "A 
monster came out of the well and unto 
my nose!", replied the troll. The old 
blind man laughed and said: "There are 
far worse things hidden in the depths 
of this well than monsters of any 
kind." He went away and left the young 
troll with his new fears. 



THE SWALLOW AND THE CROW 

A Swallow was once boasting to a Crow 
about her birth. "I was once a 
princess," said she, "the daughter of a 
King of Athens, but my husband used me 
cruelly, and cut out my tongue for a 
slight fault. Then, to protect me from 
further injury, I was turned by Juno 
into a bird." "You chatter quite enough 
as it is," said the Crow. "What you 
would have been like if you hadn't lost 
your tongue, I can't think." 



THE HUNTER AND THE HORSEMAN 

A Hunter went out after game, and 
succeeded in catching a hare, which he 
was carrying home with him when he met 
a man on horseback, who said to him, 
"You have had some sport I see, sir," 
and offered to buy it. The Hunter 
readily agreed; but the Horseman had no 
sooner got the hare in his hands than 
he set spurs to his horse and went off 
at full gallop. The Hunter ran after 
him for some little distance; but it 
soon dawned upon him that he had been 
tricked, and he gave up trying to 
overtake the Horseman, and, to save his 
face, called after him as loud as he 
could, "All right, sir, all right, take 
your hare: it was meant all along as a 
present." 



THE GOATHERD AND THE WILD GOATS 

A Goatherd was tending his goats out at 
pasture when he saw a number of Wild 
Goats approach and mingle with his 
flock. At the end of the day he drove 
them home and put them all into the pen 
together. Next day the weather was so 
bad that he could not take them out as 
usual: so he kept them at home in the 
pen, and fed them there. He only gave 
his own goats enough food to keep them 
from starving, but he gave the Wild 
Goats as much as they could eat and 
more; for he was very anxious for them 
to stay, and he thought that if he fed 
them well they wouldn't want to leave 
him. When the weather improved, he took 
them all out to pasture again; but no 
sooner had they got near the hills than 
the Wild Goats broke away from the 
flock and scampered off. The Goatherd 
was very much disgusted at this, and 
roundly abused them for their 
ingratitude. "Rascals!" he cried, "to 
run away like that after the way I've 
treated you!" Hearing this, one of them 
turned round and said, "Oh, yes, you 
treated us all right--too well, in 
fact; it was just that that put us on 
our guard. If you treat newcomers like 
ourselves so much better than your own 
flock, it's more than likely that, if 
another lot of strange goats joined 
yours, _we_ should then be neglected in 
favour of the last comers." 



THE NIGHTINGALE AND THE SWALLOW 

A Swallow, conversing with a 
Nightingale, advised her to quit the 
leafy coverts where she made her home, 
and to come and live with men, like 
herself, and nest under the shelter of 
their roofs. But the Nightingale 
replied, "Time was when I too, like 
yourself, lived among men: but the 
memory of the cruel wrongs I then 
suffered makes them hateful to me, and 
never again will I approach their 
dwellings."

 The scene of past sufferings revives 
painful memories. 



THE TRAVELLER AND FORTUNE 

A Traveller, exhausted with fatigue 
after a long journey, sank down at the 
very brink of a deep well and presently 
fell asleep. He was within an ace of 
falling in, when Dame Fortune appeared 
to him and touched him on the shoulder, 
cautioning him to move further away. 
"Wake up, good sir, I pray you," she 
said; "had you fallen into the well, 
the blame would have been thrown not on 
your own folly but on me, Fortune." 

 END 

 "This one is missing the story of the 
shade and the king."

-A Shade

