The Man and the Wood
A Man came into a Wood one day with an axe in his hand, and
begged all the Trees to give him a small branch which he wanted
for a particular purpose. The Trees were good-natured and gave
him one of their branches. What did the Man do but fix it into
the axe head, and soon set to work cutting down tree after tree.
Then the Trees saw how foolish they had been in giving their enemy
the means of destroying themselves.
The Dog and the Wolf
A gaunt Wolf was almost dead with hunger when he happened to
meet a House-dog who was passing by. "Ah, Cousin," said the Dog.
"I knew how it would be; your irregular life will soon be the ruin
of you. Why do you not work steadily as I do, and get your food
regularly given to you?"
"I would have no objection," said the Wolf, "if I could only
get a place."
"I will easily arrange that for you," said the Dog; "come with
me to my master and you shall share my work."
So the Wolf and the Dog went towards the town together. On
the way there the Wolf noticed that the hair on a certain part of
the Dog's neck was very much worn away, so he asked him how that
had come about.
"Oh, it is nothing," said the Dog. "That is only the place
where the collar is put on at night to keep me chained up; it
chafes a bit, but one soon gets used to it."
"Is that all?" said the Wolf. "Then good-bye to you, Master
Dog."
Better starve free than be a fat slave.
The Belly and the Members
One fine day it occurred to the Members of the Body that they
were doing all the work and the Belly was having all the food. So
they held a meeting, and after a long discussion, decided to
strike work till the Belly consented to take its proper share of
the work. So for a day or two, the Hands refused to take the
food, the Mouth refused to receive it, and the Teeth had no work
to do. But after a day or two the Members began to find that they
themselves were not in a very active condition: the Hands could
hardly move, and the Mouth was all parched and dry, while the Legs
were unable to support the rest. So thus they found that even the
Belly in its dull quiet way was doing necessary work for the Body,
and that all must work together or the Body will go to pieces.
The Hart in the Ox-Stall
A Hart hotly pursued by the hounds fled for refuge into an
ox-stall, and buried itself in a truss of hay, leaving nothing to
be seen but the tips of his horns. Soon after the Hunters came up
and asked if any one had seen the Hart. The stable boys, who had
been resting after their dinner, looked round, but could see
nothing, and the Hunters went away. Shortly afterwards the master
came in, and looking round, saw that something unusual had taken
place. He pointed to the truss of hay and said: "What are those
two curious things sticking out of the hay?" And when the stable
boys came to look they discovered the Hart, and soon made an end
of him. He thus learnt that
Nothing escapes the master's eye.
The Fox and the Grapes
One hot summer's day a Fox was strolling through an orchard
till he came to a bunch of Grapes just ripening on a vine which
had been trained over a lofty branch. "Just the thing to quench
my thirst," quoth he. Drawing back a few paces, he took a run and
a jump, and just missed the bunch. Turning round again with a
One, Two, Three, he jumped up, but with no greater success. Again
and again he tried after the tempting morsel, but at last had to
give it up, and walked away with his nose in the air, saying: "I
am sure they are sour."
It is easy to despise what you cannot get.
The Horse, Hunter, and Stag
A quarrel had arisen between the Horse and the Stag, so the
Horse came to a Hunter to ask his help to take revenge on the
Stag. The Hunter agreed, but said: "If you desire to conquer the
Stag, you must permit me to place this piece of iron between your
jaws, so that I may guide you with these reins, and allow this
saddle to be placed upon your back so that I may keep steady upon
you as we follow after the enemy." The Horse agreed to the
conditions, and the Hunter soon saddled and bridled him. Then
with the aid of the Hunter the Horse soon overcame the Stag, and
said to the Hunter: "Now, get off, and remove those things from my
mouth and back."
"Not so fast, friend," said the Hunter. "I have now got you
under bit and spur, and prefer to keep you as you are at present."
If you allow men to use you for your own purposes,
they will use you for theirs.
The Peacock and Juno
A Peacock once placed a petition before Juno desiring to have
the voice of a nightingale in addition to his other attractions;
but Juno refused his request. When he persisted, and pointed out
that he was her favourite bird, she said:
"Be content with your lot;
one cannot be first in everything."
The Fox and the Lion
When first the Fox saw the Lion he was terribly frightened,
and ran away and hid himself in the wood. Next time however he
came near the King of Beasts he stopped at a safe distance and
watched him pass by. The third time they came near one another
the Fox went straight up to the Lion and passed the time of day
with him, asking him how his family were, and when he should have
the pleasure of seeing him again; then turning his tail, he parted
from the Lion without much ceremony.
Familiarity breeds contempt.
The Lion and the Statue
A Man and a Lion were discussing the relative strength of men
and lions in general. The Man contended that he and his fellows
were stronger than lions by reason of their greater intelligence.
"Come now with me," he cried, "and I will soon prove that I am
right." So he took him into the public gardens and showed him a
statue of Hercules overcoming the Lion and tearing his mouth in
two.
"That is all very well," said the Lion, "but proves nothing,
for it was a man who made the statue."
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