The Young Thief and His Mother

The Young Thief and His Mother

A young Man had been caught in a daring act of theft and had

been condemned to be executed for it. He expressed his desire to

see his Mother, and to speak with her before he was led to

execution, and of course this was granted. When his Mother came

to him he said: "I want to whisper to you," and when she brought

her ear near him, he nearly bit it off. All the bystanders were

horrified, and asked him what he could mean by such brutal and

inhuman conduct. "It is to punish her," he said. "When I was

young I began with stealing little things, and brought them home

to Mother. Instead of rebuking and punishing me, she laughed and

said: "It will not be noticed." It is because of her that I am

here to-day."

"He is right, woman," said the Priest; "the Lord hath said:

"Train up a child in the way he should go; and

when he is old he will not depart therefrom."

The Man and His Two Wives

In the old days, when men were allowed to have many wives, a

middle-aged Man had one wife that was old and one that was young;

each loved him very much, and desired to see him like herself.

Now the Man's hair was turning grey, which the young Wife did not

like, as it made him look too old for her husband. So every night

she used to comb his hair and pick out the white ones. But the

elder Wife saw her husband growing grey with great pleasure, for

she did not like to be mistaken for his mother. So every morning

she used to arrange his hair and pick out as many of the black

ones as she could. The consequence was the Man soon found himself

entirely bald.

Yield to all and you will soon have nothing to yield.

The Nurse and the Wolf

"Be quiet now," said an old Nurse to a child sitting on her

lap. "If you make that noise again I will throw you to the Wolf."

Now it chanced that a Wolf was passing close under the window

as this was said. So he crouched down by the side of the house

and waited. "I am in good luck to-day," thought he. "It is sure

to cry soon, and a daintier morsel I haven't had for many a long

day." So he waited, and he waited, and he waited, till at last

the child began to cry, and the Wolf came forward before the

window, and looked up to the Nurse, wagging his tail. But all the

Nurse did was to shut down the window and call for help, and the

dogs of the house came rushing out. "Ah," said the Wolf as he

galloped away,

"Enemies promises were made to be broken."

The Tortoise and the Birds

A Tortoise desired to change its place of residence, so he

asked an Eagle to carry him to his new home, promising her a rich

reward for her trouble. The Eagle agreed and seizing the Tortoise

by the shell with her talons soared aloft. On their way they met

a Crow, who said to the Eagle: "Tortoise is good eating." "The

shell is too hard," said the Eagle in reply. "The rocks will soon

crack the shell," was the Crow's answer; and the Eagle, taking the

hint, let fall the Tortoise on a sharp rock, and the two birds

made a hearty meal of the Tortoise.

Never soar aloft on an enemy's pinions.

The Two Crabs

One fine day two Crabs came out from their home to take a

stroll on the sand. "Child," said the mother, "you are walking

very ungracefully. You should accustom yourself, to walking

straight forward without twisting from side to side."

"Pray, mother," said the young one, "do but set the example

yourself, and I will follow you."

Example is the best precept.

The Ass in the Lion's Skin

An Ass once found a Lion's skin which the hunters had left out

in the sun to dry. He put it on and went towards his native

village. All fled at his approach, both men and animals, and he

was a proud Ass that day. In his delight he lifted up his voice

and brayed, but then every one knew him, and his owner came up and

gave him a sound cudgelling for the fright he had caused. And

shortly afterwards a Fox came up to him and said: "Ah, I knew you

by your voice."

Fine clothes may disguise, but

silly words will disclose a fool.

The Two Fellows and the Bear

Two Fellows were travelling together through a wood, when a

Bear rushed out upon them. One of the travellers happened to be

in front, and he seized hold of the branch of a tree, and hid

himself among the leaves. The other, seeing no help for it, threw

himself flat down upon the ground, with his face in the dust. The

Bear, coming up to him, put his muzzle close to his ear, and

sniffed and sniffed. But at last with a growl he shook his head

and slouched off, for bears will not touch dead meat. Then the

fellow in the tree came down to his comrade, and, laughing, said

"What was it that Master Bruin whispered to you?"

"He told me," said the other,

"Never trust a friend who deserts you at a pinch."

The Two Pots

Two Pots had been left on the bank of a river, one of brass,

and one of earthenware. When the tide rose they both floated off

down the stream. Now the earthenware pot tried its best to keep

aloof from the brass one, which cried out: "Fear nothing, friend,

I will not strike you."

"But I may come in contact with you," said the other, "if I

come too close; and whether I hit you, or you hit me, I shall

suffer for it."

The strong and the weak cannot keep company.

The Four Oxen and the Lion

A Lion used to prowl about a field in which Four Oxen used to

dwell. Many a time he tried to attack them; but whenever he came

near they turned their tails to one another, so that whichever way

he approached them he was met by the horns of one of them. At

last, however, they fell a-quarrelling among themselves, and each

went off to pasture alone in a separate corner of the field. Then

the Lion attacked them one by one and soon made an end of all

four.

United we stand, divided we fall.

The Fisher and the Little Fish

It happened that a Fisher, after fishing all day, caught only

a little fish. "Pray, let me go, master," said the Fish. "I am

much too small for your eating just now. If you put me back into

the river I shall soon grow, then you can make a fine meal off

me."

"Nay, nay, my little Fish," said the Fisher, "I have you now.

I may not catch you hereafter."

A little thing in hand is worth more than

a great thing in prospect.

Avaricious and Envious

Two neighbours came before Jupiter and prayed him to grant

their hearts' desire. Now the one was full of avarice, and the

other eaten up with envy. So to punish them both, Jupiter granted

that each might have whatever he wished for himself, but only on

condition that his neighbour had twice as much. The Avaricious

man prayed to have a room full of gold. No sooner said than done;

but all his joy was turned to grief when he found that his

neighbour had two rooms full of the precious metal. Then came the

turn of the Envious man, who could not bear to think that his

neighbour had any joy at all. So he prayed that he might have one

of his own eyes put out, by which means his companion would become

totally blind.

Vices are their own punishment.