The Talking Beasts | Page 7

in his mouth a piece of meat that he had stolen, was
once crossing a smooth stream by means of a plank. Looking into the
still, clear water, he saw what he took to be another dog as big as
himself, carrying another piece of meat.
Snapping greedily to get this as well, he let go the meat that he already
had, and it fell to the bottom of the stream.

The Ass and His Master
A Diligent Ass, already loaded beyond his strength by a severe Master
whom he had long served, and who kept him on very short commons,
happened one day in his old age to be oppressed with a more than
ordinary burden of earthenware. His strength being much impaired, and
the road steep and uneven, he unfortunately made a misstep, and,
unable to recover himself, fell down and broke all the vessels to pieces.
His Master, transported with rage, began to beat him most unmercifully,
against whom the poor Ass, lifting up his head as he lay on the ground,
thus strongly remonstrated:
"Unfeeling wretch! To thine own avaricious cruelty in first pinching me
on food, and then loading me beyond my strength, thou owest the
misfortune which thou so unjustly imputest to me."

The Wolf and the Crane
A Wolf once devoured his prey so ravenously that a bone stuck in his
throat, giving him great pain. He ran howling up and down in his
suffering and offered to reward handsomely any one who would pull
the bone out.
A Crane, moved by pity as well as by the prospect of the money,

undertook the dangerous task, and having removed the bone, asked for
the promised reward.
"Reward!" cried the Wolf; "pray, you greedy fellow, what greater
reward can you possibly require? You have had your head in my mouth,
and instead of biting it off I have let you pull it out unharmed. Get
away with you, and don't come again within reach of my paw."

The Hares and the Frogs
The Hares once took serious counsel among themselves whether death
itself would not be preferable to their miserable condition. "What a sad
state is ours," they said, "never to eat in comfort, to sleep ever in fear,
to be startled by a shadow, and to fly with beating heart at the rustling
of the leaves. Better death by far," and off they went accordingly to
drown themselves in a neighbouring lake.
Some scores of Frogs, who were enjoying the moonlight on the bank,
scared at the approach of the Hares, jumped into the water. The splash
awoke fresh fears in the breasts of the timid Hares, and they came to a
full stop in their flight.
Seeing this, one wise old fellow among them cried: "Hold, brothers! It
seems that, weak and fearful as we are, beings exist that are more weak
and fearful still. Why, then, should we seek to die? Let us rather make
the best of our ills and learn to bear them as we should."

The Invalid Lion
A Lion, who had grown too old and feeble to go out and hunt for prey,
could hardly find enough food to keep him from starving. But at last he
thought of a plan for bringing the game within his reach.
He kept quite still in his den and made believe that he was very ill.
When the other animals heard of his distress, they came, one by one, to

look at him and ask him how he felt. No sooner were they within his
reach, however, than he seized upon them and ate them up.
After a good many beasts had lost their lives in this way a Fox came
along.
"How do you feel to-day, friend Lion?" he asked, taking care to stand at
a safe distance from the den.
"I am very ill," answered the Lion. "Won't you come inside a little
while? It does me a great deal of good to see my kind friends."
"Thank you," said the Fox; "but I notice that all the tracks point toward
your den and none point away from it," and so saying, he trotted
merrily away.

The Travellers and the Bear
Two Men, about to journey through a forest, agreed to stand by each
other in any dangers that might befall. They had not gone far before a
savage Bear rushed out from a thicket and stood in their path.
One of the Travellers, a light, nimble fellow, climbed up into a tree.
The other fell flat on his face and held his breath.
The Bear came up and smelled at him, and, taking him for dead, went
off again into the wood. The man in the tree then came down, and,
rejoining his companion,