Part 3

Once on a time two sheep met, and one of them said to her friend, “Last night our dog Spring ate a lamb, and then bit the old one to death, as well as the man of the farm.” “Nay,” quoth the friend, “if that be true, in whom can we put our trust?” Thus spread the news, and such was the crime of Spring, who now lay bound, while a group of men sat to judge his case. Spring then said, with a firm voice, “For more than ten years I have done my work as a sheep dog should. Last night, as I lay on the ground, a wolf leapt forth from the wood, sprang at a lamb, and drank its blood, then let fall his prize, and stood at bay. We fought, and I slew the wolf. But now, when I saw the lamb, as it lay dead on the grass, I could in no way curb my wish to eat it. While I was at my feast, the ewe came up to seek for her young one; so, lest she should charge its death on me, I thought it best to kill her. Just then, up came the man of the farm, who of course thought that I had put both to death. His eye met mine; he held up his staff; I could not pause; dead men tell no tales, thought I, and so flew at his throat. You know, too well, the rest.”

If we do not crush sin in the bud, it will grow strong, and crush us.

Do what you ought, come what may.

THE BIRDS, THE BEASTS, AND THE BAT.

The birds and the beasts once went to war. The bat--which could not be said to be bird or beast--at first kept out of the way of both, but when he thought the beasts would win the day, he was found in their ranks, and to prove his right to be there, he said, “Can you find a bird that has two rows of teeth in his head, as I have?” At last the birds had the best of the fight, so then the bat was seen to join their ranks. “Look,” said he, “I have wings, so what else can I be but a bird?” “To grind with all winds” was thought base in the bat by both sides of the fight, and he could not get bird or beast to own him, and to this day he hides and skulks in caves and stems of trees, and does not come out till dark, when all the birds of the air have gone to roost, and the beasts of the field are wrapt in sleep.

One must not blow hot and cold.

THE BOY AND THE NUTS.

A young child put his hand in a jar where nuts and figs were kept. He took all that his fist could hold, but when he came to pull it out, the neck of the jar was too small for him to do so. At this the tears came in his eyes, and a friend, who stood by, said, “Grasp at but half, my boy, and you will have it; but grasp at all, and lose all.”

THE APE AND HER YOUNG ONES.

An ape, who had two young ones, felt a great love for her fine child, but did not care at all for the plain one. One day, when by chance the old dam was put to flight, she caught up the fine young ape in her arms, but left the plain one to get on as it could, so it leapt on the dam’s back, and off they set. The old ape ran so fast to save her pet, that in her haste its head was caught by the branch of a tree, and it fell down dead from the blow; but the plain one clung on tight to the dam’s rough back, and so came off safe and sound.

The pet child may die from too much care.

THE HORSE, THE WOLF, AND THE FOX.

A fox one night had been out some hours in the snow in search of food, and yet had found none. At last he met a wolf in the same case, to whom he said, “Do you see the horse in that field? Well, I think if you lend me your help, I could kill him.” When they came up to the horse, the fox was much struck to find how small his size was by the side of him. “May I ask your name, and that of the man who owns you?” “My name is Squire,” said the horse. “I have not yet heard the man’s name, but I think if you wish to know it you can see the stamp on my shoe.” The sly fox, who made a shrewd guess at what this meant, said, “Nay, I do not know how to read, but”--here he gave a low bow to the wolf--“my friend has a gift that way.” The wolf, who was made quite vain by this soft speech, came up to read, but as he bent down his head to do so, Squire gave a kick which clave his skull in two.

Take the nuts out of the fire with the cat’s paw.

THE LARK AND HER YOUNG ONES.

[Illustration: THE LARK AND HER YOUNG ONES.]

A lark had a nest of young birds in a field of corn, and one day two men came to look at the state of the crop. “Well,” says one of them to his son, “I think this wheat is ripe, so now go and ask our friends to help us reap it.” When the old lark came back to her nest, the young brood told her, in a great fright, what they had heard. “So they look to their friends,” said she; “well, I think we have no cause to fear.” The next day the man of the farm came, and saw no friends in the corn field, so he bade his son fetch his kith and kin to help him. This the young birds heard, and told to the old one when she came home to her nest. Quoth she, “I do not see that men go much out of their way to help those that are of the same kith and kin.” In the course of a day or two, as the man found that no one came, he said to his son, “Hark you, John; we will trust to none, but you and I will reap the corn at dawn of day.” “Now,” said the old lark, “we must be gone; for when a man takes his work in his own hands, it is sure to be done.”

No eye so good as one’s own; no work so well done.

He that by the plow would thrive ... must hold or drive.

[Illustration: The Lark and Her Young Ones.--Page 40. _Æsop._]

THE KITE, THE SOW, AND THE CAT.

A kite had built her nest at the top of an old oak, and in a hole half way up the tree, a wild cat had found a home; while the foot of the tree made a sty for a sow and her young pigs. For some time they all went on in peace, and might have done so to this day, but for the spite of the cat. For, first of all, she crept up to the kite, and said, “Good friend, I have news to tell you, which will plunge us both in grief. The old sow does naught else than grub at the foot of the tree, and we all know what that will come to. It is clear that she means to root it up, that she may kill your young ones. For my part, I will take care of my own, and you can do as you please; but you may be sure I shall watch her well, though I were to stay at home for a month for it.” When she had said this to the kite, she went down and made a call on the sow at the foot of the tree. She put on a grave face, and said, “I hope you do not mean to go out?” “Why not?” said the sow. “Nay,” said she, “you may do as you please; but I heard the kite say to her brood that she would treat them with a pig the first time she saw you go out; and I do not feel sure that she may not take one of _my_ young ones at the same time. So good day to you, for I must look at home, you see.” With these words she went back to her hole.

The scheme that puss had in her head was to steal out at night for her prey, and peep all day at her hole, that the sow and the kite might think she was in great dread. This plan put them both in such a fright, that the kite did not dare to stir out in search of food, for fear of the sow, nor the sow for fear of the kite; and the end of it was that they and their young ones were all kept in their homes to starve, and so were made a prey of by the cat.

THE MAN AND THE PERCH.

A man went to fish in a fresh stream, and caught a small perch, who said, “I pray of you to save my life, and put me in the stream once more, for as I am but young and small now, it is not so well worth your while to take me as it will be some time hence, when I am grown a large fish.” “So you think,” said the man; “but I am not one of those who give up that which is at hand for that which is far off; nor do I make sure of fish, flesh, or fowl till I have got it, for one bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.”

[Illustration]

All is fish that comes to the net.

THE ROSE AND THE CLAY.

A man in the East by chance took up a piece of clay which lay in his path, and was much struck to find it smell so sweet. “It is but a poor piece of clay,” said he, “a mean clod of earth, yet how sweet is it! How fresh! But whence has it this scent?” The clay said, “I have dwelt with the rose.”

Make friends with the good if you wish to be like them.

THE OX AND THE CALF.

In days of old, a calf that ran wild in some fields near Rome, and had not yet felt the yoke, said to an old ox, “Dull slave! How can you drudge on in this way from day to day with a plough at your tail? Look at me, see how I skip and play!” The ox said not a word, but went on with his work. The next day there was a great feast held at Rome, so the ox did not go to the plough; but his friend the calf, was led off in great pomp to be slain, with a wreath round his neck. “If this is the last scene of your gay life,” said the ox, “let me drudge on at the plough, for the yoke is more to my mind than the ax.”

Of two ills, choose the least.

[Illustration: The Ox and the Calf.--Page 44. _Æsop._]

THE WOLVES AND THE SHEEP.

The wolves and the sheep had been for a long time at war. At last the wolves said, “It is the dogs that are the cause of it all; they bark if we do but come near you. Now, if you will but send them off from your heels, we, on our part, will give up our young ones to you.” The poor sheep thought it a fair thing; but as soon as the change was made, the young cubs set up a howl for want of their dams. On this the old wolves gave out that the peace was at an end; so they fell on the sheep, who, as they had lost their best friends, the dogs, had none now to help them, and were torn to death by the wolves.

[Illustration: The Wolves and the Sheep.--Page 45. _Æsop._]

THE COCK, THE FOX, AND THE SPRINGE.

A fox, who came to a farm at break of day, was caught in a springe, which had been put there for that end. A cock, who sat on the bough of a tree, did not at first dare to go near so dire a foe; but when he saw that the fox could not stir from the spot, he came down from the tree to greet him. The fox said, “Dear bird, you see what has come to me, and all for your sake; for as I crept through the hedge, on my way home, I felt I must come to ask how you are. And now I will beg of you to fetch me a knife to cut this wire.” The cock spoke not, but flew off as fast as he could to tell the news to the men on the farm, who soon came up with a knife with which to cut the wire, and kill the fox. The cock said that he thought those who spoke doves’ words should lead doves’ lives. “Ha!” cries the fox, “he gives twice who gives in a trice.”

THE KID AND THE WOLF.

A young kid who stood on the roof of a house, out of harm’s way, saw a wolf pass by, and set to work to taunt and tease his foe. But the wolf said, “I hear you. Yet it is not you who mock me, but the roof on which you stand.”

Time and place will give to the weak more strength than the strong.

THE ASS AND THE LAMB.

An ass once lay down in a shed that he might shirk his work, and make known to those who were near what toil was put on him. All the beasts, great and small, came to lend him help. At the same time a poor meek lamb lay at the point of death from want, but none came to give her their aid. “How is it,” said she, “that I lie here in so much need of care, whilst the ass gets all this help?” A fox, who heard her, said, “The ass knows well that the loud bray which he gives by way of thanks, makes the kind acts of his friends well known, and so it swells their pride to help him.”

A good deed may spring from a bad source.

THE BEES AND THE SNAIL.

A snail, one day, made his way through the hole of a bee hive, where, in a great rage, the bees flew round him, and stung him to death. But soon they found that the snail, when dead, was all the more a foe than when he had life, for the air in the hive was not fit to breathe. What was to be done? He was of too great bulk for the bees to turn him out, so they had to leave the hive; and they found, to their cost, that they ought to have let the poor snail just crawl out as he had come in. The bees made a long search for a new home, but in vain, so they went back to their old hive, to see what could be done with the dead snail. And, in the end, they all set to work to build a case of wax round the shell of their guest, so as to close him in a sort of tomb, and thus they made the hive as sweet as the stores that were laid up in the combs.

When things come to the worst, they must mend.

THE OLD DAME AND HER MAIDS.

In the good old times, when there were no clocks, an old dame kept a cock in her yard, which at dawn of day gave a loud crow, and then she got up to rouse her maids, that they might go to their work. But they thought it hard to be woke out of their sweet sleep at such an hour, so, one day, they wrung the cock’s neck. The next night the old dame slept till late, as she had not heard the cock crow; but when she found that he was dead, and that there was now no means by which to tell the time, she went at all hours of the night to wake up her maids, for fear they should sleep too long.

Strive to mend, and you will oft times mar what’s well.

THE TWO GOATS ON THE BRIDGE.

Two goats that had been brought up in the same glen, left it, and by chance met on a bridge, which was a mere plank, and would not hold them both side by side. One of the fair ones set her foot on it, and her friend was not slow to do the same. They came up, step by step, till they met half way, and as they could not pass, and were both too proud to give in, each did her best to push by with a skip and jump, till at last the plank broke, and they both fell in, and were borne off by the stream.

It is not so bad to clear the way as to fall in the ditch.

THE AX AND THE TREES.

Once on a time a man came to a wood to ask the trees if they would give him a stick for his ax. This was so small a boon to ask, that the chief trees said at once, “By all means, give him what he wants from a good tough ash.” But as soon as the man had made the stick fit the ax, he fell to work with it to hack and hew down all the best trees in the wood. The oak was heard to say, in sad tones to the beech, “The first step has lost us all. We gave up our poor friend the ash to the foe. But for this we might all have stood for an age to come; now we must take our sad fate for our pains.”

THE DOG AND THE THIEF.

One dark night a thief came to a man’s house to rob it, and when the dog heard him he gave a loud bark. At this the man sprang from his bed to look out, but saw no one, nor did he hear the least sound, so he bade the dog be still, and then went back to sleep. The thief in the mean time had hid in the shed in a state of great fear; but when he found that the dog was bound by a chain, and did not now bark, he crept to the door of the house, and took out his bunch of false keys to try the lock. The dog saw him, and set up his loud bark, so the man of the house put his head out once more to look round him, but as he saw no one, and found that all was now quite still, in a great rage he cries out, “Down, you brute! Down, I tell you! You will not let me have a wink of sleep!” So the dog left off, and in the mean time the thief made his way to the house, and took all that he could find. The next day when the man saw what had been done, he said, “This will teach me to give ear to the voice of a warm and true friend when he warns me.”

THE FLY AND THE ANT.

A fly and an ant came to words as to which stood first in rank. The fly said, “How can you place your mean state by the side of mine? Look how I soar up in the air, skip round the head of a king, and kiss the lips of a queen! I toil not, nor stoop to work, but live a life of ease. What is there you can have to say to this?” “Why,” quoth the ant, in a sharp tone, “to be made much of by kings and queens is a great thing, I grant, if they send for you, but not if they deem you a pest. In good sooth, I think it is but your small size that screens you from their wrath; and as to work, you will learn the use of it when the frost and snow pinch, and the cold winds blow, while I shall reap the fruits of my toil. To be free with you, I think you will find no pains, no gains.”

One tale is good, till the next is told.

[Illustration: THE FLY AND THE ANT.]

THE WOLF, AND THE FOX IN THE WELL.

A fox fell down a deep well, in the sides of which he stuck his claws, and so, for a while, kept his head up. A wolf came to take a peep down the well, and when the fox saw him, he said, “Oh, I beg of you to run for a rope, or some such thing, to pull me out, for I am at the point of death!” “Poor friend! you are in a sad strait,” said the wolf; “I grieve for you, with all my heart! How long have you been here?” “Nay,” said the fox, “if you wish me well, don’t stand there to say soft words to me, but get me some help, and that soon, or I must die.” The wolf then gave one more sigh, and went home, and the poor fox sank, to rise no more.

A long tongue hath a short hand.

[Illustration: The Wolf, and the Fox in the Well.--Page 52. _Æsop._]

THE CAT AND THE MICE.

An old dame dwelt in a house that had such swarms of mice in it that she got a cat, who caught and ate them one by one. But in course of time all the mice kept on the top shelves to be out of the cat’s reach, and puss saw that at this rate she should starve. So she hit on a plan, which was to hang in a bag, by her hind legs, from a peg in the shelf, that she might pass for dead. The young mice took no heed of her, but the old ones gave a peep round the edge of the shelf, and said, “Ah, you sly thing! We see you! Hang there as long as you please, but we would not trust a child of ours to go near you, though you were full of straw.”

Old birds are not caught with chaff.

[Illustration: The Cat and the Mice.--Page 52. _Æsop._]

THE GOOSE WITH THE GOLD EGG.

In the good old times, a man and his wife had a goose that each day of her life laid a gold egg; but they thought that one egg from the time the sun rose till he set was slow work, and in the hopes that they should seize all the eggs at once, they put the goose to death. But to their great grief they found that their goose was just the same as all geese. “Ah, my dear,” quoth the old man, “he who has much would have more.” “True,” said his wife, with a sigh, “and so comes to lose all.”

[Illustration: The Goose with the Gold Egg.--Page 54. _Æsop._]