e back of a Sheep. The Sheep,
much against his will, carried her backward and forward for a long time,
and at last said, "If you had treated a dog in this way, you would have
had your deserts from his sharp teeth." To this the Crow replied, "I
despise the weak and yield to the strong. I know whom I may bully and
whom I must flatter; and I thus prolong my life to a good old age."

The Fox and the Bramble

A FOX was mounting a hedge when he lost his footing and caught hold of a
Bramble to save himself. Having pricked and grievously tom the soles of
his feet, he accused the Bramble because, when he had fled to her for
assistance, she had used him worse than the hedge itself. The Bramble,
interrupting him, said, "But you really must have been out of your
senses to fasten yourself on me, who am myself always accustomed to
fasten upon others."

The Wolf and the Lion

A WOLF, having stolen a lamb from a fold, was carrying him off to his
lair. A Lion met him in the path, and seizing the lamb, took it
from him. Standing at a safe distance, the Wolf exclaimed, "You have
unrighteously taken that which was mine from me!" To which the Lion
jeeringly replied, "It was righteously yours, eh? The gift of a friend?"

The Dog and the Oyster

A DOG, used to eating eggs, saw an Oyster and, opening his mouth to its
widest extent, swallowed it down with the utmost relish, supposing it to
be an egg. Soon afterwards suffering great pain in his stomach, he said,
"I deserve all this torment, for my folly in thinking that everything
round must be an egg."

They who act without sufficient thought, will often fall into
unsuspected danger.

The Ant and the Dove

AN ANT went to the bank of a river to quench its thirst, and being
carried away by the rush of the stream, was on the point of drowning. A
Dove sitting on a tree overhanging the water plucked a leaf and let it
fall into the stream close to her. The Ant climbed onto it and floated
in safety to the bank. Shortly afterwards a birdcatcher came and stood
under the tree, and laid his lime-twigs for the Dove, which sat in the
branches. The Ant, perceiving his design, stung him in the foot. In pain
the birdcatcher threw down the twigs, and the noise made the Dove take
wing.

The Partridge and the Fowler

A FOWLER caught a Partridge and was about to kill it. The Partridge
earnestly begged him to spare his life, saying, "Pray, master, permit me
to live and I