urprising leaps and curvetings, he went up to the
oyster, and, with a toss of his head, said:

"There! what do you think of that?"

"You must excuse me," answered the bivalve, "but I have been blind from
birth, and missed the whole show."

IMMORAL:

Of what use is a dress suit in the Desert of Sahara?

[Illustration: The Horse and the Oyster.]

The Monkey and the Ass.

An ass, having seen a monkey doing tricks on a roof, to the edification of
the villagers, became envious, and essayed to emulate his more agile rival.

The roof broke under his greater weight, and he fell through on his master,
squashing him flatter than a pan-cake. Thenceforward, having no one to say
him nay, he lived a life of peace and plenty, coming and going at his own
sweet will, while the monkey was captured by an organ grinder and works
eighteen hours a day.

IMMORAL:

People are not always such asses as they seem to us.

[Illustration: The Monkey and the Ass.]

The Merchant and the Fool.

A merchant of horses was driving his stock to the market. On the road he
met a venerable old fool, who offered to buy his entire stock.

"It is this way," said the intended purchaser, "I will take your horses
now, and whenever I find use for one, I will send you the money for it."

"Now the gods be lenient to folly!" exclaimed the indignant merchant.
"Man, Man! where in the realm of idiocy did you get your knowledge of
business?"

"I ran a pay-on-publication journal for ten years," said the fool with
asperity.

But the merchant had vanished in a cloud of oaths and dust.

[Illustration: The Merchant and the Fool.]

The Wolf and the Sheep.

A wolf that had been left for dead by the dogs lay not far from a running
brook. He felt that one good drink might save his life. Just then a sheep
passed near.

"Pray, sister," said he very gently, but with a sinister twinkle of his eye
teeth, "bring me some water from yon stream."

"Certainly," said the sheep, and she brought him a glass in which she had
poured a few knock-out drops. As she sat on his corpse a little later she
moralized in this manner: "Some clever people are wicked, but all wicked
people are not clever by a d----d sight."

[Illustration: The Wolf and the Sheep.]

The Ambitious Hippopotamus.

A hippopotamus who had dwelt contentedly for years on the banks of a reedy
stream, looked up one day and saw an eagle.

She became immediately fired wit