he wealth of a
bountiful crop, and that in their industry had they found the
treasure.

_Industry is itself a treasure._

[Illustration]

THE TWO POTS

Two Pots, one of brass and the other of clay, stood together on
the hearthstone. One day the Brass Pot proposed to the Earthen
Pot that they go out into the world together. But the Earthen Pot
excused himself, saying that it would be wiser for him to stay in
the corner by the fire.

"It would take so little to break me," he said. "You know how
fragile I am. The least shock is sure to shatter me!"

"Don't let that keep you at home," urged the Brass Pot. "I shall
take very good care of you. If we should happen to meet anything
hard I will step between and save you."

So the Earthen Pot at last consented, and the two set out side by
side, jolting along on three stubby legs first to this side, then
to that, and bumping into each other at every step.

The Earthen Pot could not survive that sort of companionship very
long. They had not gone ten paces before the Earthen Pot cracked,
and at the next jolt he flew into a thousand pieces.

_Equals make the best friends._

THE GOOSE AND THE GOLDEN EGG

There was once a Countryman who possessed the most wonderful
Goose you can imagine, for every day when he visited the nest,
the Goose had laid a beautiful, glittering, golden egg.

The Countryman took the eggs to market and soon began to get
rich. But it was not long before he grew impatient with the Goose
because she gave him only a single golden egg a day. He was not
getting rich fast enough.

Then one day, after he had finished counting his money, the idea
came to him that he could get all the golden eggs at once by
killing the Goose and cutting it open. But when the deed was
done, not a single golden egg did he find, and his precious Goose
was dead.

_Those who have plenty want more and so lose all they have._

[Illustration: THE GOOSE AND THE GOLDEN EGG]

[Illustration]

THE FIGHTING BULLS AND THE FROG

Two Bulls were fighting furiously in a field, at one side of
which was a marsh. An old Frog living in the marsh, trembled as
he watched the fierce battle.

"What are _you_ afraid of?" asked a young Frog.

"Do you not see," replied the old Frog, "that the Bull who is
beaten, will be driven away from the good forage up there to the
reeds of this marsh, and we shall all be trampled into the mud?"

It turned out as the Frog had sa