purposely placed his head under the wheels, saying, "At least my
enemy and I shall perish together."

The Dog and the Hare
A HOUND having started a Hare on the hillside pursued her for

some distance, at one time biting her with his teeth as if he
would take her life, and at another fawning upon her, as if in

play with another dog. The Hare said to him, "I wish you would
act sincerely by me, and show yourself in your true colors. If

you are a friend, why do you bite me so hard? If an enemy, why do
you fawn on me?'

No one can be a friend if you know not whether to trust or
distrust him.

The Bull and the Calf
A BULL was striving with all his might to squeeze himself through

a narrow passage which led to his stall. A young Calf came up,
and offered to go before and show him the way by which he could

manage to pass. "Save yourself the trouble," said the Bull; "I
knew that way long before you were born."

The Stag, the Wolf, and the Sheep
A STAG asked a Sheep to lend him a measure of wheat, and said

that the Wolf would be his surety. The Sheep, fearing some fraud
was intended, excused herself, saying, "The Wolf is accustomed to

seize what he wants and to run off; and you, too, can quickly
outstrip me in your rapid flight. How then shall I be able to

find you, when the day of payment comes?'
Two blacks do not make one white.

The Peacock and the Crane
A PEACOCK spreading its gorgeous tail mocked a Crane that passed

by, ridiculing the ashen hue of its plumage and saying, "I am
robed, like a king, in gold and purple and all the colors of the

rainbow; while you have not a bit of color on your wings."
"True," replied the Crane; "but I soar to the heights of heaven

and lift up my voice to the stars, while you walk below, like a
cock, among the birds of the dunghill."

Fine feathers don't make fine birds.
The Fox and the Hedgehog

A FOX swimming across a rapid river was carried by the force of
the current into a very deep ravine, where he lay for a long time

very much bruised, sick, and unable to move. A swarm of hungry
blood-sucking flies settled upon him. A Hedgehog, passing by,

saw his anguish and inquired if he should drive away the flies
that were tormenting him. "By no means," replied the Fox; "pray

do not molest them." "How is this?' said the Hedgehog; "do you
not want to be rid of them?' "No," returned the Fox, "for these

flies which you see are full of blood, and sting me but little,
and if you rid me of these which are already satiated, others

more hungry will come in their place, and will drink up all the
blood I have left."

The Eagle, the Cat, and the Wild Sow
AN EAGLE made her nest at the top of a lofty oak; a Cat, having

found a convenient hole, moved into the middle of the trunk; and
a Wild Sow, with her young, took shelter in a hollow at its foot.

The Cat cunninglyresolved to destroy this chance-made colony.
To carry out her design, she climbed to the nest of the Eagle,

and said, "Destruction is preparing for you, and for me too,
unfortunately. The Wild Sow, whom you see daily digging up the

earth, wishes to uproot the oak, so she may on its fall seize our
families as food for her young." Having thus frightened the Eagle

out of her senses, she crept down to the cave of the Sow, and
said, "Your children are in great danger; for as soon as you go

out with your litter to find food, the Eagle is prepared to
pounce upon one of your little pigs." Having instilled these

fears into the Sow, she went and pretended to hide herself in the
hollow of the tree. When night came she went forth with silent

foot and obtained food for herself and her kittens, but feigning
to be afraid, she kept a lookout all through the day. Meanwhile,

the Eagle, full of fear of the Sow, sat still on the branches,
and the Sow, terrified by the Eagle, did not dare to go out from

her cave. And thus they both, along with their families,
perished from hunger, and afforded ample provision for the Cat

and her kittens.
The Thief and the Innkeeper

A THIEF hired a room in a tavern and stayed a while in the hope
of stealing something which should enable him to pay his

reckoning. When he had waited some days in vain, he saw the
Innkeeper dressed in a new and handsome coat and sitting before

his door. The Thief sat down beside him and talked with him. As
the conversation began to flag, the Thief yawned terribly and at

the same time howled like a wolf. The Innkeeper said, "Why do
you howl so fearfully?' "I will tell you," said the Thief, "but

first let me ask you to hold my clothes, or I shall tear them to
pieces. I know not, sir, when I got this habit of yawning, nor

whether these attacks of howling were inflicted on me as a
judgment for my crimes, or for any other cause; but this I do

know, that when I yawn for the third time, I actually turn into a
wolf and attack men." With this speech he commenced a second fit

of yawning and again howled like a wolf, as he had at first. The
Innkeeper. hearing his tale and believing what he said, became

greatly alarmed and, rising from his seat, attempted to run away.
The Thief laid hold of his coat and entreated him to stop,

saying, "Pray wait, sir, and hold my clothes, or I shall tear
them to pieces in my fury, when I turn into a wolf." At the same

moment he yawned the third time and set up a terrible howl. The
Innkeeper, frightened lest he should be attacked, left his new

coat in the Thief's hand and ran as fast as he could into the inn
for safety. The Thief made off with the coat and did not return

again to the inn.
Every tale is not to be believed.

The Mule
A MULE, frolicsome from lack of work and from too much corn,

galloped about in a very extravagant manner, and said to himself:
"My father surely was a high-mettled racer, and I am his own

child in speed and spirit." On the next day, being driven a long
journey, and feeling very wearied, he exclaimed in a disconsolate

tone: "I must have made a mistake; my father, after all, could
have been only an ass."

The Hart and the Vine
A HART, hard pressed in the chase, hid himself beneath the large

leaves of a Vine. The huntsmen, in their haste, overshot the
place of his concealment. Supposing all danger to have passed,

the Hart began to nibble the tendrils of the Vine. One of the
huntsmen, attracted by the rustling of the leaves, looked back,

and seeing the Hart, shot an arrow from his bow and struck it.
The Hart, at the point of death, groaned: "I am rightly served,

for I should not have maltreated the Vine that saved me."
The Serpent and the Eagle

A SERPENT and an Eagle were struggling with each other in deadly
conflict. The Serpent had the advantage, and was about to

strangle the bird. A countryman saw them, and running up, loosed
the coil of the Serpent and let the Eagle go free. The Serpent,

irritated at the escape of his prey, injected his poison into the
drinking horn of the countryman. The rustic, ignorant of his

danger, was about to drink, when the Eagle struck his hand with
his wing, and, seizing the drinking horn in his talons, carried

it aloft.
The Crow and the Pitcher

A CROW perishing with thirst saw a pitcher, and hoping to find
water, flew to it with delight. When he reached it, he

discovered to his grief that it contained so little water that he