The Peacock and Juno
THE PEACOCK made complaint to Juno that, while the nightingale

pleased every ear with his song, he himself no sooner opened his
mouth than he became a laughingstock to all who heard him. The

Goddess, to console him, said, "But you far excel in beauty and
in size. The splendor of the emerald shines in your neck and you

unfold a tail gorgeous with painted plumage." "But for what
purpose have I," said the bird, "this dumb beauty so long as I am

surpassed in song?' "The lot of each," replied Juno, "has been
assigned by the will of the Fates--to thee, beauty; to the eagle,

strength; to the nightingale, song; to the raven, favorable,
and to the crow, unfavorable auguries. These are all contented

with the endowments allotted to them."
The Hawk and the Nightingale

A NIGHTINGALE, sitting aloft upon an oak and singing according to
his wont, was seen by a Hawk who, being in need of food, swooped

down and seized him. The Nightingale, about to lose his life,
earnestly begged the Hawk to let him go, saying that he was not

big enough to satisfy the hunger of a Hawk who, if he wanted
food, ought to pursue the larger birds. The Hawk, interrupting

him, said: "I should indeed have lost my senses if I should let
go food ready in my hand, for the sake of pursuing birds which

are not yet even within sight."
The Dog, the Cock, and the Fox

A DOG and a Cock being great friends, agreed to travel together.
At nightfall they took shelter in a thick wood. The Cock flying

up, perched himself on the branches of a tree, while the Dog
found a bed beneath in the hollow trunk. When the morning

dawned, the Cock, as usual, crowed very loudly several times. A
Fox heard the sound, and wishing to make a breakfast on him, came

and stood under the branches, saying how earnestly he desired to
make the acquaintance of the owner of so magnificent a voice.

The Cock, suspecting his civilities, said: "Sir, I wish you would
do me the favor of going around to the hollow trunk below me, and

waking my porter, so that he may open the door and let you in."
When the Fox approached the tree, the Dog sprang out and caught

him, and tore him to pieces.
The Wolf and the Goat

A WOLF saw a Goat feeding at the summit of a steep precipice,
where he had no chance of reaching her. He called to her and

earnestly begged her to come lower down, lest she fall by some
mishap; and he added that the meadows lay where he was standing,

and that the herbage was most tender. She replied, "No, my
friend, it is not for the pasture that you invite me, but for

yourself, who are in want of food."
The Lion and the Bull

A LION, greatly desiring to capture a Bull, and yet afraid to
attack him on account of his great size, resorted to a trick to

ensure his destruction. He approached the Bull and said, "I have
slain a fine sheep, my friend; and if you will come home and

partake of him with me, I shall be delighted to have your
company." The Lion said this in the hope that, as the Bull was in

the act of reclining to eat, he might attack him to advantage,
and make his meal on him. The Bull, on approaching the Lion's

den, saw the huge spits and giant caldrons, and no sign whatever
of the sheep, and, without saying a word, quietly took his

departure. The Lion inquired why he went off so abruptly without
a word of salutation to his host, who had not given him any cause

for offense. "I have reasons enough," said the Bull. "I see no
indication whatever of your having slaughtered a sheep, while I

do see very plainly every preparation for your dining on a bull."
The Goat and the Ass

A MAN once kept a Goat and an Ass. The Goat, envying the Ass on
account of his greater abundance of food, said, "How shamefully

you are treated: at one time grinding in the mill, and at another
carrying heavy burdens"; and he further advised him to pretend to

be epileptic and fall into a ditch and so obtain rest. The Ass
listened to his words, and falling into a ditch, was very much

bruised. His master, sending for a leech, asked his advice. He
bade him pour upon the wounds the lungs of a Goat. They at once

killed the Goat, and so healed the Ass.
The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse

A COUNTRY MOUSE invited a Town Mouse, an intimate friend, to pay
him a visit and partake of his country fare. As they were on the

bare plowlands, eating there wheat-stocks and roots pulled up
from the hedgerow, the Town Mouse said to his friend, "You live

here the life of the ants, while in my house is the horn of
plenty. I am surrounded by every luxury, and if you will come

with me, as I wish you would, you shall have an ample share of my
dainties." The Country Mouse was easily persuaded, and returned

to town with his friend. On his arrival, the Town Mouse placed
before him bread, barley, beans, dried figs, honey, raisins, and,

last of all, brought a dainty piece of cheese from a basket. The
Country Mouse, being much delighted at the sight of such good

cheer, expressed his satisfaction in warm terms and lamented his
own hard fate. Just as they were beginning to eat, someone

opened the door, and they both ran off squeaking, as fast as they
could, to a hole so narrow that two could only find room in it by

squeezing. They had scarcely begun their repast again when
someone else entered to take something out of a cupboard,

whereupon the two Mice, more frightened than before, ran away and
hid themselves. At last the Country Mouse, almost famished, said

to his friend: "Although you have prepared for me so dainty a
feast, I must leave you to enjoy it by yourself. It is

surrounded by too many dangers to please me. I prefer my bare
plowlands and roots from the hedgerow, where I can live in

safety, and without fear."
The Wolf, the Fox, and the Ape

A WOLF accused a Fox of theft, but the Fox entirely denied the
charge. An Ape undertook to adjudge the matter between them.

When each had fully stated his case the Ape announced this
sentence: "I do not think you, Wolf, ever lost what you claim;

and I do believe you, Fox, to have stolen what you so stoutly
deny."

The dishonest, if they act honestly, get no credit.
The Fly and the Draught-Mule

A FLY sat on the axle-tree of a chariot, and addressing the
Draught-Mule said, "How slow you are! Why do you not go faster?

See if I do not prick your neck with my sting." The Draught-Mule
replied, "I do not heed your threats; I only care for him who

sits above you, and who quickens my pace with his whip, or holds
me back with the reins. Away, therefore, with your insolence,

for I know well when to go fast, and when to go slow."
The Fishermen

SOME FISHERMEN were out trawling their nets. Perceiving them to
be very heavy, they danced about for joy and supposed that they

had taken a large catch. When they had dragged the nets to the
shore they found but few fish: the nets were full of sand and

stones, and the men were beyond measure cast downso much at the
disappointment which had befallen them, but because they had

formed such very different expectations. One of their company,
an old man, said, "Let us cease lamenting, my mates, for, as it

seems to me, sorrow is always the twin sister of joy; and it was
only to be looked for that we, who just now were over-rejoiced,

should next have something to make us sad."
The Lion and the Three Bulls

THREE BULLS for a long time pastured together. A Lion lay in