n a tree and held it in her
beak. A Fox, seeing this, longed to possess the meat himself, and by a
wily stratagem succeeded. "How handsome is the Crow," he exclaimed, "in
the beauty of her shape and in the fairness of her complexion! Oh,
if her voice were only equal to her beauty, she would deservedly be
considered the Queen of Birds!" This he said deceitfully; but the Crow,
anxious to refute the reflection cast upon her voice, set up a loud caw
and dropped the flesh. The Fox quickly picked it up, and thus addressed
the Crow: "My good Crow, your voice is right enough, but your wit is
wanting."

The Two Dogs

A MAN had two dogs: a Hound, trained to assist him in his sports, and a
Housedog, taught to watch the house. When he returned home after a good
day's sport, he always gave the Housedog a large share of his spoil. The
Hound, feeling much aggrieved at this, reproached his companion, saying,
"It is very hard to have all this labor, while you, who do not assist
in the chase, luxuriate on the fruits of my exertions." The Housedog
replied, "Do not blame me, my friend, but find fault with the master,
who has not taught me to labor, but to depend for subsistence on the
labor of others."

Children are not to be blamed for the faults of their parents.

The Stag in the Ox-Stall

A STAG, roundly chased by the hounds and blinded by fear to the danger
he was running into, took shelter in a farmyard and hid himself in a
shed among the oxen. An Ox gave him this kindly warning: "O unhappy
creature! why should you thus, of your own accord, incur destruction
and trust yourself in the house of your enemy?" The Stag replied: "Only
allow me, friend, to stay where I am, and I will undertake to find some
favorable opportunity of effecting my escape." At the approach of the
evening the herdsman came to feed his cattle, but did not see the Stag;
and even the farm-bailiff with several laborers passed through the
shed and failed to notice him. The Stag, congratulating himself on his
safety, began to express his sincere thanks to the Oxen who had kindly
helped him in the hour of need. One of them again answered him: "We
indeed wish you well, but the danger is not over. There is one other yet
to pass through the shed, who has as it were a hundred eyes, and until
he has come and gone, your life is still in peril." At that moment the
master himself entered, and having had to complain that his oxen had
not been properly fed, he we