or creature died he gasped
out, feebly, "Any excuse will serve a tyrant."

Aesop and His Fellow Servants

A merchant, who was at one time Aesop's master, on a certain occasion
ordered all things to be made ready for an intended journey. When the
burdens were divided among the Servants, Aesop asked that he might have
the lightest. He was told to choose for himself, and he took up the
basket of bread. The other Servants laughed, for that was the largest
and heaviest of all the burdens.

When dinner-time came, Aesop, who had with some difficulty sustained
his load, was told to distribute an equal share all around. He did so,
and this lightened his burden one half, and when supper-time arrived he
got rid of the rest.

For the remainder of the journey he had nothing but the empty basket to
carry, and the other Servants, whose loads seemed to get heavier and
heavier at every step, could not but applaud his ingenuity.

The Kite and the Pigeons

A Kite, that had kept sailing around a dovecote for many days to no
purpose, was at last forced by hunger to have recourse to stratagem.
Approaching the Pigeons in his gentlest manner, he described to them in
an eloquent speech how much better their state would be if they had a
king with some firmness about him, and how well such a ruler would
shield them from the attacks of the Hawk and other enemies.

The Pigeons, deluded by this show of reason, admitted him to the
dovecote as their king. They found, however, that he thought it part
of his kingly prerogative to eat one of their number every day, and
they soon repented of their credulity in having let him in.

The Ant and the Fly

An Ant and a Fly one day disputed as to their respective merits. "Vile
creeping insect!" said the Fly to the Ant, "can you for a moment
compare yourself with me? I soar on the wing like a bird. I enter the
palaces of kings, and alight on the heads of princes, nay, of emperors,
and only quit them to adorn the yet more attractive brow of beauty.
Besides, I visit the altars of the gods. Not a sacrifice is offered
but it is first tasted by me. Every feast, too, is open to me. I eat
and drink of the best, instead of living for days on two or three
grains of corn as you do."

"All that is very fine," replied the Ant; "but listen to me. You boast
of your feasting, but you know that your diet is not always so choice,
and you are sometimes forced to eat what nothing would induce me