Aesop's Fables (Penguin Classics) - Aesop [19]
Later on the woodcutter went to his companions and told them what had happened. One of his friends decided to see whether he would have the same kind of luck. So, he went to the same place as if he intended to cut wood, and he let his ax slip into the water on purpose. Then he sat down on the bank and pretended to weep. Mercury appeared as he had once before, and upon hearing that the man was crying because he had lost his ax, he dived into the river. When he returned with a golden ax, he asked the man whether it was the ax he had lost.
“Yes, that’s definitely the one,” said the man eagerly, and he was about to grab the treasure when Mercury not only refused to give this ax to him but would not even return his own. Thus the man was soundly punished for his lying and impudence.
Honesty is the best policy.
XCV
The Oxen and the Butchers
Once upon a time the oxen held a meeting and decided to do away with the butchers, whose whole art, they said, had been conceived for their destruction. So they sharpened their horns for the battle when a very old ox, who had worked at the plow for a long time, addressed them in the following manner: “Take care, my friends, and make sure you know what you’re doing. At least these men kill us with decency and skill, but if we fall into the hands of botchers instead of butchers, we will suffer a double death. Indeed, you can rest assured that men can exist without butchers, but they will never go without beef.”
Do not be in a hurry to exchange one evil for another.
XCVI
The Goatherd and the Goats
It was a stormy day, and the snow was falling fast when a goatherd drove his goats, all covered with white flakes, into a deserted cave for shelter. There he discovered that a herd of wild goats, more numerous and larger than his own, had already taken refuge. The goatherd was so struck by the size and looks of these goats, much more beautiful than his own, that he decided to keep them as well and left his own goats to look after themselves. In fact, he took the branches that he had brought for his own goats and gave them to the wild ones to browse on. When the weather cleared up, however, he found that his own goats had perished from hunger, while the wild goats had run off into the hills and woods. So the goatherd returned to his village, where his neighbors mocked him for having failed to capture the wild goats and for having lost his own in the bargain.
Whoever neglects old friends for the sake of new deserves what he gets if he loses both.
XCVII
The Widow and the Sheep
Once there was a widow who owned just one sheep. Wishing to make the most of his wool, she sheared him so closely that she cut his skin as well as his fleece. Suffering from such painful treatment, the sheep cried out, “Why are you torturing me like this? What will my blood add to the weight of the wool? If you want my flesh, send for the butcher, who will put me out of my misery at once. But if you want my fleece, send for the shearer, who will clip my wool without drawing my blood!”
Cutting small costs can cause great wounds.
XCVIII
The Marriage of the Sun
Once upon a time during a very warm summer, word was spread among the animals that the sun was going to be married. All the birds and beasts were delighted at the thought, and above all, the frogs were determined to celebrate. But an old toad put a stop to their festivities by remarking that it was an occasion for sorrow rather than joy.
“If the sun alone can manage to parch our marshes so that we can hardly bear it,” he said, “what will become of us if he should happen to have a dozen little suns in addition to himself?”
XCIX
The Thief and His Mother
A schoolboy stole a hornbook from one of his schoolmates and brought it home to his mother. Instead of punishing him, she encouraged him and was proud of his deed. In the course of time, the boy, now a grown man, began to steal things