Aesop's Fables (Penguin Classics) - Aesop [37]
Upon hearing this, the old man told his son to get on the ass while he walked along cheerfully by his side. Soon they came to a group of men who were having a serious argument.
“There!” said one of them. “That proves what I was saying. There’s no more respect shown to the old nowadays. Do you see that young loafer riding while his old father has to walk? Get down, you miserable creature, and let the old man rest his weary limbs!”
Upon hearing this, the father made his son dismount and then got on the ass himself. They had not proceeded very far when they met a company of women and children.
“Why, you lazy old fellow!” cried several tongues at once. “How can you ride that beast, while that poor little lad there can hardly keep pace with you.”
The good-natured miller stood corrected and immediately had his son mount behind him. They were now about to reach the town, when a townsman said, “Tell me, friend, is that ass your own?”
“Yes,” answered the old man. “Oh! I wouldn’t have thought so by the way you’ve loaded him down. Why, you two fellows are better suited to carry the poor beast than he you!”
“Anything to please you,” said the miller. “It wouldn’t hurt to try.”
So, dismounting with his son, they tied the ass’s legs together, and with the help of a pole, they attempted to carry him on their shoulders over a bridge that led to the town. They made such an amusing sight that the people ran out in crowds to laugh at them. However, the ass neither liked the noise nor his situation and began kicking at the ropes that bound him to the pole. As a result, he tumbled off the pole and fell into the river. Thereupon, the old man, angry and ashamed, made his way home as best he could, convinced that by endeavoring to please everybody he had pleased nobody and lost his ass in the bargain.
CC
The Wolf and the Horse
Once when a wolf was roaming all over a farm, he came to a field of oats. But he was not able to eat the oats and thus went on his way. Soon he encountered a horse and told him to come with him into the field.
“I’ve found some splendid oats,” he said, “and I’ve not even touched a single one. In fact I’ve saved them all for you, for the very sound of your teeth is like music to my ears.”
However, the horse replied, “A fine fellow you are! If wolves were able to eat oats, I’m sure you would have indulged your belly and forgotten about the music for your ears.”
No need to express gratitude to those who only give away what is of no use to them in the first place.
CCI
The Astronomer
An astronomer used to walk around outside every night to watch the stars. One time, as he was wandering on the outskirts of the city and gazing at the stars, he fell into a well. After hollering and crying for help, someone ran up to the well, and after listening to his story, remarked, “My good man, while you are trying to pry into the mysteries of heaven, you overlook the common objects that are under your feet.”
CCII
The Hunter and the Woodcutter
A man who went out to hunt lions in a forest met a woodcutter, and he asked him whether he had seen any lion’s tracks and whether he knew where the lion’s lair was.
"Yes," said the man, "and if you’ll come with me, I’ll show you the lion himself."
Upon hearing this, the hunter turned ghastly pale, and his teeth began to clatter. “No, thank you,” he said. “It was the lion’s tracks that I was hunting, not the lion himself.”
It is easy for the coward to be a hero at a distance.
CCIII
The Fox and the Crow
A crow had snatched a large piece of cheese from a windowsill and was now perched securely on a high tree, about to enjoy her prize. A fox spied the dainty morsel in her beak and tried to think of a way to make it his.
“Oh crow,” he said, “how beautiful your wings are! How bright your eyes! How graceful your neck! Indeed, your breast is the breast of an eagle! Your claws—I beg your pardon—your claws are a match for all the beasts of the field. Oh, if only your voice were equal to your beauty, you would deserve to be called the queen of birds!”
Pleased