Evil wishes, like fowls, come
home to roost.
An Oak that grew on the bank of a river was uprooted
by a severe gale of wind, and thrown across the stream.
It fell among some Reeds growing by the water, and
said to them, “How is it that you, who are so
frail and slender, have managed to weather the storm,
whereas I, with all my strength, have been torn up
by the roots and hurled into the river?” “You
were stubborn,” came the reply, “and fought
against the storm, which proved stronger than you:
but we bow and yield to every breeze, and thus the
gale passed harmlessly over our heads.”
There was once a Blind Man who had so fine a sense
of touch that, when any animal was put into his hands,
he could tell what it was merely by the feel of it.
One day the Cub of a Wolf was put into his hands, and
he was asked what it was. He felt it for some
time, and then said, “Indeed, I am not sure
whether it is a Wolf’s Cub or a Fox’s:
but this I know—it would never do to trust
it in a sheepfold.”
Evil tendencies are early
shown.
A Farmer’s Boy went looking for Snails, and,
when he had picked up both his hands full, he set
about making a fire at which to roast them; for he
meant to eat them. When it got well alight and
the Snails began to feel the heat, they gradually
withdrew more and more into their shells with the
hissing noise they always make when they do so.
When the Boy heard it, he said, “You abandoned
creatures, how can you find heart to whistle when
your houses are burning?”
Two men were travelling together, one of whom never
spoke the truth, whereas the other never told a lie:
and they came in the course of their travels to the
land of Apes. The King of the Apes, hearing of
their arrival, ordered them to be brought before him;
and by way of impressing them with his magnificence,
he received them sitting on a throne, while the Apes,
his subjects, were ranged in long rows on either side
of him. When the Travellers came into his presence
he asked them what they thought of him as a King.
The lying Traveller said, “Sire, every one must
see that you are a most noble and mighty monarch.”
“And what do you think of my subjects?”
continued the King. “They,” said
the Traveller, “are in every way worthy of their
royal master.” The Ape was so delighted
with his answer that he gave him a very handsome present.
The other Traveller thought that if his companion
was rewarded so splendidly for telling a lie, he himself
would certainly receive a still greater reward for
telling the truth; so, when the Ape turned to him
and said, “And what, sir, is your opinion?”
he replied, “I think you are a very fine Ape,
and all your subjects are fine Apes too.”
The King of the Apes was so enraged at his reply that
he ordered him to be taken away and clawed to death.
