The raven & the fox

Master Crow perched on a tree,
Was holding a cheese in his beak.
Master Fox attracted by the smell
Said something like this:
“Well, Hello Mister Crow!
How pretty you are! How beautiful you seem to me!
I’m not lying, if your voice
Is like your plumage,
You are the phoenix of all the inhabitants of these woods.”
At these words, the Crow is overjoyed.
And in order to show off his beautiful voice,
He opens his beak wide, lets his prey fall
The Fox grabs it, and says: “My good man,
Learn that every flatterer
Lives at the expense of the one who listens to him.
This lesson, without doubt, is well worth a cheese.”
The Crow, ashamed and embarrassed,
Swore, but a little late, that he would not be taken again.



This post was edited by Chevaucheur on Jun 16 2021 05:35pm

The city rat & the country rat

A city rat, one night,
Did, with a civil stoop,
A country rat invite
To end a turtle soup.

Upon a Turkey carpet
They found the table spread,
And sure I need not harp it
How well the fellows fed.

The entertainment was
A truly noble one;
But some unlucky cause
Disturb'd it when begun.

It was a slight rat-tat,
That put their joys to rout;
Out ran the city rat;
His guest, too, scamper'd out.

Our rats but fairly quit,
The fearful knocking ceased.
'Return we,' cried the cit,
To finish there our feast.

'No,' said the rustic rat;
'To-morrow dine with me.
I'm not offended at
Your feast so grand and free,--

'For I've no fare resembling;
But then I eat at leisure,
And would not swap, for pleasure
So mix'd with fear and trembling.'



This post was edited by Chevaucheur on Jun 16 2021 05:35pm

JUPITER AND THUNDER (VIII, 20)

Jove, seeing mortals so perverse,
One day thus spoke his high behests :
" Let's fill again with other guests
The cantons of the universe, .
Inhabited by such a rout :
They weary all my patience out.
Go, Mercury, go down to hell,
And thence a Fury bring to me,
The cruellest of all the three.
Vile race ! that I but loved too well :
No longer think to gain my ear,
Or moderate my wrath severe.
O Kings ! ye gods in human form,
Jove's arbitrators of our fate
Between our ruin and your hate,
Between the menace and the storm,
Let pass one short reflecting night ! "
The smooth-tongued god, of wing so light,
Descended, and the sisters found,
Who at his beck came running round.
Alecto from the three lie chose,
So void of pity she to foes.
She, proud of this pre-eminence,
By Pluto swore, departing thence,
Full soon to add to his domain
The human race to deck his train.
But Jupiter, so wroth before,
Approved not what the Fury swore,
And quickly sent her back again..
Yet on a certain race his frown
The flashing thunder-bolt sent down :
Its roar flew harmless o'er the land,
'Twas guided by a father's hand,
Who checked his anger too severe,
When lie beheld them faint with fear.
A father strikes with pity's tear.
The rattiing storm its fury spent
In wilds where morfals never went.
What sprung from this ? our worthless race
Abused his sympathy and grace.—
Of this Olympus' chiefs complain ;
The god of thunder swore again
By Styx he swore, and hell's abyss,
To send them storms that should not miss
They smiling said, at what he swore,
That he a father's title bore.—
Better some other god should form
The thunder, and direct the storm.
This, Vulcan undertook to do,
And quick two different metals threw
Into his furnace like a lake‑
The one of which makes no mistake,
But straight the mark is sure to find,
From all Olympus' gods combined.
The other often turns its course,
And breaks on mountain-tops its force,
Or errs in its direction wild.—
This comes from Jupiter the mild.

I thought this was going to be about the comic series, my disappointment is immeasurable.

THE LION AND RAT (II, 11)
“ Be kind whene'er you can,” should be your creed,
There's none so small but you his aid may need.
This striking truth two fables now shall prove ;
Matter enough is here your faith to move.
A blundering rat burst through the earth,
And fell into the lion's paws.
The animal of royal birth
Scorned with such blood to stain his claws :
He spared his life, the kindness was repaid ;
Who'd think the lion could e'er require his aid ?
However, 'twas the lion's lot,
Leaving the forest, in a net to fall,
Nor could his rage and roaring break the thrall.
The rat ran to his aid, and speedily
Gnawed through a mesh and set him free.

Patience and length of time will still
Much more than force and rage fulfil.






THE DOVE AND ANT (II, 12)
Yet lesser animals our moral prove.
Along a limpid stream a sipping dove
Beheld an ant, which, bending o'er its brink,
Had fallen in whilst stooping there to drink.
To reach the shore the ant now vainly tried,
Amidst this dreaded raging ocean tide.
The kind bird promptly threw a blade of grass,
By which the ant again to shore did pass.
A certain beggar wandered there,
Barefoot and hungry, seeking better fare;
A bow and arrow he had got :
The bird of Venus saw, sought to destroy,
Nay, thought he had her in his pot ;
And licked his lips for joy.
While ho prepared to make the dove his prey,
The ant severely stung his heel.
The fellow turned, for she had made him feel.
The dove, alarmed in time, flew far away.
“Pigeons,” said he, at loss of dinner sad

“Are not, I see, so easy to be had.”



This post was edited by Chevaucheur on Jun 20 2021 03:49pm