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Aesop's Fables Episode 4 · Aesop's Fables

• 0:00
  The old Man and the three young Men. As an old man was planting
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  a tree, three young men came along and began to make sport of him,
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  saying, it shows your foolishness to be planting a tree at your age.
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  The tree cannot bear fruit for many years, while you must very soon
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  die. What is the use of your wasting your time in providing pleasure for
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  others to share long after you are dead. The old man stopped in his
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  labor and replied, others before me provided for my happiness, and it is
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  my duty to provide for those who shall come after me. As for life,
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  who is sure of it? For a day you may all die before
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  me. The old man's words came true. One of the young men went
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  on a voyage at sea and was drowned, another went to war and was
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  shot, and the third fell from a tree and broke his neck. We
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  should not think wholly of ourselves, and we should remember that life is uncertain.
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  The Lion and the Fox. A fox entered into partnership with the lion
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  on the pretense of becoming his servant. Each undertook his proper duty in accordance
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  with his own nature and powers. The fox discovered and pointed out the prey.
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  The lion sprang on it and seized it. The fox soon became jealous
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  of the lion carrying off the lion's share, and said that he would no
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  longer find out the prey, but would capture it on his own account.
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  The next day, he attempted to snatch a lamb from the fold, but
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  fell himself a prey to the huntsman and his hounds, Keep to your place
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  if you would succeed the horse and the stag. The horse had the plane
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  entirely to himself. A stag intruded into his domain and shared his pasture.
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  The horse, desiring to revenge himself on the stranger, requested a man if
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  he were willing to help him in punishing the stag. The man replied that
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  if the horse would receive a bit in his mouth and agree to carry him,
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  he would contrive very effectual weapons against the stag. The horse consented and
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  allowed the man to mount him. From that hour, he found that instead
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  of obtaining revenge on the stag, he had enslaved himself to the service of
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  man. He who seeks to injure others often injures only himself. The Lion
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  and the Dolphin. A lion roaming by the sea shore saw a dolphin lift
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  up his head out of the waves, and asked him to contract an alliance
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  with him, saying that of all the animals, they ought to be best
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  friends, since the one was the king of beasts on earth and the other
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  was the sovereign ruler of all the inhabitants of the ocean. The dolphin gladly
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  consented to this request. Not long afterwards, the lion had a combat with
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  a wild bull and called on the dolphin to help him. The dolphin,
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  though quite willing to give him assistance, was unable to do so as he
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  could not by any means reach the land. The lion abused him as a
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  traitor. The dolphin replied, nay, my friend, blame not me but
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  nature, which, while giving me sovereignty of the sea, has quite denied
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  me the power of living upon the land. Let everyone stick to his own
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  element. The mice in council. The mice summoned a council to decide how
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  they might best devise means for obtaining notice of the approach of their great enemy,
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  the cat. Among the many plans devised the one that found most favor
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  was the proposal to tie a bell to the neck of the cat, that
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  the mice, being warned by the sound of the tinkling, might run away
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  and hide themselves in their holes at his approach. But when the mice further
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  debated who among them should thus bell the cat, there was no one found
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  to do it. Let those who propose be willing to perform the camel and
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  the Arab. An Arab camel driver, having completed the lading of his camel,
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  asked him which he would like best to go uphill or downhill? The
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  poor beast replied, not without a touch of reason. Why do you ask
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  me? Is it that the level way through the desert is closed? The
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  fighting cocks and the eagle two game cocks were fiercely fighting for the mastery of
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  the farmyard. One at last put the other to flight. The vanquished cock
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  skulked away and hid himself in a quiet corner. The coqueror, flying up
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  to a high wall, flapped his wings and crowed exultingly with all his might.
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  An eagle sailing through the air, pounced upon him and carried him off
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  in his talons. The vanquished cock immediately came out of his corner and ruled
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  henceforth with undisputed mastery. Pride goes before destruction. The Boys and the frogs.
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  Some boys playing near a pond saw a number of frogs in the water
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  and began to pelt them with stones. They killed several of them, when
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  one of the frogs, lifting his head out of the water, cried out,
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  pray, stop, my boys. What a sport to you is death
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  to us. What we do in sport often makes great trouble for others.
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  The crab and its mother. A crab said to her son, why do
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  you walk so one sided? My child? It is far more becoming to
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  go straightforward. The young crab replied, quite true, dear mother, and
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  if you will show me the straight way, I will promise to walk in
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  it. The mother tried in vain and submitted without remonstrance to the reproof of
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  her child. Example is more powerful than precept. The wolf and the shepherd.
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  A wolf followed a flock of sheep for a long time and did not
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  attempt to injure one of them. The shepherd at first stood on his guard
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  against him as against an enemy, and kept a strict watch over his movements.
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  But when the wolf, day after day kept in the company of the
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  sheep, and did not make the slightest effort to seize them. The shepherd
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  began to look upon him as a guardian of his flock, rather than as
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  a plotter of evil against it, and when the occasion called him one day
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  into the city, he left the sheep entirely in his charge. The wolf,
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  now that he had the opportunity, fell upon the sheep and destroyed the
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  greater part of the flock. The shepherd, on his return, finding his
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  flock destroyed, exclaimed, I have been rightly served. Why did I trust
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  my sheep to a wolf? An evil mind will show an evil action sooner
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  or later. The Man and the Lion a man and a lion traveled together
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  through the forest. They soon began to boast of their respective superiority to each
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  other in strength and prowess. As they were disputing, they passed a statue
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  carved in stone which represented a lion strangled by a man. The traveler pointed
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  to it and said, see there, how strong we are, and how
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  we prevail over even the king of beasts. The lion replied, this statue
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  was made by one of you men. If we lions knew how to erect
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  statues. You will see the man placed under the paw of the lion.
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  One story is good till another is told. The Ox and the Frog.
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  An ox, drinking at a pool, trod on a brood of young frogs
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  and crushed one of them to death. The mother, coming up and missing
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  one of her sons, inquired of his brothers, what had become of him?
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  He is dead, dear mother, For just now a very huge beast
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  with four great feet came aim to the pool and crushed him to death with
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  his cloven heel. The frog, puffing herself out, inquired if the beast
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  was as big as that in size. Cease mother to puff yourself out,
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  said her son. And do not be angry for you would, I assure
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  you, sooner burst than successfully imitate the hugeness of that monster. Impossible things
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  we cannot hope to attain, and it is of no use to try.
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  The birds, the beasts, and the bat. The birds waged war with
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  the beasts, and each party were, by turns the conquerors. A bat,
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  fearing the uncertain issues of the fight, always betook himself to that side
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  which was the strongest. When peace was proclaimed his deceitful conduct was apparent to
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  both the combatants. He was driven forth from the light of day, and
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  henceforth concealed himself in dark hiding places, flying always alone and at night.
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  Those who practice deceit must expect to be shunned. The charcoal burner and the
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  fuller. A charcoal burner carried on his trade in his own house. One
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  day he met a friend, a fuller, and entreated him to come and
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  live with him, saying that they should be far better neighbors and that their
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  housekeeping expenses would be lessened. The fuller replied, the arrangement is impossible as
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  far as I am concerned. For whatever I should whiten, you would immediately
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  blacken again with your charcoal. Like will draw. Like the bull and the
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  goat, a bull, escaping from a lion entered a cave which some shepherds
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  had lately occupied. A he goat was left in it, who sharply attacked
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  him with his horns. The bull quietly addressed him, but away as much
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  as you will. I have no fear of you, but of the lion.
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  Let that monster once go, and I will soon let you know what
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  is the respective strength of a goat and a bull. It shows an evil
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  disposition to take advantage of a friend in distress. The Lion and the mouse.
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  A lion was awakened from sleep by a mouse running over his face.
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  Rising up in anger, he caught him and was about to kill him,
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  when the mouse piteously entreated, saying, if you would only spare my life,
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  I would be sure to repay your kindness. The lion laughed and let
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  him go. It happened shortly after this that the lion was caught by some
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  hunters, who bound him by strong ropes to the ground. The mouse,
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  recognizing his roar, came up and gnawed the rope with his teeth, and
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  setting him free, exclaimed, you ridiculed the idea of my being able to
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  help you, not expecting to receive from me in every payment of your favor.
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  But now you know that it is possible for even a mouse to confer
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  benefits on a lion. No one is too weak to do good. The
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  Horse and the ass. A horse, proud of his fine trappings, met
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  an ass on the highway. The ass, being heavily laden, moved slowly
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  out of the way, hardly, said the horse, can I resist kicking
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  you with my heels. The ass held his peace and made only a silent
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  appeal to the justice of the gods. Not long afterward, the horse,
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  having become broken winded, was sent by his owner to the farm. The
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  ass, seeing him drawing a dung cart, thus derided him, where robost
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  are now all thy gay trappings, Thou, who art thyself reduced to the
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  condition you so lately treated with contempt. The old hound, a hound who
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  in the days of his youth and strength had never yielded to any beast of
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  the forest, encountered in his old age a boar in the chase. He
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  seized him boldly by the ear, but could not retain his hold because of
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  the decay of his teeth, so that the boar escaped. His master,
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  quickly coming up, was very much disappointed and fiercely abused the dog. The
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  hound looked up and said, it is not my fault. Master. My
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  spirit was as good as ever, but I could not help mine infirmities.
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  I rather deserve to be praised for what I have been than to be blamed
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  for what I am. No one should be blamed for his infirmities. The
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  Crow and the pitcher, a crow perishing with thirst, saw a pitcher,
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  and, hoping to find water, flew to it with great delight. When
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  he reached it, he discovered, to his grief that it contained so little
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  water that he could not possibly get at it. He tried everything he could
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  think of to reach the water, but all his efforts were in vain.
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  At last he collected as many stones as he could carry and dropped them one
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  by one with his beak into the pitcher, until he brought the water within
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  his reach, and thus saved his life. Necessity is the mother of invention.
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  The ass eating thistles an ass was loaded with good provisions of several sorts,
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  which, in time of harvest he was carrying into the field for his
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  master and the reapers to dine upon. By the way, he met with
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  a fine, large thistle, and bea very hungry began to mumble it.
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  And while he was doing so, he entered into this reflection, how many
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  greedy epicures would think themselves happy amidst such delicate viands as I now carry.
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  But to me, this bitter, prickly thistle is more savory and relishing than
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  the most exquisite and sumptuous banquet. Let others choose what they may for food.
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  But give me, above everything, a fine juicy thistle like this,
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  and I will be content. Every one to his taste. One man's meat
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  is another man's poison, and one man's poison is another man's meat. What
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  is rejected by one person may be valued very highly by another. End of Section three