Chapter 131 A doctor had been treating a sick man for some time when the man died under his care. At the funeral the doctor walked about talking to the relatives and said, “If only our poor friend had refrained from drinking wine and had taken care of his body, he would not be lying […]
Chapter 130 Two men were traveling along the same road when one of them picked up a hatchet and cried, “Look what I’ve found!”“Don’t say I,” responded the other, “but look what we have found.”Some time later the man who had lost the hatchet appeared and claimed that the man who found it had stolen
Chapter 129 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
Chapter 128 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
Chapter 127 Emerging from the mud of a swamp, a frog proclaimed to the entire world that he had surfaced to cure all diseases.“Come and see the most miraculous doctor in the world!” he cried. “No one is my equal, not even Aesculapius himself, Jove’s physician!”“How dare you pretend to be able to heal others,”
Chapter 126 While chopping down a tree on the bank of a river a woodcutter let his ax slip by chance into the water, and it immediately sank to the bottom. This accident upset him so much that he sat down by the side of the stream and lamented his carelessness with bitter tears. Fortunately,
Chapter 125 There was once a dog so wild and mischievous that his master was obliged to fasten a heavy collar with a bell around his neck to prevent him from biting and worrying his neighbors. The dog was so proud of his badge that he paraded about in the marketplace, shaking his collar to
Chapter 124 A horse once had a whole meadow to himself, but a stag came and damaged the pasture. Anxious to gain revenge, the horse asked a man if he would help him punish the stag.“Yes,” said the man, “but you must let me put a bit in your mouth and get on your back.
Chapter 123 An old woman, who had become blind, called in a physician and promised him before witnesses that she would reward him most generously if he could restore her eyesight. However, he was to receive nothing if he did not cure her malady. Upon agreeing to these conditions, the physician treated the old lady’s
Chapter 122 A fox had never seen a lion before, and when he finally encountered one for the first time, he was so terrified that he almost died of fright. When he met him the second time, he was still afraid but managed to conceal his fear. When he saw him the third time, he
Chapter 121 Once when all the beasts were arguing among themselves as to which of the animals could produce the largest number of whelps at birth, they went to the lioness and asked her to settle the dispute.“And how many do you have at birth?” they asked.“One,” she said defiantly, “but that one is a
Chapter 120 A farmer set up a net in his field to catch some cranes that had been constantly feeding upon his newly-sown corn. When he went to examine the net and to see what the cranes had taken, there was a stork among them.“Spare me!” cried the stork. “I’m not a crane. Nor have
Chapter 119 The wind and the sun once had an argument as to which was the stronger of the two, and they agreed to settle the issue by holding a contest: whoever could make a traveller take off his coat first would be recognized as the most powerful. The wind began and blew with all
Chapter 118 One day a fisherman, who earned his living with his nets, caught nothing but one little fish after a long, hard day of work.“Spare me,” pleaded the little creature. “I beg you. I’m so small that I wouldn’t be much of a meal for you anyway. I haven’t reached my full size yet.
Chapter 117 Since the hares were continually threatened by enemies all around them, they once held a meeting to discuss their sad predicament. Eventually they decided that death would be much more preferable to their desperate condition, and off they went to a nearby lake, determined to drown themselves as the most miserable of creatures.It