Fables of La Fontaine Part 22

A man that labour'd in the wood Had lost his honest livelihood; That is to say, His axe was gone astray.

He had no tools to spare; This wholly earn'd his fare.

Without a hope beside, He sat him down and cried, 'Alas, my axe! where can it be?

O Jove! but send it back to me, And it shall strike good blows for thee.'

His prayer in high Olympus heard, Swift Mercury started at the word.

'Your axe must not be lost,' said he: 'Now, will you know it when you see?

An axe I found upon the road.'

With that an axe of gold he show'd.

'Is't this?' The woodman answer'd, 'Nay.'

An axe of silver, bright and gay, Refused the honest woodman too.

At last the finder brought to view An axe of iron, steel, and wood.

'That's mine,' he said, in joyful mood; 'With that I'll quite contented be.'

The G.o.d replied, 'I give the three, As due reward of honesty.'

This luck when neighbouring choppers knew, They lost their axes, not a few, And sent their prayers to Jupiter So fast, he knew not which to hear.

His winged son, however, sent With gold and silver axes, went.

Each would have thought himself a fool Not to have own'd the richest tool.

But Mercury promptly gave, instead Of it, a blow upon the head.

With simple truth to be contented, Is surest not to be repented; But still there are who would With evil trap the good,-- Whose cunning is but stupid, For Jove is never duped.

[1] Aesop. There is also a version of the story in Rabelais, Book IV, _Prologue_.

[2] La Fontaine's dedication is in initials thus:--"A. M. L. C. D. B."

which are interpreted by some as meaning, "To M. the Chevalier de Bouillon" (as above), and by others as meaning, "To Monseigneur le Cardinal de Bouillon."

[3] _Aesop's plan_.--Here, as in the dedication of Book VII., Fable II., Book I., Fable I., Book III., Fable I., Book VI., Fable IV., Book VIII., and Fable I., Book IX., the poet treats of the nature and uses of Fable.

II.--THE EARTHEN POT AND THE IRON POT.[4]

An iron pot proposed To an earthen pot a journey.

The latter was opposed, Expressing the concern he Had felt about the danger Of going out a ranger.

He thought the kitchen hearth The safest place on earth For one so very brittle.

'For thee, who art a kettle, And hast a tougher skin, There's nought to keep thee in.'

'I'll be thy body-guard,'

Replied the iron pot; 'If anything that's hard Should threaten thee a jot, Between you I will go, And save thee from the blow.'

This offer him persuaded.

The iron pot paraded Himself as guard and guide Close at his cousin's side.

Now, in their tripod way, They hobble as they may; And eke together bolt At every little jolt,-- Which gives the crockery pain; But presently his comrade hits So hard, he dashes him to bits, Before he can complain.

Take care that you a.s.sociate With equals only, lest your fate Between these pots should find its mate.

[4] Aesop.

III.--THE LITTLE FISH AND THE FISHER.[5]

A little fish will grow, If life be spared, a great; But yet to let him go, And for his growing wait, May not be very wise, As 'tis not sure your bait Will catch him when of size.

Upon a river bank, a fisher took A tiny troutling from his hook.

Said he, ''Twill serve to count, at least, As the beginning of my feast; And so I'll put it with the rest.'

This little fish, thus caught, His clemency besought.

'What will your honour do with me?

I'm not a mouthful, as you see.

Pray let me grow to be a trout, And then come here and fish me out.

Some alderman, who likes things nice, Will buy me then at any price.

But now, a hundred such you'll have to fish, To make a single good-for-nothing dish.'

'Well, well, be it so,' replied the fisher, 'My little fish, who play the preacher, The frying-pan must be your lot, Although, no doubt, you like it not: I fry the fry that can be got.'

In some things, men of sense Prefer the present to the future tense.

[5] Aesop.

IV.--THE EARS OF THE HARE.[6]

Some beast with horns did gore The lion; and that sovereign dread, Resolved to suffer so no more, Straight banish'd from his realm, 'tis said, All sorts of beasts with horns-- Rams, bulls, goats, stags, and unicorns.

Such brutes all promptly fled.

A hare, the shadow of his ears perceiving, Could hardly help believing That some vile spy for horns would take them, And food for accusation make them.

'Adieu,' said he, 'my neighbour cricket; I take my foreign ticket.

My ears, should I stay here, Will turn to horns, I fear; And were they shorter than a bird's, I fear the effect of words.'

'These horns!' the cricket answer'd; 'why, G.o.d made them ears who can deny?'

'Yes,' said the coward, 'still they'll make them horns, And horns, perhaps of unicorns!

In vain shall I protest, With all the learning of the schools: My reasons they will send to rest In th' Hospital of Fools.'[7]

[6] Faerno.

[7] _Hospital of Fools_, i.e., madhouse.

V.--THE FOX WITH HIS TAIL CUT OFF.[8]

A cunning old fox, of plundering habits, Great crauncher of fowls, great catcher of rabbits, Whom none of his sort had caught in a nap, Was finally caught in somebody's trap.

By luck he escaped, not wholly and hale, For the price of his luck was the loss of his tail.

Escaped in this way, to save his disgrace, He thought to get others in similar case.

One day that the foxes in council were met, 'Why wear we,' said he, 'this c.u.mbering weight, Which sweeps in the dirt wherever it goes?

Pray tell me its use, if any one knows.

If the council will take my advice, We shall dock off our tails in a trice.'

'Your advice may be good,' said one on the ground; 'But, ere I reply, pray turn yourself round.'

Whereat such a shout from the council was heard, Poor bob-tail, confounded, could say not a word.

To urge the reform would have wasted his breath.

Long tails were the mode till the day of his death.

[8] Aesop; Faerno.