The Dove and the Magpie

The Dove and the Magpie. The magpie asked the dove what led her to always make her nest in the same place, since her chicks were always being stolen from her there. The dove replied, "I do so because of my simplicity." The fable shows that it is often easy for honest people to be deceived.

Columba et Pica. Columba, interrogata a Pica quid eam induceret ut in eodem semper loco nidificaret, cum eius pulli inde sibi semper surriperentur. "Simplicitas," respondit. Morale. Haec indicat fabula facile esse viros probos saepe decipi.

Notes. This is Abstemius 6. As usual with Abstemius, it is not found in Perry's inventory. The word simplicitas here in Latin is hard to render in English. In Latin, simplicitas is the opposite of duplicitas, or "duplicity." Simplex literally means "single-folded" as opposed to something that is duplex, "double-folded" or, as we might say, "two-faced." The poor dove does the same thing over and over and over again, a perfect example of simplicity - which is what makes it so easy for predators to steal her chicks every time.