Thursday, July 8, 2010

The Fox and the Crow

The Fox and the Crow. A crow had stolen a piece of cheese from somewhere and had flown with his prize up into a high tree. A fox, who wanted to get that cheese, addressed the crow with flattering words. She started out by praising the crow's beauty and the sheen of his feathers and then she said, "By Pollux, I would say that you were the king of the birds, if your singing matched your beauty." Then the crow, puffed up by the fox's praise, wanted to show that he was good at singing, too. So it happened that as soon as he opened his beak, the cheese fell out, whereupon the fox grabbed it and devoured it.

Vulpes et Corvus. Corvus alicunde caseum rapuerat et cum illo in altam arborem subvolarat. Vulpecula, illum caseum appetens, Corvum blandis verbis adoritur, cumque primum formam eius pennarumque nitorem laudasset, "Pol" inquit "te avium regem esse dicerem, si cantus pulchritudini tuae responderet." Tum ille, laudibus Vulpis inflatus, etiam cantu se valere demonstrare voluit. Ita vero e rostro aperto caseus delapsus est, quem Vulpes arreptum devoravit.

Notes. This is Via Latina 21, which is Perry 124 in Perry's classification scheme. It is one of the most famous of the Aesop's fables, warning us to be beware of the intentions of anyone who flatters us.

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