书城英文图书英国学生文学读本(套装共6册)
12997600000079

第79章 FABLES

I.THE DOVE AND THE ANT

1.An ant,being very thirsty,went to a clear running stream to drink;but going too far into the water,she was carried away by the current.A dove who saw this took pity on her.She pulled a leaf from a tree near by,and dropped it into the water.

2.The ant climbed up on this leaf,and sailed awaydown stream till the leaf driftedbrook,when she got safely ashore.

3.Not long after,a bird-catcher was out in the woods,and wished to catch this dove.He crept close up to her without being seen by his prey;but the ant was watching him,and saw what he was about.

4.Just as he was going to seize the dove,the ant bit his leg,and made him give so sudden a start that the dove heard him and flew away safely.

5.One hot sultr summer,when the ponds and streams were nearly all dried up,two frogsa journey together to look for water.

6.After some time they came to a well,in which there was still plenty of water.But the well was deep,and the water did not come nearly to its mouth.They sat down upon its edge,and began to think whether they should jump in or not.

7.One of them wanted to jump in at once,saying that there was plenty of clear spring water,and that it was a place where they were not likely to be disturbed.

8.“Well,”said the other,“all that may be true,and yet I cannot agree to jump in;for unless the water should rise to the mouth of the well,how are we to get out again ?”

III.THE OLD MAN AND HIS SONS

9.An old man had many sons,who were always quarrelling with each other.After trying in vain to make them live at peace together,he one day hit upon the following plan.

10.He took a bundle of sticks,and asked his sons one after the other to break them.They tried with all their might,but in vain,for the sticks were closely and firmly bound together.

11.The father next untied the bundle,and gave hissons the sticks to break singly,which they did veryeasily.Then he spoke to his sons in these words:-12.“O my sons,behold the power of unity!If youwould but keep yourselves joined together by love toone another,no enemy would be able to hurt you;but when you are divided from each other by your quarrels,you are weak,and it is easy for your enemies to injure you.