Tables Turned

An old lion lay sick in a cave and all the animals came to visit their king, except the fox. The wolf seized this opportunity to speak ill of the fox in the lion,s hearing. He said that the fox had no respect for their lord and master and that was why he had not even visited him. The fox himself arrived in time ho hear the letter part of what the wolf said. The lion roared threateningly at him but the fox begged leave to speak in his own defense. 'Which of the animals gathered here,' he asked, 'has brought you as much assistance as I have ? I have been going everywhere seeking from a doctor a cure for your sickness and I have found one.' The lion demanded to know the cure then and there. 'you must skin a wolf alive,' said the fox, 'and  you must put the skin on yourself  while it is still warm.' In a moment the wolf was dead. 'You must not play on your master's ill-will, said the fox with a laugh, 'but rather in his good-will. "The man who plots against another plots his own destruction."

Fear Overcome By Fear

Once upon a time the hares held a meeting and bewailed the state  of fear and uncertainty in which they lived. For they were the prey of  men, dog's,eagles and many other animals. It was better, they said, to die and be done with it than to live all their lives in terror and trembling. Having decided thus, they all set off together to a pond with the intention of jumping into it and drowning themselves. At the sound of their feet some frogs which were sitting round the pond leaped into the water. Then one of the hares, who was evidently wiser than the rest, cried, 'friends, do not do this terrible thing. For you see now that there are creatures even more tormented by fear than we are. "The fable shows that those in misfortune may find consolation from seeing other who are in worse plight"