THE PARROT AND THE CAT
鹦鹉和猫
A Man once bought a Parrot and gave it the run of his house.It revelled in its liberty，and presently ？ew up on to the mantelpiece and screamed away to its heart’s content.The noise disturbed the Cat，who was asleep on the hearthrug.Looking up at the intruder，she said，“Who may you be，and where have you come from？”The Parrot replied，“Your master has just bought me and brought me home with him.”“You impudent bird，”said the Cat，“how dare you，a newcomer，make a noise like that？Why，I was born here，and have lived here all my life，and yet，if I venture to mew，they throw things at me and chase me all over the place.”“Look here，mistress，”said the Parrot，“you just hold your tongue.My voice they delight in；but yours—yours is a perfect nuisance.”
｛中文阅读｝
从前，有个人买了一只鹦鹉，让它在房子里自由自在地生活。这只鹦鹉欣喜若狂，高兴地飞上了壁炉架，尽情地叫着。一只猫正在壁炉前的地毯上睡觉，鹦鹉的吵闹声惊扰了她。看着这个刚来的入侵者，猫问道：“你是谁，从哪里来的？”鹦鹉回答道：“你的主人刚刚买了我，带我来到这个房子里。”“你这个放肆无礼的家伙，”猫说，“怎么刚到这里就这么吵闹呢？我可是在这里出生的，而且一直住在这个家里。但即便如此，如果我冒险喵喵地叫几声，主人就会朝我扔东西，到处追着赶我出去。”鹦鹉回答说：“喂，你最好赶快闭上嘴。我的声音多么悦耳动听呀，他们可都喜欢；而你的叫声，实在是一种噪音。”
THE STAG AND THE LION
雄鹿和狮子
A Stag was chased by the hounds，and took refuge in a cave，where he hoped to be safe from his pursuers.Unfortunately the cave contained a Lion，to whom he fell an easy prey.“Unhappy that I am，”he cried，“I am saved from the power of the dogs only to fall into the clutches of a Lion.”
Out of the frying-pan into the ？re.
｛中文阅读｝
有只鹿受到了猎犬的追捕，拼命地逃进一个洞里寻求庇护。他希望这是一个安全的地方，可以躲避猎犬。不幸的是，这个洞里有一只狮子，轻易地就抓获了鹿。鹿临死之前说：“我真是倒霉，刚脱离了猎犬的追捕，马上又掉进了狮子的大口。”
刚从油锅里出来，又掉进了火坑。
THE IMPOSTOR
说谎的人
A certain man fell ill，and，being in a very bad way，he made a vow that he would sacri？ce a hundred oxen to the gods if they would grant him a return to health.Wishing to see how he would keep his vow，they caused him to recover in a short time.Now，he hadn’t an ox in the world，so he made a hundred little oxen out of tallow and offered them up on an altar，at the same time saying，“Ye gods，I call you to witness that I have discharged my vow.”The gods determined to be even with him，so they sent him a dream，in which he was bidden to go to the sea-shore and fetch a hundred crowns which he was to ？nd there.Hastening in great excitement to the shore，he fell in with a band of robbers，who seized him and carried him off to sell as a slave：and when they sold him a hundred crowns was the sum he fetched.
Do not promise more than you can perform.
｛中文阅读｝
有个人生了病，状况非常严重，他向众神发誓，如果能恢复健康，他一定会供奉一百头牛给众神。众神想要看看他是否能遵守诺言，很快便让他痊愈了。他其实根本没有一百头牛，于是就用酥油做成了一百头小牛，放到供台上供奉给众神，同时嘴里还说着：“众神灵，我请你们来见证，我已经还清了自己许下的愿。”众神决定要报复他，便带他进入了一个梦境。在梦里，他被命令到海边去，在那里他将找到一百个银元。他带着激动的心情赶忙跑到海边，可是却遇上了一群强盗，强盗抓住他并将他卖了去当奴隶，而卖他所得的钱正好是一百个银元，也就是他要取的总数目。
不要许下力所不能及的愿。
THE DOGS AND THE HIDES
狗和牛皮
Once upon a time a number of Dogs，who were famished with hunger，saw some Hides steeping in a river，but couldn’t get at them because the water was too deep.So they put their heads together，and decided to drink away at the river till it was shallow enough for them to reach the Hides.But long before that happened they burst themselves with drinking.
｛中文阅读｝
从前，有几条饥肠辘辘的狗，看见河里浸泡着一张牛皮，但是由于水太深，他们无法拿到那张皮。于是，他们合计着喝掉河里的水，这样就可以趁水浅一些时，过去拿那张牛皮了。然而，还没等到去拿兽皮，他们的肚皮早已被河水胀破了。
THE LION，THE FOX，AND THE ASS
狮子、狐狸和驴
A Lion，a Fox，and an Ass went out hunting together.They had soon taken a large booty，which the Lion requested the Ass to divide between them.The Ass divided it all into three equal parts，and modestly begged the others to take their choice；at which the Lion，bursting with fury，sprang upon the Ass and tore him to pieces.Then，glaring at the Fox，he bade him make a fresh division.The Fox gathered almost the whole in one great heap for the Lion’s share，leaving only the smallest possible morsel for himself.“My dear friend，”said the Lion，“how didyou get the knack of it so well？”The Fox replied，“Me？Oh，I took alesson from the Ass.”
Happy is he who learns from the misfortunes of others.
｛中文阅读｝
狮子、狐狸和驴一起外出打猎。没过多久，他们就虏获了许多战利品，狮子命令驴在其面前分猎物。驴将所有猎物平均分成三份，然后谦和地请狮子和狐狸先挑选自己的那一份。这时，狮子勃然大怒，猛扑过去，撕碎了驴。接着，狮子又盯上了狐狸，命令他来重新分赃。狐狸把所有的猎物都堆在一起，然后请狮子来拿，只留下一点点东西给自己。“我的好朋友，”狮子说，“你怎么学到的这个窍门呀？”狐狸回答说：“我是从驴那里得到了教训。”
你若懂得从他人的不幸中汲取教训，就能获得幸福。
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THE FOWLER，THE PARTRIDGE，AND THE COCK
捕鸟人、鹧鸪和公鸡
One day，as a Fowler was sitting down to a scanty supper of herbs and bread，a friend dropped in unexpectedly.The larder was empty；so he went out and caught a tame Partridge，which he kept as a decoy，and was about to wring her neck when she cried，“Surely you won’t kill me？Why，what will you do without me next time you go fowling？How will you get the birds to come to your nets？”He let her go at this，and went to his hen-house，where he had a plump young Cock.When the Cock saw what he was after，he too pleaded for his life，and said，“If you kill me，how will you know the time of night？and who will wake you up in the morning when it is time to get to work？”The Fowler，however，replied，“You are useful for telling the time，I know；but，for all that，I can’t send my friend supperless to bed.”And therewith he caught him and wrung his neck.
｛中文阅读｝
有一天，当捕鸟人正坐在餐桌边吃着仅有香草和面包的晚餐时，一个朋友不期而至。食品柜已经空了，于是捕鸟人跑出去捉那只驯养的鹧鸪，它可是一直被当做诱饵留下来的。就在捕鸟人要拧断她的脖子时，鹧鸪大喊道：“你确定要杀了我吗？为什么，要是没有我，你下次捕鸟时该怎么办呢？你如何能吸引那些鸟儿走到你的网里来呢？”听了这番话，捕鸟人就放了鹧鸪，走到鸡舍那边，准备去捉那只胖乎乎的小公鸡。公鸡看到自己将要成为下一个被杀的目标，也求主人饶命，并且说：“如果你杀了我，怎么能知道夜晚的时间呢？谁能在清晨唤醒你，到时候该去干活了呢？”然而，捕鸟人却回答说：“我知道，你的确能告诉我时间，尽管如此，我也不能让朋友饿着肚子去睡觉呀。”随后，他便捉住公鸡，拧断了它的脖子。
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THE GNAT AND THE LION
蚊子和狮子
