Collected Fables

‘“What a lovely cat you have,” said Gozaemon. “What? That old mog?” replied the old woman in surprise. “Yes. It’s a darling cat.” Gozaemon knelt down to pet the cat. It hissed at him, back arching. “Reminds me of my own, who sadly . . . no, it’s too painful to even talk about . . . My children loved that old cat so . . .” Gozaemon pretended to stif

Il est beaucoup d’hommes tenus pour personnes sérieuses et graves, mais que nous méprisons et tenons en pitié. Des hommes que l’on considère comme graves parce que la nature a mis de l’aigreur dans leur tempérament ; des hommes avides d’argent, qui passent tout leur temps d’abord à amasser puis à s’appliquer anxieusement à conserver ce qu’ils ont a

'No,' said the imp, 'that was not the way I did it. All I did was to see that the peasant had more corn than he needed. The blood of the beasts is always in man; but as long as he has only enough corn for his needs, it is kept in bounds.