SELECT FABLES.

THE ATHEIST AND THE ACORN.

IT was the fool who said in his heart "There is no God," into the breast of a wise man such a thought could never have entered. One of those refined reasoners, commonly called minute philosophers, was sitting at his ease beneath the shade of a large oak, while at his side the weak branches of a pumpion trailed upon the ground. This threw our great logician into his old track of reasoning against Providence. "Is it consistent with common sense," said he, "that infinite wisdom should create a large and stately tree, with branches of prodigious strength, only to bear so small and insignificant a fruit as an acorn? Or that so weak a stem as that of a pumpion should be loaded with so dispropor tioned a weight? A child may see the absurdity of it." In the midst of this curious speculation, down dropt an acorn from one of the highest branches of the oak, full upon his head. How small a trifle may overturn the systems of mighty philosophers! Struck with the accident, he could not help crying out, "How providential it is that this was not a pumpion."

GENIUS, VIRTUE, AND REPUTATION.

Genius, Virtue, and Reputation, three intimate friends, agreed to travel over the island of Great Britain, to see whatever might be worthy of observation. "But as some misfortune," said they, "may happen to separate us, let us consider, before we set out, by what means we may find each other again." "Should it be my ill fate," said Genius, "to be severed from you, my associates, which heaven forbid! you may find me kneeling in devotion before the tomb of Shakespeare: or rapt in some grove where Milton talked with angels; or musing in the grotto where Pope caught inspiration." Virtue, with a sigh, acknowledged that her friends were not very numerous: "But were I to lose you,' she cried, "with whom I am at present so happily united, I should choose to take sanctuary in the temples of religion, in the palaces of royalty, or in the stately domes of ministers

of state: but as it may be my ill fortune to be there denied admittance, enquire for some cottage where contentment has a bower, and there you will certainly find me." "Ah, my dear companions," said Reputation very earnestly, “you, I perceive, when missing, may possibly be recovered; but take care, I entreat you, always to keep sight of me, for if I am once lost, I am never to be retrieved."

THE EAGLE AND THE OWL.

An eagle and an owl having entered into a league of mutual amity, one of the articles of their treaty was, that the former should not prey upon the younglings of the latter. "But tell me," said the owl, "should you know my little ones. if you were to see them?" "Indeed I should not," replied the eagle; "but if you describe them to me, it will be sufficient. "You are to observe then," returned the owl, "in the first place, that the charmning creatures are perfectly well shaped; in the next, that there is a remarkable sweetness and vivacity in their countenances; and then there is something in their voices so peculiarly melodious"-"'Tis enough," interrupted the eagle; "by these marks I cannot fail of distin guishing them: and you may depend upon their never receiving any injury froin me.' It happened not long afterwards, as the eagle was upon the wing in quest of his prey, that he discovered amidst the ruins of an old castle, a nest of grim-faced ugly birds, with gloomy countenances, and a voice like that of the furies. "These undoubtedly," said he, "cannot be the offspring of my friend, and so I shall venture to make free with them." He had scarce finished his repast and departed, when the owl returned; who finding nothing of her brood remaining but some fragments of the mangled carcasses, broke out into the most bitter exclamations against the cruel and perfidious author of her calamity. A neighbouring bat, who overheard her lamentations, and had been witness to what had passed between her and the eagle, very gravely told her, that she had nobody to blame for this misfortune but herself, whose blind prejudices in favour of her children, had prompted her to give such a description of them, as did not resemble them in any one single feature or quality.

Parents should very carefully guard against that weak partiality towards their children, which renders them blind to their failings and imperfections: as no disposition is more likely to prove prejudicial to their future welfare.

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THE TWO FOXES.

Two foxes formed a stratagem to enter a hen-roost: which, having successfully executed, and killed the cock, the hens, and the chickens, they began to feed upon them with singular satisfaction. One of the foxes, who was young and inconsiderate, was for devouring them all upon the spot the other, who was old and covetous, proposed to reserve some of them for another time: "For experience, child," said he, " has made me wise, and I have seen many unexpected events since I came into the world. Let us provide, therefore, against what may happen, and not consume all our store at one meal." "All this is wondrous wise," replied the young fox; "but for my part, I am resolved not to stir till I have eaten as much as will serve me a whole week: for who would be mad enough to return hither? when it is certain the owner of these fowls will watch for us, and if he should catch us, would certainly put us to death." After this short discourse, each pursued his own scheme: the young fox eat till he burst himself, and had scarcely strength to reach his hole before he died. The old one, who thought it much better to deny his appetite for the present, and lay up provision for the future, returned the next day, and was killed by the farmer. Thus every age has its peculiar vice: the young suffer by their insatiable thirst after pleasure; and the old, by their incorrigible and inordinate avarice.

THE CAT AND THE BAT.

A cat having devoured her master's favourite bulfinch, overheard him threatening to put her to death the moment he could find her. In this distress she preferred a prayer to Jupiter, vowing, if he would deliver her from her present danger, that never while she lived would she eat another bird. Not long afterwards, a bat most invitingly flew into the room where puss was purring in the window. The question was, how to act upon so tempting an occasion. Her appetite pressed hard on one side; and her vow threw some scruples in her way on the other. At length she hit upon a most convenient distinction to remove all difficulties, by determining that as a bird indeed it was an unlawful prize, but as a mouse she might very conscientiously eat it; and accordingly without further debate fell to the repast.

Thus it is that men are apt to impose upon themselves by vaiu and groundless distinctions, when conscience and principle are at variance with interest and inclination.

THE DIAMOND AND THE LOADSTONE.

A diamond of great beauty and lustre observing not only many other gems of a lower class, ranged together with him in the same cabinet, but a loadstone likewise placed not far from him, began to question the latter how he came there; and what pretensions he had to be ranked among the precious stones: he, who appeared to be no better than a mere flint; a sorry, coarse, rusty-looking pebble; without any the least shining quality to advance him to such an honour; and concluded with desiring him to keep his distance, and pay a proper respect to his superiors. "I find," said the loadstone," you judge by external appearances; and it is your interest that others should form their judgment by the same rule. I must own I have nothing to boast of in that respect; but I may venture to say, that I make amends for my outward defects, by my inward qualities. The great improvement of navigation in these latter ages is entirely owing to me. It is owing to me that the distant parts of the world are known and accessible to each other; that the remotest nations are connected together, and all in a manner united into one common society; that by a mutual intercourse they relieve one another's wants, and all enjoy the several blessings peculiar to each. Great Britain is indebted to me for her wealth, her splendour, and her power; and the arts and sciences are in a great measure obliged to me for their late improvements, and their continual increase. I am willing to allow you your due praise in its full extent; you are a very pretty bauble; I am mightily delighted to see you glitter and sparkle; I look upon you with pleasure and surprise: but I must be convinced that you are of some sort of use before I acknowledge that you have any real merit, or treat you with that respect which you seem to demand."

THE MONSTER IN THE SUN.

An astronomer was observing the sun through a telescope, in order to take an exact draught of the several spots, which appear upon the face of it. While he was intent upon his observations, he was on a sudden surprised with a new and astonishing appearance; a large portion of the

surface of the sun was at once covered by a monster of enormous size, and horrible form; it had an immense pair of wings, a great number of legs, and a long and vast proboscis; and that it was alive was very apparent, from its quick and violent motions, which the observer could from time to time plainly perceive. Being sure of the fact (for how could he be mistaken in what he saw so clearly?) our philosopher began to draw many surprising conclusions. from premises so well established. He calculated the magnitude of this extraordinary animal, and found that be covered about two square degrees of the sun's surface; that, placed upon the earth, he would spread over half one hemisphere of it; and that he was seven or eight times as big as the moon. But what was most astonishing, was the prodigious heat that he must endure: it was plain that he was something of the nature of the salamander, but of a far more fiery temperament; for it was demonstrable, from the clearest principles, that in his present situation he must have acquired a degree of heat two thousand times exceeding that of red-hot iron. It was a problem worth consider ing, whether he subsisted upon the gross vapours of the sun, and so from time to time cleared away those spots which they are perpetually forming, and which would otherwise wholly obscure and incrustrate its face; or whether he might not feed on the solid substance of the orb itself, which, by this means, together with the constant expense of light, must soon be exhausted and consumed; or whether he was not now and then supplied by the falling of some eccentric comet into the sun. However this might be, he found by computation, that the earth would be but short allowance for him for a few months: and farther, it was no improbable conjecture, that as the earth was destined to be destroyed by fire, this fiery flying monster would remove hither at the appointed time, and might much more easily and conveniently effect a conflagration, than any comet hitherto provided for that service. In the earnest pursuit of these, and many the like deep and curious speculations, the astronomer was engaged, and was preparing to communicate them to the public. In the mean time, the discovery began to be much talked of; and all the virtuosi gathered together to see so strange a sight. They were equally convinced of the accuracy of the observation, and` of the conclusions so clearly deduced from it. At last, one more cautious than the rest, was resolved, before he gave a full assent to the report of his senses, to examine the whole