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XCVI. The MISER and the MAGPIE.

Sa Mifer fat at his desk, counting over his heaps of gold, a magpie eloping from his cage, picked up a guinea, and hopped away with it. The Mifer, who never failed to count his money over, a fecond time, immediately miffed the piece, and rifing up from his feat in the utmoft confternation, observed the felon hiding it in a crevice of the floor. And art. thon, cried he, that worst of thieves, who haft robbed me of my gold, without the plea of neceffity, and without regard to its proper ufe; but thy life shall atone for to prepofterous a villainy. Soft words, good inafter, quoth the magpie. Have I then injured you, in any other fenfe than you defraud the public? And am I not ufing your money in the fame manner you do yourself? If I muft lofe my life for hiding a fingle guinea, what do you, I pray, deferve, who fecret fo many thoufands?

Ο

XCVII. The TWO BEES.

Na fine morning in May, two Bees fet forward in queft of honey; the one wife and temperate, the other carclefs and extravagant. They foon arrived at a garden, enriched with aromatic herbs; the most fragrant flowers, and the most delicious fruits. They regaled themfelves for a time on the various dainties that were fpread before them; the one loading his thigh at intervals with provisions for the hive against the diftant winter; the other, revelling in fweets without regard to any thing but his prefent gratification. At length they found a wide-mouthed phial, that hung beneath the bough of a peach-tree, filled with honey ready tempered, and exposed to their tafte in the most alluring manner. The thoughtless epicure, in fpite of all his friend's remonftrances, plunged headlong in

to

to the veffel, refolving to indulge himself in all the pleafures of fenfuality. The philofopher, on the other hand, fipped a little with caution, but being fufpicious of danger, flew off to fruits and flowers; where, by the moderation of his meals, he improved his relish for the true enjoyment of them. In the evening, however, he called upon his friend, to'enquire whether he would return to the hive; but found him furfeited in fweets, which he was as unable to leave, as to enjoy. Clogged in his wings, enfeebled in his feet, and his whole frame totally enervated, he was but juft able to bid his friend adieu, and to lament with his latest breath, that though a taste of pleasure might quicken the relish of life, an unreftrained indulgence is inevitable deftruction.

XCVIII.

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PYTHAGORAS and the CRITIC.

YTHAGORAS was one day very earnestly engaged in taking an exact measure of the Olympic courfe. One of thefe conceited Critics, who aim at every thing, and are ready to interpofe with their opinion upon all fubjects, happened to be prefent; and could not help fmiling to himlelf to fee the philofopher fo employed, and to obferve what great attention and pains he beltowed upon fuch a business. And pray, fays he, accofting Pythagoras, may I prefume to afk with what defign you have given yourself this trouble? Of that, replied the Philofopher, 1 fhall very readily inform you. We are affured, that Hercules, when he inftituted the Olympic games, himself laid out this courfe by meafure, and determined it to the length of fix hundred feet, meafuring it by the fandard of his own foot. Now, by taking an exact measure of the fame number of feet now in ufe, we can find how much the foot of Hercules, and in proportion his whole ftature, exceeded that of the prefent generation. A very curious fpeculation! fays the

F 3

Critic,

Critic, and of great use and importance, no doubt. And fo you will demonftrate to us, that the bulk of this fabulous hero was equal to his extravagant enterprizes and his marvellous exploits. And pray, Sir, what may be the refult of your enquiry at laft? I fuppofe, you can now tell me exactly to a hair's breadth, how tall Hercules was. The refult of my enquiry, replied the Philofopher, is this, and it is a conclufion of greater ufe and importance than you feem to expect from it; that if you will always eftimate the labours of the philofopher, the defigns of the patriot, and the actions of the hero, by the standard of your own narrow conceptions, you will ever be greatly mistaken in your judgment concerning them.

XCIX. The Two DOGS.

ASTY and inconfiderate connexions are

Henerally attended with great difadvantages:

And much of every man's good or ill fortune depends upon the choice he makes of his friends.

A good-natured Spaniel overtook a furly Maftiff, as he was travelling upon the road. Tray, although an entire stranger to Tyger, very civilly accofled him : And if it would be no interruption, he said, he should be glad to bear him company on his way. Tyger, who happened not to be altogether in fo growling a mood as ufual, accepted the propofal; and they very. amicably pursued their journey together. In the inidft of their converfation they arrived at the next village; where Tyger began to difplay his malignant difpofition, by an unprovoked attack upon every dog The villagers immediately fallied forth with great indignation to refcue their refpective favourites; and falling upon our two friends without diftinction or mercy, poor Tray was moft cruelly treated, for no other reafon but from being found in bad company.

he met.

C. The

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C. The CAT and the BAT.

Cat having devoured a favourite bulfinch of her master, overheard him threatening to put her to death the moment he could find her. In this distress, the preferred a prayer to Jupiter; vowing, if he would deliver her from her prefent danger, that never while fhe lived would fhe eat another bird. Not long afterwards, a Bat most invitingly flew into the room where Pufs was purring in the window. The queftion was, how to act upon fo tempting an occafion? Her appetite preffed hard on one fide; and her vow threw fome fcruples in her way on the other. At length fhe hit upon a moft convenient diftinction to remove all difficulties, by determining that as a bird indeed it was an unlawful prize, but as a moufe the might very confcientiously eat it; and accordingly without further debate fell to the repaft.

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

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CI.

The HOUNDS in COUPLES.

Huntsman was leading forth his Hounds one morning to the chace, and had linked several of the young Dogs in couples, to prevent their following every fcent, and hunting diforderly, as their own inclinations and fancy fhould direct them. Among others, it was the fate of Jowler and Vixen to be thus, yoked together. Jowler and Vixen were both young and unexperienced; but had for fome time been conftant companions, and feemed to have entertained a great fondness for each other; they ufed to be perpetually playing together, and in any quarrel that happened, always took one another's part; it might have been expected therefore that it would not be dif

agreeable

agreeable to them to be still more clofely united. However, in fact, it proved otherwife: They had not been long joined together, before both parties began to exprefs uneafinefs at their prefent fituation: Different inclinations and oppofite wills began to discover and exert themselves: If one chofe to go this way, the other was as eager to take the contrary; if one was preffing forward, the other was fure to lag behind ; Vixen pulled back Jowler, and Jowler dragged along Vixen; Jowler growled at Vixen, and Vixen fnapped at Jowler, till at last it came to a downright quarrel between them; and Jowler treated Vixen in a very rough and ungenerous manner, without any regard to the inferiority of her ftrength, or the tenderness of her fex. As they were thus continually vexing and tormenting one another, an ok! Hound, who had obferved all that paffed, came up to them, and thus reproved them :-"What a couple of filly puppies you are, to be perpetually worrying yourfelves at this rate! What hinders your going on peaceably and quietly together? Cannot you compromise the matter between you, by each confulting the other's inclination a little ?. At least, try to make a virtue of neceffity, and fubmit to what you cannot remedy: You cannot get rid of the chain; but you may make it fit eafy upon you. I am an old Dog, and let my age and experience inftruct you. When I was in the fame circumftances with I foon found that thwarting my companion you, was only tormenting myself; and my yoke-fellow happily came into the fame way of thinking. We endeavoured to join in the fame purfuits, and to follow one another's inclinations; and fo we jogged on together, not only with eafe and quiet, but with comfort and pleasure. We found by experience, that mutual compliance not only compenfates for liberty, but is even attended with a fatisfaction and delight, beyond what liberty itself can give.”

C13. The