THE FABLES OF ABSTEMIUS, &c. (continued 2)

The Moral.

When People can Live no longer by their Sins, ’tis High Time for them to Mend their Manners.

REFLEXION.

Nature it self speaks in These Lively Images of Truth. Here’s a Good Man, and his Penitent Preaching upon Two several Texts. The Holy Father Enforces the Necessity of the Soldier’s Repentance, from the Wicked Course of Life that he Leads, and the Trade that he Drives. The Soldier, on the Other hand, is willing to be Converted, for the Times are Dead, he says, and there’s Neither Pay, nor Plunder to be got. The World has abundance of These Proselytes, that when they can be no longer Wicked to Advantage, take up an Outward Change of Profession, and pass presently for Babes of Grace, without the Least Symptoms, all this while, of any Inward Change of Mind. This was the Case of One of our Modern Confessors, and Martyrs, who took a Formal Leave of Jesus Christ, and told his Ghostly Father, that he was now fully Resolv’d not to Starve for his Religion. Now there are Millions and Millions in the World, of This Man’s Kidney, that have the Wit yet to keep their Tongues betwixt their Teeth, and to take up the same Resolution without Noise. How many Instances of the Power of Pay and Pillage, does Every day Produce in all manner of Dealings and Professions: For Religion and Property still March Hand in Hand, and Men will do Tricks like Dogs, for Crusts, and Change their Masters, both Heavenly, and Earthly, for Better Wages. Where’s That Law, or Text, that has not been Over-rul’d some time or other, and Distorted, by a False Gloss to make the Application Profitable, and Easie to the Good People? How often have we heard as Arrant Jangling in the Pulpits, as ever we did in the Steeples: And Professors Ringing as Awk as the Bells, to give notice of the Conflagration which They Themselves were Raising; for we have found it to our Cost, that the Multitude will sooner Kindle with a Pernicious Doctrine then with a Pudding-Lane Fire-Ball. ’Tis not Conscience, but Interest that Governs the World; and the Incomparable Hudibras has hit the Point to a Hair.

This it is, in fine, that makes the Devil of a Saint, and a Saint of a Devil; for your Holy Apostate is the Blackest of Hypocrites. The Soldier turns Religious, and he shall do more Mischief in That Shape, then ever he did in the Other. For a Corrupted Zeal draws more Bloud then a Mercenary Malice.

Fab. CCCII. A Husband and Wife twice Marry’d.

There happened a Match betwixt a Widower and a Widow. The Woman would be perpetually Twitting of her Second Husband, what a Man her First was; and her Husband did not forget the Ringing of it in her Ears as often, what an Admirable Woman he had to his First Wife. As the Woman was One day upon the Peevish Pin, a Poor Body comes to the Door, while the Froward Fit was upon her, to beg a Charity. Come in Poor Man (says the Woman) Here’s e’en the Leg of a Capon for thee, to Pray for the Soul of my First Husband. Nay, Faith, says the Husband, and when thy Hand is In, e’en take the Body and the Rest on’t, to pray for the Soul of My First Wife. This was Their way of Teizing One Another, and of Starving the Living to the Honour of the Dead: For they had but that One Capon betwixt them to Supper.

The Moral.

Sauce for a Goose is Sauce for a Gander. There’s no Contending with the Laws of God and Man, Especially against Those that have Power and Right on their Sides.

REFLEXION.

We may learn from This Fable, that it is Common Duty and Discretion, for Men and their Wives, when they are once Hamper’d, to make the Best of a Doubtful Game; for they are One to All Manner of Purposes, by which it is Possible for Two Persons to be United. Their Interest is One and the same, and there’s No Touching the Peace, or the Honour of the One, without Wounding That of the Other; but if there happens to be Any Absolute Necessity of Jangling, One of the Civilest ways of Reproche is That here before us; and it is but according to the Ordinary Guise and Freak of the World, when any thing comes Cross betwixt the Second Husband and Wife, to be still Celebrating the Memory of the Former. My First Husband (Heaven Rest his Soul) and My First Wife, they Cry, was So and So, and would have done This and That. The Two Main Topiques to Chop Logick upon in These Domestique Disagreements, are commonly the Upbraiding One Another with what I Was, and what I Might have been; and what a Match I might have had (with a Pox) never considering what they Are, and that what they Are they Must be, which is the Only Point. ’Tis Forty to One that Controversies will Arise one time or Other in That State of Life, when it will be the Husbands Part, upon the Matter of Dignity, Preference, and Commission, to Moderate Matters, both by his Authority, and his Prudence; Which is but Consonant to Equity and Right Nature. Wherefore the Woman is Worse then Frantick, that, upon These Disputes, will be trying Conclusions with her Husband, for a Better, or a Worse. If he Truckles, she makes him a Coxcomb: If he keeps his Ground, she shews her self to be One, so that she lays all at stake upon the Contest, that a Sober Woman has to Lose. It is much better to give Way betimes to the Stronger, even upon the Matter of Prudence, as well as of Respect, then it would be to Contend at first, and then, either to Cross the Cudgels, or to be Baffled in the Conclusion. The Man and the Woman here never Consider’d that they gave away their Own Meat, and both Robb’d, and Discredited One Another in the Contest.

Fab. CCCIII. A Lyon and a Mouse.

A Lyon that found himself Hamper’d in a Net, call’d to a Mouse that was passing by, to help him out of the Snare, and he’d never forget the Kindness, he said. The Mouse Gnaw’d the Threads to pieces, and when he had set the Lyon at Liberty, desir’d him in Requital to give him his Daughter. The Lyon was too Generous to Deny him Any thing, but most Unluckily, as the New Bride was just about to Step into the Marriage Bed, she happen’d to set her Foot upon her Husband at unawares, and Crush’d him to Death.

The Moral.

The Folly of an Inconsiderate Love. The Force of Gratitude, and Good Nature, and the Misery that Accompanies Unequal Matches.

REFLEXION.

All Matches, Friendships, and Societies are Dangerous and Inconvenient, where the Contractors are Not Equals: And the Mouse under the Paw of the Lyon, does well enough set forth the Danger of such a Marriage.

Fab. CCCIV. Wax and Brick.

There was a Question started once about Wax, and Brick, why the One should be so Brittle, and liable to be Broken with Every Knock, and the Other bear up against All Injuries and Weathers, so Durable and Firm. The Wax Philosophiz’d upon the Matter, and finding Out at last, that it was Burning made the Brick so Hard, Cast it self into the Fire, upon an Opinion that Heat would Harden the Wax too; but That which Consolidated the One, Dissolv’d the Other.

The Moral.

’Tis a Folly to try Conclusions without Understanding the Nature of the Matter in Question.

REFLEXION.

There’s No Trying of Experiments, without laying Things and Things together: For That which is agreeable to the Nature of One Thing, is Many times Contrary to the Nature of Another. Several Humours are to be Wrought upon several Ways, and the Case betwixt Wax and Brick, is the very same Case too betwixt One Man and Another. Some are to be dealt withal by Fair Means; Others by Foul; and that which Hardens the One softens the Other.

Fab. CCCV. A Husbandman turn’d Soldier and Merchant.

Oh the Endless Misery of the Life I lead! cries the Moiling Husbandman, to spend all my Days in Ploughing, Sowing, Digging, and Dunging, and to make Nothing on’t at last! Why now in a Soldier’s Life, there’s Honour to be got, and One Lucky Hit sets up a Man for Ever. Faith, I’ll e’en put off my Stock, Get me a Horse and Arms, and Try the Fortune of the War. Away he goes; Makes his Push; Stands the Shock of a Battel, and Compounds at last for the Leaving of a Leg or an Arm behind him, to go Home again. By this Time he has had his Bellyful of Knight-Errantry, and a New Freak takes him in the Crown. He might do better, he fancies, in the Way of a Merchant. This Maggot has no sooner set him agog; but he gets him a Ship Immediately; Freights her, and so away to Sea upon Adventure: Builds Castles in the Air, and Conceits Both the Indies in his Coffers, before he gets so much as Clear of the Port. Well! and What’s the End of All This at last? He falls into Foul Weather, among Flats and Rocks, where Merchant, Vessel, Goods, and All are lost in One Common Wreck.

The Moral.

A Rambling Levity of Mind is commonly Fatal to us.

REFLEXION.

This Doctrine concerns those that Rashly Change their Condition and Fortune, and commonly fall into the Inconveniences that they thought to Avoid. He that’s Well, already, and, upon a Levity of Mind, Quits his Station, in hope to be Better, ’tis Forty to One he loses by the Change; for This Lightness is both a Vice, and a Disease, and rather the Wallowing of a Sickly Qualm, then any Reasonable Agitation of Councel and Debate. The Fault is not in the Place, or Bus’ness, but in the Stomach; and the Quitting of such a Course of Life, is but shifting Posture in a Fit of Sickness: Let a Man turn which Way he will, he is still as Restless and uneasie One way as Another. Not but that ’tis Reasonable for a Man, under any Calamity, to use the Best Means he can, Honestly, to get Clear on’t. Let it be Pain of Body, Distress of Mind, Loss of Liberty, Pinching Necessity of Fortune; Nay let it be Gout, Stone, or Torments, there’s Matter yet left for Industry, Councel, Generosity, or when All fails, for Philosophy, and Constancy of Mind to Work upon; and to Emprove All the Methods of Providence to our Advantage. Now All This is only an Honourable and Warrantable Conflict, with such Accidents and Circumstances as Providence is pleas’d to make use of, for the Tryal of our Faith and Virtue. So that These Strivings are not to be taken for a Contending with superior Powers; but they are Cases Excepted from the Uneasiness here in the Fable; which arises from a Dissatisfaction in such a Lot, as might make us abundantly happy if we would but keep our Desires within Those Bounds which God and Nature have Prescrib’d us. But Men under These Irregular Appetites, can never think themselves Well, so long as they fancy they Might be Better: And then from Better, they must Rise to be Best; and when That Best it self falls short of what they Expected from it, they are still as Poor and Miserable as if they had just Nothing at all. The Husbandman Envies the Soldier; The Soldier Envies the Merchant, and when he has try’d All Turns, and Projects, what with the Chance of War, Storms, and Pyrates, he sees his folly too late, and in Vain Wishes himself with his Hinds and his Flocks again. To say All in a Word, This Levity is both Attended, and Punish’d, with an Impossibility of Mending our Condition; for we Apply to our Bodies, and our Fortunes, when the Distemper lies in our Minds.

Fab. CCCVI. An Ass puts in for an Office.

There was a Bantering Droll got himself into a very Good Equipage and Employment, by an Admirable Faculty he had in Farting. The success of this Buffon Encourag’d an Ass to put in for a place too; for, says he, I’ll Fart with That Puppy for his Commission, and leave it to the Judgment of Those that Preferr’d him, which has the Clearer, and the Better Scented Pipe of the Two.

The Moral.

Where Publique Ministers Encourage Buffonery, ’tis no wonder if Buffons set up for Publique Ministers.

REFLEXION.

This Fable, according to Abstemius, and Others, Touches the Humour of Those that Squander away their Money upon Vanity and Trifles: But it seems to Me to look quite Another Way. With Abstemius’s Favour, I should rather take This Fable to Strike at the Natural Consequences of Evil Examples, when the Unreasonableness of One Act shall be made use of as an Argument for Another, no less Unreasonable: for ’tis President, Effectually that Governs the World. Why should not One Fool be Preferr’d for Farting as well as Another? For in Cases of Competition, he that does Best, e’en in an Ill, or in a Weak Thing, has a kind of Claim, and Right to a Preference, and the Grosser the Foppery, or the Iniquity, the Fairer the Pretence.

This Ass’s putting up for an Office, Taxes the Perverting of Policy and Justice, in Conferring Those Honours, Charges, and Benefits, upon Parasites, Drolls, Buffons, and other Servile Instruments of Lust and Ambition, that are Due only to Men of Honour and Virtue. The Ministers of Government, and of Pleasure, should be carefully Distinguish’d; for it Corrupts both the Morals, and the Understandings of a Nation, when they find the Precepts of Common Honesty, and the Practices of State, to run so directly Counter, as to leave no Hope of Advancement, Credit, or Security, but by living in a Defiance to Nature and Reason: That is to say, by Playing the Fool, and Farting for Preferment.

Fab. CCCVII. A River and a Fountain.

There Happen’d a Dispute betwixt a River and a Fountain, which of the two should have the Preference. The River Valu’d it self upon the Plenty and Variety of Fish that it Produc’d; The Advantages of Navigation; The many Brave Towns and Palaces that were Built upon the Banks of it; purely for the Pleasure of the Situation. And then for the General Satisfaction, in fine, that it Yielded to Mankind, in the Matter both of Convenience and Delight: Whereas (says the River) the Fountain passes Obscurely through the Caverns of the Earth; lies Bury’d up in Moss, and comes Creeping into the World, as if it were asham’d to shew the Head. The Fountain took the Insolence and the Vanity of This Reproche so Heinously, that it presently Choak’d up the Spring, and Stopt the Course of its Waters: Insomuch that the Channel was immediately dry’d up, and the Fish left Dead and Stinking in the Mud; as a Just Judgment upon the Stream for Derogating from the Original and Author of All the Blessings it Enjoy’d.

The Moral.

He that Arrogates any Good to Himself, detracts from the Author of all the Good he Enjoys.

REFLEXION.

There are too many People in the World of the Humour of This River, that assume to Themselves what they receive from others, without ever so much as Thinking of the Heavenly Goodness that is the Author of Life it self, and of all the Blessings that Crown the Comfort of it.

This Fable is a kind of an Expostulatory Debate betwixt Bounty and Ingratitude; betwixt the Divine Goodness, and the Vain-Glorious Pride of Corrupt Nature. And the Iniquity of our Proceeding is much the Same, both towards God and Man. We are readier to Claim to our selves, then to Ascribe to Others, and most Dangerously given to Mistake the Gratuitous Blessings of Heaven, for the Fruits of our Own Industry and Virtue. The Fountain of all Goodness, and of all Good Things is God, Blessed for ever: But in the Dispensation of his Mercies to the World, some things he does by Himself, others by the Intervention of Natural Means, and by the Mediation of such Instruments as he has appointed for the Conveying of Those Benefits to us. According to this Order, Kings are, by Deputation, the Fountains of Honour and Preferment: And we find Men as Backward every Jot to Acknowledge Temporal, as they are to Acknowledge Spiritual Gifts and Bounties: So that we have Thankless Favourites as well as Graceless Christians. What a Babel do they make now of the Nature of Things, rather then Own the Course of Providence in the Distribution of them! Insomuch that the Faculties that were given us for the Glory and Service of our Master, as well as for the Comfort of our Lives, and the Salvation of our Souls, are turn’d Point Blank against the very Reason and Intention of them. Sharpness of Wit is Emprov’d to the Dishonour of Him that Gave it. Atheism and Blasphemy Dress’d up like a Science, and the Understanding that was given us for the Finding out of the Truth, is Employ’d upon Paradoxing, and Ridiculing it. They Value themselves with the River, upon a Conceit, that the Fish, the Beauty, the Conveniency, is All their Own: And what is All This now, but either to Disclaim the Original, or to Defame it? That’s Obscure, they say, Neglected, Over-grown, and either Not taken Notice of, or not Found: And what’s the Issue now of This Vanity, and Distraction? A Judgment Treads upon the Heel on’t; for Providence stops the Current, lays the Channel Open, and Exposes it to Detestation and Scorn, in all its Filthiness.

Fab. CCCVIII. A Wicked Man and the Devil.

A Notorious Malefactor that had Committed I know not how many Villanies, and run through the Discipline of as many Goals, made a Friend of the Devil, to help him out in all his Distresses. This Friend of his, brought him off many and many a time, and still as he was Taken up, again and again, he had his Recourse, over and over, to the same Devil for succour. But upon his Last Summons, the Devil came to him with a Great Bag of Old Shoes at his Back, and told him Plainly. Friend (says he) I’m at the End of my Line, and can Help ye No longer. I have beat the Hoof till I have Worn out all These Shoes in Your Service, and not One Penny left me to Buy more: So that you must e’en Excuse Me if I drop ye here.

The Moral.

The Devil helps his Servants, for a Season; but when they come once to a Pinch, he leaves ’em in the Lurch.

REFLEXION.

Wickedness may Prosper for a while; but at the Long Run, He that sets All Knaves at Work, will most certainly Pay them their Wages. The Man pays Dear for his Protection that Pawns his Soul for’t: And it may be Another Observation, that the Devil Himself will not work without Money.

Fab. CCCIX. A Council of Birds for Chusing more Kings.

The Birds were Mightily Possess’d with an Opinion, that it was utterly Impossible for the Eagle alone to Administer Equal Justice to All her Subjects; And upon This Ground, there was a Motion put up, for Changing the Monarchy into a Republique: But an Old Cunning Crow, that saw further into a Millstone then his Neighbours, with One Word of his Mouth Dash’d the Project. The More Kings you Have, says he, the more Sacks there are to be Fill’d: And so the Debate fell.

The Moral.

The Common People Hate all Government, and when they are Sick of it in One Form, they Fly to Another, but still they rather Incline to That which they Phansy Easiest to themselves.

REFLEXION.

This Emblem Insinuates a Government by One to be less Burdensom, then a Government by Many. And it is well enough Adapted to a Profitable Allegory. The Multitude of Birds are Impos’d upon, that One Monarch is not sufficient for the Discharging of the Office, and therefore there’s a Motion put up for the Erecting of More Kings: for Why, say they, should so many Millions of Men be Subjected to the Power and Will of One single Person? This Error was begotten betwixt Faction, and Interest. The One Manages by Design, and the Other falls in upon an Implicit Resignation; or else Yields, upon Facility, and Weakness. In the Conclusion, some Man of Observation, and Experience (as the Crow for the purpose) carries them off Clear from the Reasoning Part, and Applies to the Mobile in their Own Way: That is to say, in a Way of Pocket-Arguments. He never Troubled Himself about the Original of Power, or the Analogy betwixt Monarchy in Heaven, and upon Earth; but gives them a short Stroke upon the Subject of Profit and Loss. You will find it easier, says he, to Fill One Sack then Many: And That Allusion carry’d the Point.

Fab. CCCX. A Woman that would needs Die for her Husband.

A Poor Woman was put out of her Wits in a manner for fear of losing her Husband. The Good Man was Sick and Given Over, and Nothing would serve the Turn, but Death must needs take Her instead of Him. She Call’d and Pray’d, and Pray’d and Call’d, till at last, Death Presented himself in a Horrible Shape at her Elbow. She very Civilly dropt him a Cursie; And Pray Sir, says she, Do not Mistake your self; for the Person you come for lies in the Bed there.

The Moral.

’Tis a Common Thing to Talk of Dying for a Friend; but when it comes to the Push once, ’tis no more then Talk at last.

REFLEXION.

This Confirms the Proverb, that Charity begins at Home, and when all is done, there’s No Man loves a Friend so Well, but he loves Himself Better. There are No People more Startled at Death, then Those that have gotten a Custom of Calling for’t. Oh that Death would Deliver Me! (says One) Oh, that Death would take Me in the Place of my Dear Husband! says T’other. But when Death comes to Present Himself indeed, and to take them at their Words, the Good Wife very Civilly puts the Change upon him, and tells him, that the Person he comes for lies in the Bed there. In few Words, to call for Death in Jest, is Vain, and Unprofitable. To call for’t in Earnest, is Impious: And to call for’t at all, is both Foolish and Needless; for Death will most certainly come at his appointed time, whether he be call’d for or No.

Fab. CCCXI. A Son Singing at his Mother’s Funeral.

There was a Good Man that follow’d his Wives Body to the Grave, Weeping, and Wayling all the Way he went, while his Son follow’d the Corps, Singing. Why Sirrah, says the Father, You should Howle, and Wring your Hands, and do as I do, ye Rogue You; and not go Sol-Fa-ing it about like a Mad-man. Why Father, says he, You give the Priests Money to Sing, and will you be Angry with Me for giving ye a Song Gratis? Well, says the Father, but that which may become the Priests will not always become You. ’Tis their Office to Sing; but it is Your Part to Cry.

The Moral.

Funeral Tears are as Arrantly Hir’d out as Mourning Cloaks: and so are the very Offices: And whether we go to our Graves Sniveling or Singing, ’tis all but according to the Fashion of the Country, and meer Form.

REFLEXION.

The Methods of Government, and of Humane Society, must be Preserv’d where Every Man has his Roll, and his Station Assign’d him; and it is not for One Man to break in upon the Province of Another. This Moral tells us also, that when One Man Condoles for the Distresses of Another, ’tis more for Money, or for Company, then for Kindness.

’Tis a slavish sort of Ceremony and Imposition, that People must be Train’d up, by certain Rules of Art, and Prescription, to the very Manage and Government of the most Free and Natural of our Affections; for we are Taught and Appointed the very Methods, and Degrees of Grieving, and Rejoycing; and to do Honour to the Dead, by the Counterfeit Lamentations of the Living. But this way of Mourning by Rule, is rather an Ostentation of Sorrow, then Indication of it. Now to say the Truth of the Matter, Terms and Modes have Corrupted the Sincerity of our Manners, as well toward our Living Friends, as to the Memory of Those Departed. We have hardly anything left in our Conversation that is Pure and Genuine: But the way of Civility in Fashion, casts a Blind over the Duty, under some Certain Customary Presidents of Empty Words: So that at This rate, we Impose One upon Another, without any regard to Faith, Truth, or Vertue. But we must Sing in some Cases, and Cry in Others, and there’s an End on’t.

Fab. CCCXII. A Jealous Husband.

A Jealous Husband Committed his Wife in Confidence to the Care and Custody of a Particular Friend; with the Promise of a Considerable Reward if he could but keep her Honest. After some Few Days, the Friend grew weary of his Charge, and Desir’d her Husband to take his Wife Home again, and Release him of his Bargain; for says he, I find it utterly impossible to Hinder a Woman from any thing she has a Mind to. If it were to turn a Bag of Fleas Loose into a Meadow every Morning a Grazing, and Fetch them Home again at Night, I durst be answerable with my Life for the Doing of it, to a single Flea, but T’other is a Commission I dare go no further in.

The Moral.

’Tis enough to make a Woman a Whore, but so much as to Phansy her One, and then ’tis to no Boot to be Jealous neither; for if the Humour takes her to be Jadish, ’tis not All the Locks, Bolts and Spies in Nature that can keep her Honest.

REFLEXION.

Jealousy, betwixt Man and Wife, does but provoke and Enflame the Appetite, as it sets the Invention at Work upon Ways and Means of giving One another the Slip: And when it comes to a Tryal of Skill once, ’tis a Carrying of the Cause to gain the Point, and there’s a kind of Perverse Reputation in getting the Better on’t. Briefly, ’tis Labour Lost on Both sides, while the One is never to be restrain’d, nor the Other to be satisfy’d: For Jealousy Rages as well without Reason as with it. Nay, the very Will to do a Thing is as Good as the Thing Done; And his Head is as Sick, that but fancies the Thing Done, as if he saw the very Doing of it with his own Eyes. The Ways of a Woman that has a mind to play Fast and Loose, are as Unsearchable as the very Thoughts of her Heart; and therefore the Friend here was in the Right to Discharge Himself of his Trust, and throw up his Commission.

Fab. CCCXIII. A Man that would not take a Clyster.

When the Patient is Rich, there’s No Fear of Physicians about him, as Thick as Wasps to a Honey-Pot; and there was a Whole College of them call’d to a Consultation upon a Purse-proud Dutch Man, that was Troubled with a Megrim. The Doctors prescrib’d him a Clyster; The Patient fell into a Rage upon’t. Why Certainly These People are all Mad, says he, to Talk of Curing a Man’s Head at his Tail.

The Moral.

He that Consults his Physician, and will not follow his Advice, must be his Own Doctor: But let him take the Old Adage along with him. He that Teaches Himself has a Fool to his Master.

REFLEXION.

’Tis a Miserable Thing, when Men that Understand Nothing at all, shall take upon them to Censure, and to Prejudge every thing that they do not Understand. What’s the Use of a College, if every Particular Man shall set up to be his Own Doctor? And ’tis the same Case where Subjects take upon them to Correct Magnificat, and to Prescribe to their Superiors. Let every Man be Trusted in his Own Way, and let the Doctor Prescribe to the Patient, and not the Patient to the Doctor. For at the Rate of This Thick-skull’d Blunder-head, every Plow Jobber shall take upon him to Read upon Divinity, Law, and Politiques, as well as Physick.

Fab. CCCXIV. A Wolfe and a Sick Ass.

There was a certaine Wolfe, that in a Qualm of Wonderful Charity, made a Visit to an Ass, that lay ill of a Violent Fever. He felt his Pulse very Gingerly; And, pray, my Good Friend, says he, Whereabouts is your Greatest Pain? Oh, Gently, says the Ass; for it Pricks me just there still where you lay your Finger.

Fab. CCCXV. A Fox and a Sick Cock.

A Cock took his Bed upon a Fit of Sickness, and a Fox of his Old Acquaintance, gave him the Complement of a Visit, and Ask’d him how he felt himself. Alas! says the Cock, I’m e’en ready to smother for want of Breath; and if you’d be pleas’d but to stand off, and give me a Little Fresh Air, I fancy I should be somewhat more at Ease.

The Moral of the Two Fables above.

The Charity of our Death-Bed Visits from One to Another, is much at a Rate (generally Speaking) with that of a Carrion Crow to a Sheep; we smell a Carcase.

REFLEXION.

There are no Visits so officious, and Importune, as those that People think to get by; Especially when our Thoughts are taken up with Matters of Greater Moment. Besides, that there’s a Design upon us in the very Complement. These Fables may serve to Point out to us, that there are Men, as well as Wolves and Foxes, that wait for the Carcass: That is to say, for an Office, an Estate, a Commission, Lands, Moneys, Jewels, or whatever else People lie Gaping for in Reversion, according to the Practice of the World: So that there’s Little Trust to These Death Bed Ceremonies; which, for the Greater Part, have more in them of Avarice, and Interest, then of Piety and Good Will: So that Effectually, a Wolfe’s Visiting a Sick Ass, is but Saying Grace to a Dead One.

Fab. CCCXVI. Three Things are the Better for Beating.

A Good Woman happen’d to pass by as a Company of Young Fellows were Cudgelling a Wallnut-Tree, and ask’d them what they did That for? This is only by the Way of Discipline, says one of the Lads; for ’tis Natural for Asses, Women, and Wallnut-Trees to Mend upon Beating.

The Moral.

Spur a Jade a Question, and he’ll kick ye an Answer.

REFLEXION.

People should not be too Inquisitive, without Considering how far They Themselves may be concern’d in the Answer to the Question.

Fab. CCCXVII. The Ass’s Wish.

An Ass was wishing in a hard Winter, for a Little Warm Weather, and a Mouthful of Fresh Grass to Knab upon, in Exchange for a Heartless Truss of Straw, and a Cold Lodging. In Good Time the Warm Weather, and the Fresh Grass comes on; but so much Toyl and Bus’ness along with it, that the Ass grows quickly as Sick of the Spring as he was of the Winter. His next Longing is for Summer; but what with Harvest Work, and other Drudgeries of That Season, he is Worse now then he was in the Spring; and then he fancies he shall never be Well till Autumn comes; But There again, what with Carrying Apples, Grapes, Fewel, Winter-Provisions, &c. he finds himself in a Greater Hurry then ever. In fine, when he has trod the Circle of the Year in a Course of Restless Labour, his Last Prayer is for Winter again, and that he may but take up his Rest where he began his Complaint.

The Moral.

The Life of an Unsteady Man runs away in a Course of Vain Wishes, and Unprofitable Repentance: An Unsettled Mind can never be at Rest. There’s No Season without its Bus’ness.

REFLEXION.

The Ass’s Wish here, is the Lively Image of a Foolish, and a Miserable Levity of Mind; and, in Truth, there is but too much in’t of the Figure, and the Bus’ness of Humane Life; for we spend our Days in a kind of Lazy Restless Indisposition, that looks as if we would fain be doing something, and yet never goes further, then to a Shifting from One Proposition to Another. Wishing and Woulding, (as they say) has somewhat in it of an Analogy to Stretching, and Yawning; We only Drowse when we think we Live, and our Time runs away in Fancying Castles in the Air, and in putting of Cases. The Inference that we are to draw from hence is This; If an Unsettled Head and Heart be so Grievous a Calamity, the Squaring of a Man’s Thoughts, Wishes, and Desires, to the Lot that Providence has set Out for him, is both a Blessing, and a Duty.

He that is still Weary of the Present, shall be most certainly Sollicitous for the Future. For the Present is only the Course of so many Moments into time to Come. He that Gapes after he knows not what, shall be sure to Lose his Longing. He Changes, out of Restlesness, not Choice, and so long as he carries the same Mind about him, the Circumstances of his Condition will never Alter the Case. His Present Thoughts are Uneasy, because his Present State does not Please him, and so he goes on at a Venture, Shifting and Casting about for somewhat else that may better Agree with him. The Batchelor wants a Wife; The Marry’d Man wants his Liberty; The Statesman has a Mind to be Private. The Country-man lives out of the World: The Man of Bus’ness is a Slave to’t; And he that’s out of Employment, makes it his Excuse, that he is forc’d to Drink or Whore for want of somewhat else to do. There’s no Measure to be taken of an Unsteady Mind; but still ’tis either too Much, or too Little; too Soon, or too Late. The Love of Novelty begets, and Encreases the Love of Novelty; and the oftner we Change, the more Dangerous and Troublesome do we find This Itch of Variety to be. The Ass was Sick of the Spring; Sicker yet of the Summer; more Sick still of Autumn; and Sickest of All of the Winter; till he’s brought, in the End, to Compound for his First Condition again, and so take up with That for his Satisfaction, which he reckon’d upon before for his Misfortune.

This it is, when Fickle and Foolish People will be Prescribing To, and Refining upon the Wise and Gracious Appointments of the Maker of the World. They know not what they Are, and they know not what they Would be, any further, then that they would not be what they are. Let their Present State in the World be what it will, there’s still something or other in’t that makes their Life Wearysome: And they are as Peevish Company to Themselves too, as they are to their Neighbours; for there’s not One Circumstance in Nature, but they shall find Matter to Pick a Quarrel at: Let it be Health, Fortune, Conversation, Kindred, Friends, it will be all a Case, so long as Weak, and Wayward Men shall go on Grumbling, and Civelling at the Works and Dispensations of Heaven. Were it not better now for People to be Quiet at first; and to sit down contentedly in the Post where Providence has Plac’d them? Were it not better to do the Great Work of Life Betimes, by the Help of a Seasonable Prudence and Vertue, then to Deliver up our selves to the Torments of Hopes and Fears, and be forc’d to do’t at last, by the Dear-bought Experience of our Follies, and the Necessity of giving over what we can do no Longer?

This is not yet to bar Honest Industry, or a Sober Application to those Ways, Studies, or Means that may probably Contribute to the Mending of a Man’s Fortune: Provided that he set up his Resolution before hand, not to let himself down below the Dignity of a Wise Man, be the Issue of his Endeavours what it will. He that is not Content at Present, carries the same Weakness along with him to his next Remove; for whoever either Passionately Covets any thing that he has Not, or feels himself Glutted with a Satiety of what he Possesses, has already lost his Hold: So that if we would be Happy, we must Fix upon some Foundation that can never Deceive us; and Govern our selves by the Measures of Sobriety and Justice. All the rest is but the Ass’s Circulation of more and more Anxiety and Trouble.

Fab. CCCXVIII. A Cat and Mice.

As a Company of Mice were Peeping out of their Holes for Discovery, they spy’d a Cat upon a Shelf; that lay and look’d so Demurely, as if there had been neither Life nor Soul in her. Well (says one of the Mice) That’s a Good Natur’d Creature, I’ll Warrant her; One may read it in her very Looks; and truly I have the Greatest Mind in the World to make an Acquaintance with her. So said, and so done; but so soon as ever Puss had her within Reach, she gave her to Understand, that the Face is not always the Index of the Mind.

The Moral.

’Tis a Hard Matter for a Man to be Honest and Safe; for his very Charity and Good Nature Exposes, if it does not Betray him.

REFLEXION.

No Treachery so Mortal, as That which Covers it self under the Masque of Sanctity. A Wolfe does a Great deal more Mischief in a Sheep-Skin, then in his Own Shape and Colour. The Mouse that took this Cat for a Saint, has very Good Company, not only in her Mistake, but in her Misfortune too: For we have seen a whole Assembly of These Mousing Saints, that under the Masque of Zeal, Conscience, and Good Nature, have made a Shift to lay, I know not how many Kingdoms in Blood and Ashes.

Fab. CCCXIX. A Boar and a Fox.

As a Boar was Whetting his Teeth against a Tree, up comes a Fox to him. Pray what do you mean by That? (says he) for I see no Occasion for’t. Well, says the Boar, but I do; for when I come once to be Set upon, ’twill be too Late for me to be Whetting, when I should be Fighting.

Fab. CCCXX. A Wolfe and a Porcupine.

Your Porcupine and your Hedg-Hog are somewhat Alike, only the Former has longer and sharper Prickles then the Other; And these Prickles he can shoot, and Dart at an Enemy. There was a Wolfe had a Mind to be Dealing with him, it he could but get him Disarm’d first; and so he told the Porcupine in a friendly Way, That it did not look so well for People in a Time of Peace, to go Arm’d, as if they were in a State of War; and so Advis’d him to lay his Bristles aside; for (says he) You may Take them up again at Pleasure. Do you talk of a State of War? says the Porcupine, Why That’s my Present Case, and the very Reason of my Standing to my Arms, so long as a Wolfe is in Company.

The Moral of the Two Fables above.

No Man, or State can be safe in Peace, that is not always in Readiness to Encounter an Enemy in Case of a War.

REFLEXION.

All Bus’ness that is necessary to be done should be done Betimes: And there’s as little Trouble of doing it In Season too, as Out of Season: Neither is it Effectually done at all, but in the Proper Time of Doing it: So that ’tis Good Discretion, and Good Advice, to provide against Danger beforehand; for he that’s always Ready can never be taken with a Why not.

’Tis a piece of Good Councel, in All the Affairs of Humane Life, to take care of Securing our Selves that we may be not either Betray’d, or Surpriz’d: But as it is Wisdom to keep our Selves upon a Guard; so it is Matter of Good Manners also, and Respect; neither to do, nor to say any thing, that may Import a Jealousie or a Distrust. All the Duties of Government and Society; Nay, all Offices, Civil and Religious, where Prudence, Conscience, or Common Faith are concern’d, have their Proper Seasons. ’Tis too late to hinder Mischief when the Opportunity is once past, and therefore the Timing of Things is a Main Point in the Dispatch of All Affairs. There can be no Safe, or Sure Peace, where People are not always in Readiness for War; for the Common Well-being of Mankind, does not so much Depend upon the Faith of Men, and of Governments, as upon the Temporary and Contingent Occasions of Breaking the Peace with Advantage. ’Tis not Publique Justice Alone, that can Uphold a Government, without the Aid of Policy and Councel. Men do Naturally Indulge Those Opinions and Practices, that favour their Pretensions: and ’tis too much to Superadd Powerful Temptations to do Wrong, to the Force of Vicious Inclinations to do it. The Boar’s Whetting his Teeth, was only an Act of Necessary Precaution, for fear of the Worst: And the Porcupine did Wisely too, in keeping himself upon his Guard when the Enemy was in View.

Fab. CCCXXI. A Mouse and a Kite.

A Simple Mouse had the Fortune to be near at hand when a Kite was taken in a Net. The Kite begg’d of her to try if she could help her out. The Mouse Gnaw’d a Hole in’t, and set her at Liberty; and the Kite Eat up the Mouse for her Pains.

The Moral.

Save a Thief from the Gallows and he’ll Cut your Throat.

REFLEXION.

’Tis No New Thing in the World to Return Evil for Good. Nay, there are some Natures so Soure, and so Ungrateful, that they are never to be Oblig’d. All Kites of this Humour do not wear Feathers: Neither do All such Mice wear Long Tails. There are Cases, wherein our Very Tenderness, and Charity, becomes a Snare to us; and there are People too, that fancy No Blood so sweet, as That of the Person to whom they stand Indebted for their Lives and Fortunes: But then if One Man should Cease to be Generous, and Charitable, because Another Man is Sordid, and Ungrateful; It would be much in the Power of the Basest of Vices to Extinguish the most Christian, and Humane of Vertues. These Lewd Examples May however, and Ought to Recommend Prudence and Caution to us; but without Killing, or Quenching Good Nature. There are, ’tis true, some People so Harden’d in Wickedness, as to have No Sense at all of the most Friendly Offices, or the Highest Benefits. Now in these Desperate Cases, a Man is little Better then Felo-de-se, that for the Helping of Another, Ventures the Undoing of Himself. Nay, and ’tis somewhat more then a Venture too, when a Mouse lays it self at the Mercy of a Kite.

Fab. CCCXXII. A Cockle and Jupiter.

In Old Time, when Jupiter was in the Humour of Granting Petitions, a Cockle made it his Request, that his House and his Body might be All of a Piece. Jupiter made him Answer, that it would be a Burden to him instead of a Favour. Yes, says the Cockle, but it will be such a Burden as I had rather Bear, then lie Expos’d to Ill Neighbours.

The Moral.

Impertinent Visits are the Plague of a Sober Man’s Life, and therefore ’tis a Happy thing when a Body may be at Home, or Not at Home, as he Pleases.

REFLEXION.

Good, or Bad Company, is either the Greatest Blessing, or the Greatest Plague of Humane Life; and therefore the Cockle’s was a very Reasonable, and a Pertinent Request. There’s no Liberty like the Freedom of being Publique or Private as a Body pleases; And having it at my own Choice, whether I will live to the World, or to myself.

Fab. CCCXXIII. A Bitch ready to Puppy.

A Big-Belly’d Bitch borrowed Another Bitch’s Kennel to lay her Burden in. The Proprietess, after some time, Demanded Possession again, but the Other begg’d her Excuse and Patience, only till her Whelps might be able to shift for themselves. This was Agreed upon for so many Days longer: But the Time being Expir’d, the Bitch that was Out, grew More and More Pressing for her Own again. Why then, says the Other, if you can force me and My Puppies Out of the Kennel, You shall have Free Liberty to come In.

Fab. CCCXXIV. A Hedge-Hog and a Snake.

A Snake was prevail’d upon in a Cold Winter, to take a Hedge-Hog into his Cell; but when he was Once in, the Place was so Narrow, that the Prickles of the Hedge-Hog were very Troublesome to his Companion: so that the Snake told him, he must needs Provide for Himself somewhere else, for the Hole was not Big enough to Hold them Both. Why then, says the Hedge-Hog, He that cannot Stay shall do Well to Go: But for my Own Part, I am e’en Content where I am, and if You be not so too, Y’re Free to Remove.

The Moral of the Two Fables above.

Possession is Eleven Points of the Law.

REFLEXION.

Every Man is to provide against Fraud and Treachery, where the Person he deals with may be the Better for’t. Fore-warn’d, Fore-arm’d. ’Tis not Safe to Joyn Interests with Strangers, upon such Terms, as to lay our selves at Mercy. In All Offices of Christian Charity, and of Prudent Conversation, People should have a Strict Regard to the Humour and Character of the Persons they deal withal; to the Degrees and Measures of Things; and to the Consequences upon the Whole Matter, in case of the Worst. It is not Every Man’s Talent to distinguish aright upon All the Necessities of Affairs of This Nature. That is to say, how far our Prudence, may Warrant our Charity, and how far our Charity may Comport with our Prudence. ’Tis dangerous on the One hand to pass the Rules of Discretion; and it is Inhumane on the Other, not to Acquit our selves in All the Functions of Tenderness, and Good Nature; for Piety and Wisdom are Both Wrapt up in the Question. The very same Good Office may be a Vertue toward One Man, and a Folly toward Another. One may Justifie the running of a Risque, in Favour of a Man of Integrity and Good Fame: But where there is an Habitual Ingratitude on the One side, and a Considerable Hazzard on the Other, there’s No Trusting. I shall not need to Enlarge upon This Topique, in a World that makes Good the Allegory by so many Instances of Daily Practice and Conversation. How many Fresh Examples may we find in our Own Memory, of Men that after All the Obligations Imaginable, and in Contradiction to all the Tyes of Honour, Justice, and Hospitality have serv’d their Masters, Patrons, and Benefactors, as the Hedge-Hog serv’d the Snake here!

Fab. CCCXXV. A Fox and a Hare.

A Fox and a Hare were in a Warm Contest once, which of the Two could make the Best Shift in the World. When I am Pursu’d, says the Hare, I can shew the Dogs a Fair Pair of Heels, and run away from ’em at pleasure: And yet for All That, says the Fox, I have Baffled more of ’em with my Wiles and Shifts, then ever You did with your Footmanship.

The Moral.

Wisdom is as much beyond Force, as Men are beyond Brutes.

REFLEXION.

A Good Bodily Strength and Disposition is a Felicity of Nature, but nothing Comparable yet to the Advantages of a Large Understanding, and a Ready Presence of Mind. Wisdom does more than Force; but they do best together, for a sound Mind in a sound Body is the Perfection of Humane Bliss. A Fox, ’tis true, may be some time Out-witted, and a Hare Out-stript; but This does not hinder yet the Excellency of One Faculty above the Other.

Fab. CCCXXVI. An Old Man resolv’d to give over Whoring.

There was an Old Tost, that in the very State of Impotence had still a Whore in the Head of him. His Ghostly Father took Notice of it, and Ply’d him Hard with Wholesome Advice, upon the Subject of the Lusts of the Flesh. This Reverend Fornicator thank’d him most Heartily for his Kind and Christian Councel, and by the Grace of Heaven, says he, I’ll Follow it; For to tell ye the Plain Truth on’t, I am told that ’tis Naught for me; and really, my Body is quite out of Tune for Those Gambols.

The Moral.

When Things are at the Worst they’ll Mend.

REFLEXION.

More Men Reclaim out of Shame, Fear, and Pure Necessity, then for the Love of Honour, or Virtue. They that are Honest upon these Terms would be Arrant Knaves if the Tables were Turn’d. They go along with the Devil, while there’s either Pleasure, or Profit to be had on That side; but when they come once to lose the Tast of the One, and the Means of the Other, they are presently Register’d in the Calender of New Converts. The Countenance of this Fable looks a little betwixt Jest and Earnest; but This Mixture of Appearance does not hinder it from being a most Edifying Satyr upon the Corruptions, and False Semblances of Humane Life. Lord! How Sober, and Temperate do People grow, when they can Drink and Whore no longer!

Fab. CCCXXVII. An Impertinent and a Philosopher.

A Certain Pragmatical, Senceless Companion would make a Visit to a Philosopher. He found him Alone in his Study, and fell a Wond’ring how he could Endure to Lead so Solitary a Life. The Learned Man told him; Sir, says he, You are Exceedingly Mistaken; for I was in very Good Company till You came in.

The Moral.

Good Thoughts and Good Books are very Good Company.

REFLEXION.

A Wise Book is much better then a Foolish Companion; and the Dead, in such a case, are much better then the Living. It is one of the most vexatious Mortifications perhaps, of a Sober, and Studious Man’s Life, to have his Thoughts Disorder’d, and the very Chain of his Reason Discompos’d, by the Importunity of a Tedious, and an Impertinent Visit; Especially, if it be from a Fool of Quality, where the very Figure of the Man Entitles him to All Returns of Good Manners and Respect. And the Affliction is yet more Grievous, where that Prerogative of Quality, is further Back’d and Corroborated, with a Real Kindness and Good Will: For a Man must be Inhumane and Ungrateful, as well as Rude, if he does but so much as Offer, at the Easing, or the Relieving of Himself. The Drift of This Fable at last, is to tell us, that Good Books and Good Thoughts are the Best Company, and that they are Mistaken that think a Wise Man can ever be Alone. It prepares us also to Expect Interruptions, and Disappointments, and to Provide for ’em; but withal, to take the Best Care we can to Prevent the Plague of Ill Company, by avoiding the Occasions of it. The Linking of a Man of Brains and Honesty into a Lewd Insipid Conversation, is Effectually but the Moral of That Tyrant, that Bound the Living, and the Dead together, and yet This is it which the Impertinent takes for the Relief of Solitude, and the Blessing of That which he calls Company.

Fab. CCCXXVIII. A Wolfe in a Sheeps-Skin.

There goes a Story of a Wolfe, that Wrapt himself up in a Sheeps-skin, and Worry’d Lambs for a Good while under That Disguise; but the Shepherd Met with him at last, and Truss’d him up, Sheeps-skin and all, upon an Eminent Gibbet, for a Spectacle, and an Example. The Neighbours made a Wonderment at it, and Ask’d him what he meant to Hang up his Sheep? Oh, says he, That’s only the Skin of a Sheep, that was made use of to Cover the Heart, Malice, and Body of a Wolfe that Shrouded himself under it.

The Moral.

Hypocrisie is only the Devil’s Stalking Horse, under an Affectation of Simplicity and Religion. People are not to be Judg’d by their Looks, Habits, and Appearances; but by the Character of their Lives and Conversations, and by their Works.

REFLEXION.

This Fable is Moraliz’d in the Holy Gospel it self. ’Tis with all Men that are Notoriously Wicked, of what Degree or State, or in what point of Iniquity soever, much after the Rate of the Wolfe in This Fiction. Tyranny Marches under the Masque of Care, Piety, and Protection. Injustice sets up the Rigorous Letter of the Law to Weigh against the Improbity of the Witness: The Pawn-Broker pretends Charity, and the Oppressor Flays the Widow and the Orphan: And at the same Time, Preaches Mercy and Compassion, with the very same Breath. Treachery Covers it self under a Cloak of Kindness and Friendship; and Nothing more Frequent then Wolves in Lambs-skins, even in the most Solemn Offices of Church and State. This Fable Extends to All the Lewd Practices of Hypocrites and Impostors, under the Colour of Pious, and Charitable Works and Duties. Now if All our Moral Wolves in Sheeps-Cloathing, were but Serv’d as This Hypocritical Wolfe was in the Fiction, and Hung-up Indeed, with their Crimes in Capital Letters on their Foreheads, Common Truth and Honesty among Men would be more Sacred.

Fab. CCCXXIX. An Incorrigible Son.

It was the Hard Lot of a very Good Man to have a Vicious Young Fellow to his Son; and he did what he could to Reclaim him: But Sir (says he) for Brevity’s sake, ’tis only so much Time and Councel thrown away; for all the Parsons about the Town have been Baiting me I know not how long now, upon the same Subject, and I’m not One Jot the Better for’t.

The Moral.

Some Men Live as if they had made a Covenant with Hell; Let Divines, Fathers, Friends say what they will, they Stop their Ears against them: And Good Councel is wholly Cast away upon them.

REFLEXION.

This Fable would go a Great way if it were wrought up to the Heighth. As for the Purpose; to all Manner of Graceless and Hopeless Characters. Some People are lost for want of Good Advice; Others for want of giving Good Heed to’t; And some again take up Resolutions beforehand never to Mend. Nay there are those that value themselves upon the very Contempt of All that is Sacred and Honest, and make it a Point of Bravery to Bid Defiance to the Oracles of Divine Revelation, the Motions of Reasonable Nature, and the Laws of Government. This Contradiction of the Duty of a Sober Man is yet farther Heightned, by the Disobedience of a Son to a Parent: and farther yet, by a Spiteful Opposition to All the Precepts of Morality and Religion. There’s somewhat of a Droll-Mixture in This Bantering way of Liberty, to make a body Laugh where he should Cry: But ’tis past a Sporting Matter, when the most Necessary Duties of Christianity come to be the Question. There’s no Room for Trifling in Those Cases.

Fab. CCCXXX. A Sheep-Biter Hang’d.

A Certain Shepherd had One Favourite-Dog, that he had a Particular Confidence in above all the rest. He fed him with his Own hand, and took more Care of him, in short, then of any of his Fellows. This Kindness went on a Long Time, till in Conclusion, upon the Missing of some Sheep, he fancy’d This Cur to be False to him: After This Jealousy, he kept a Strict Eye upon him, and in fine, found it out, that This Trusty Servant of his was the Felon. Upon the Discovery, he had him presently taken up, and bad him prepare for Execution. Alas! Master, says the Dog, I am One of your Family, and ’twould be hard to put a Domestique to Extremities: Turn your Displeasure upon the Wolves rather, that make a Daily Practice on’t to Worry your Sheep. No, no, says the Shepherd, I’d sooner Spare Forty Wolves that make it their Profession to Kill Sheep, then One Sheep-biting Cur that’s Trusted with the Care of them. There’s somewhat of Frankness and Generosity in the One; but the Other is the Basest of Treacheries.

The Moral.

No Perfidy like Breach of Faith and Trust, under the Seal of Friendship: For an Adversary under that Masque, is much more Unpardonable then a Bare-fac’d Enemy.

REFLEXION.

There are Political Sheep-biters as well as Pastoral; Betrayers of Publick Trusts, as well as of Private; And Humane Curs that are as Wolvish as the Other. This Maxim however, holds in All Cases; that Breach of Faith and Trust, is the most Odious, Inhospitable and Inhumane, of Civil, as well as of Moral Offences. A special Confidence in One more then in Another, though from a King to a Subject, or from a Master to a Servant, has some Analogy in’t of Friendship, but the Matter should be thoroughly Weigh’d and Examin’d, before we put it to the Utmost Tryal and Test. A Man may be too Hard or too Easy; too Advent’rous or too Wary, in passing a Judgment upon the Character of the Person: But above all things it will concern us perfectly to Understand the Honour, the Practice, and the Conversation of the Man we Propose for a Friend, before we lay any Stress upon his Faith; Not but that we may believe Well of a Man, and yet not think fit to Trust him: So that a Charity on the One hand does not Authorize a Confidence on the Other; It is not Amiss however, to lay Baits for a Man in such a Case, and to try him on the Blind-side. As if a Man be Covetous; Profit or Bribes may put him to the Test: and so Answerably in Other Cases. Powerful Temptations Artificially Dispos’d, are the Best Essay, and Assurance of a Man’s Faith and Honesty that the Matter will bear. This Dog here would perhaps have Fought for his Master in any Other Case, though he Betray’d him in This: But the Love of Mutton was his Weak-side: Which in some sort Answers to That which we call Peccatum in Deliciis in Mankind. This Infirmity however did not Excuse the Treachery, and the Kinder the Master, the more Unpardonable is the Traytor.

Fab. CCCXXXI. A Bull and a Ram.

There was One Master-Ram that Beat All his Fellows out of the Field, and was so Puff’d up with the Glory of his Exploits, that Nothing would serve him but he must Challenge a Bull to the Combat. They Met, and upon the First Encounter, there lay the Ram for Dead; but coming to himself again; Well (says he) This is the Fruit of my Insolence, and Folly, in Provoking an Enemy, that Nature has made my Superior.

The Moral.

Where People will be Provoking and Challenging their Superiors, either in Strength, or Power, ’tis not so much a Bravery of Spirit, as a Rude and Brutal Rashness; and they pay Dear for’t at last.

REFLEXION.

’Tis not Courage, but Temerity, for Men to Venture their Lives, Reputations, and Fortunes upon Unequal Encounters; Unless where they are Oblig’d by an Over-ruling Impulse of Honour, Conscience, and Duty, to stand All Hazards. That which the World Accounts Brave, is in Truth, no Better then Brutal, where there is not Reason, Justice, and Prudence to Direct and Govern it. ’Tis One thing for a Man to be Firm, and Fearless, against Honest Dangers, let them appear never so Terrible, when his Honour for that Purpose; his Country, or his Conscience, calls upon him to Encounter them: But to run his Head against Stone Walls, or to put his Shoulders to a Sear-Breach, to Attempt insuperable Difficulties, and Needlessly to Provoke Invincible Enemies, purely out of a Vain Opinion of his Own Strength; This would be just the Moral of the Ram here in the Fable.

Fab. CCCXXXII. A Widow and a Green Ass.

There was a Widow that had a Twittering toward a second Husband, and she took a Gossipping Companion of hers to her Assistance, how to Manage the Job. The Truth of it is, says she, I have a Dear Mind to Another Bedfellow; but the Devilish People would keep such a Snearing, and Pointing at me, they’d make me e’en Weary of my Life. You are a Fine Widow, i’ Faith, says T’other, to Trouble your Head for the Talk of the People. Pray will ye Mind what I say to ye now. You have an Ass here in your Grounds; go your ways and get That Ass Painted Green, and then let him be carry’d up and down the Country for a Show. Do this, I say, without any more Words, for talk does but Burn Day-Light. The Thing was done accordingly; and for the first Four or Five Days, the Green Ass had the Whole Country at his Heels; Man, Woman, and Child, Staring and Hooting after him. In Four or Five Days More, the Humour was quite Spent, and the Ass might Travel from Morning to Night, and not One Creature to take Notice of him. Now (says the friendly Adviser) A New-Marry’d Widow is a kind of a Green Ass: Every bodies Mouth will be Full on’t for the first four or five Days, and in four or five More, the Story will e’en Talk it self Asleep.

The Moral.

Common Fame is as False and Impudent as a Common Strumpet. Let Every Man live to his Conscience, and never Trouble his Head with the Talk of the People.

REFLEXION.

There is no Mystery in telling us that a Widow may be Prevail’d upon to Think of a Second Husband; but the Weight of this Emblem lies upon Those Cases where there Occur a Thousand Scruples, and Difficulties, that may startle People at first, and yet in the Conclusion, prove but a Nine Days Wonder. The Foolery of the Widow and the Green Ass, shews pleasantly enough, how easy a Matter it is for a Bold Face, a Good Assurance, and a Reasonable Stock of Wit and Address, to put Common Fame it self out of Countenance; and it is a Part of Prudence beside, not to sink under the Impression of an Ill Report: Provided there be Integrity and Innocence to Support That Firmness of Mind. A Wise Man will not make his Happiness Precarious: He looks to his Conscience, and leaves the World to take its Course. ’Tis the Novelty, not the Quality of Things, that sets People a Gaping and a Gazing at them: But when they come once to be Familiar, the Wonder goes off, and Men return to their Wits again. The Main Consideration is This, whether the Matter in Question be Good or Evil; honourable or Dishonourable; Not according to a Vulgar Estimate, but in the Genuine Truth, and Nature of it. ’Tis Foolish either to Fear, or to Mind what the People say of a Man, in Cases where he stands or falls to his Own Conscience.

Fab. CCCXXXIII. An Eagle and Rabbets.

There was an Eagle that drew a Nest of Rabbets, and carry’d them away to her Young. The Mother-Cony follow’d her with Tears in her Eyes, Adjuring her in the Name of All those Powers that take care of the Innocent and Oppressed, to have Compassion upon her Miserable Children: But she, in an Outrage of Pride and Indignation, Tears them presently to pieces. The Cony, upon This, Convenes a Whole Warren; Tells her Story, and Advises upon a Revenge: For Divine Justice (says she) will never suffer so Barbarous a Cruelty to scape Unpunish’d. They Debated the Matter, and came to an Unanimous Resolve upon the Question, that there was no Way of paying the Eagle in her Kind, but by Undermining the Tree where she Timber’d. So they all fell to Work at the Roots of the Tree, and left it so little Foot hold, that the first Blast of Wind laid it Flat upon the Ground, Nest, Eagles and all. Some of ’em were Kill’d with the Fall; Others were Eaten up by Birds and Beasts of Prey, and the Cony had the Comfort at last, of Destroying the Eagle’s Children, in Revenge for her Own.

The Moral.

’Tis Highly Imprudent, even in the Greatest of Men, Unnecessarily to Provoke the Meanest, when the Pride of Pharaoh Himself was brought down by Miserable Frogs and Lice.

REFLEXION.

There’s Nothing so Little as to be Wholly Despis’d; for the most Inconsiderable of Creatures may at Some time or Other, by some Means or Other, come to Revenge it self upon the Greatest; Not by it’s Own Force so much, as by the Working of Divine Justice, that will not suffer Oppression to pass Unpunish’d. In cases of Powerful Injustice, the Greatest are not to Presume, nor the Meanest to Despair.

We are to Distinguish upon This Fable, what the Eagle did as a Tyrant, and what she did as a Bird of Prey. And likewise betwixt a Passion which is purely Vindictive, and Those Counsels where Divine Justice Interposes toward the Avenging of the Innocent. Here is Power Triumphing over Weakness; a Criminal Cruelty over Helpless Innocence, and That Cruelty Inexorable too, and Deaf to the Tears, Supplications, and Importunities of a Tender Mother, on the Behalf of her Children. Now for the Humbling of This Unmerciful Pride in the Eagle, Providence has found out a Way, even by the most Despicable of Means and Creatures, to the Wreaking of a Revenge; which shews likewise that Heaven takes the Cause of the Weak and the Guiltless into a particular Care.

This Counsel of the Rabbets has somewhat in it of the Debate of Popular Meetings, where the Number and the Agreement Supplies the Want of Other Means: And we are taught from hence too, that States are not so much in Danger of Open Force, as of Secret Mines: For when the Foundation is once Loosen’d; The Least Breath of a Commotion lays the Whole Building in Rubbish. We are taught also, that the Only, or at least the Main Support of Power is Justice, in the Due Distribution of Reward and Punishment. Where These Two Principles are Perverted, the Government is off the Ballance, and the Worse Part of it Out Weighs the Other. But the Judgments of Heaven supply the Defects of Common Justice, and Avenge the Cause of the Poor and Innocent upon the Heads of the Mighty. Vengeance, in fine, Treads upon the Heel of Oppression, according to the Doctrine of This Fable of the Eagle and the Rabbets here.

Fab. CCCXXXIV. A Pike sets up for Sovereignty.

There was a Master-Pike, that for his Bulk, Beauty and Strength, was look’d upon to be the Prince of the River, but the Sovereignty of the Fresh Water would not Content him, it seems, unless he might Engross to himself the Empire of the Sea too. Upon this Ambitious Design, he Launch’d out into the Ocean, and put up his Claim to’t; But a Prodigious Dolphin took This Encroachment upon his Right in such Dudgeon, that he set upon the Pike; Gave him Chace, and Pursu’d him to the Borders of his own Stream, Insomuch that the Pike had enough to do to Save Himself; and from that Time forward, he had the Wit to keep within the Compass of his Own Dominions.

The Moral.

Ambition has no other Bounds then what Providence has Prescrib’d to it, for the Good of Mankind. Here shall thy Proud Waves Stay: And there must be No Passing Those Limits.

REFLEXION.

Providence has Assign’d Every Man his Post and Station, and He that either Relinquishes his Own Natural Right, or Invades Anothers, seldom fails of a Disappointment in the Conclusion. Or however, in case of the most Successful Injustice, Oppression, and Usurpation, there follows a Restless Anxiety in the keeping of what is Injuriously Gotten; an Insatiable Thirst after More and More still, and Nothing but Shame and Confusion in the End, when he comes to Cast up Profit and Loss at the Foot of the Reck’ning. This Ambitious Pike is but the Figure of some Petty Prince, that sets himself up to be Troublesome, and to give Laws to a more Powerful Neighbour. The Dolphin Represents such a Power that’s more then’s Match, and Beats him Home again. The Case of the Fishes in the Fable, is much the same with that of Kings and States in Common Practice. And to carry the Allegory yet further; As the Ocean, on the One hand, so the Whole World, on the Other, is made the Field of Battel. Now All This in the Moral, serves only to bid us Moderate our Desires; Keep our Affections within Bounds, and Live contented with our Lot.

Fab. CCCXXXV. A Sheep picks a Quarrel with a Shepherd.

A Sheep that was to be shorn, took it very Ill of the Shepherd that he should not satisfie himself with the Milk she gave him, without stripping her of her Wool too. The Shepherd, upon This, without any more Words, took one of her Lambs in a Rage, and put it to Death. Well, says the Sheep, and now y’ave done your Worst I hope: No, says the Shepherd, when That’s done, I can Cut your Throat too, if I have a Mind to’t, and throw ye to the Dogs, or to the Wolves at pleasure. The Sheep said not One Word more, for fear of a Worse Mischief to come.

The Moral.

When People will not Submit to Reason by Fair Means, they must be brought to’t by Foul.

REFLEXION.

He that is not Master of Himself, or in his Own Power, has no Other Game to play then to submit himself Contentedly to the Will of Another. Struggling is so far from setting him at Liberty, that it only ties the Knot the Harder. There must be no Muttering at Heaven for the Loss of Fortune, Children, or whatever else can be Dear to us; for there are Greater Afflictions in store for those that shall dare to Prescribe Rules and Measures to the Divine Providence. Wherefore we should All set our Hearts at rest, upon these Two Considerations: First, That whatsoever comes from above, is for the Best: And Secondly, That there’s No Contending with it. The Pot must not chop Logick, and Expostulate with the Potter: And so for a Sheep to tell the Shepherd when he has Kill’d her Lamb, that now he has done his Worst; ’tis such Another kind of Defiance, as that of Jobe’s Wife was, when she bad her Husband Curse God and Die. We are not the Carvers of our Own Fortunes, and This way of Proceeding is an Affront to all the Dictates, Lights, and Duties of Religion, Nature and Reason.

Fab. CCCXXXVI. A Creaking Wheel.

A Waggoner took Notice upon the Creaking of a Wheel, that it was the Worst Wheel of the Four, that made the most Noise, and was wond’ring at the Reason of it. Oh, says the Waggon, They that are Sickly are ever the most Piping and Troublesome.

The Moral.

’Tis with Creaking Wheels as ’tis with Courtiers, Physicians, Lawyers (and with whom not?) They want Greazing.

REFLEXION.

When People are Crazy, and in Disorder, ’tis but Natural for them to Groan, and to Complain. This is a Far-Fetched Allusion, but it must serve for want of a Better. The Uneasiness of a sickly Habit of Body, is some sort of Excuse for being Troublesome and Importune.

Fab. CCCXXXVII. A Man had a Mind to try his Friends.

There was a Generous Rich Man that kept a Splendid and an Open Table, and Consequently never Wanted Guests. This Person found All People came to him Promiscuously, and a Curiosity took him in the Head to try, which of ’em were Friends, and which only Trencher-Flies and Spungers. So he took an Occasion One Day at a Full Table, to tell them of a Quarrel he had, and that he was just then a going to Demand Satisfaction. There must be so many to so many, and he made no doubt, but they’d stand by him with their Swords in their Hands. They All Excus’d themselves save only Two; which Two he reckon’d upon as his Friends, and All the Rest no better then Hangers-on.

The Moral.

We may Talk of Many Friends; but not One Man of a Thousand will Stand the Test.

REFLEXION.

There’s No Tryal of a True Friend but in Cases of Difficulty; as Loss, Trouble, or Danger; for that’s the Time of Distinguishing what a Man does for My sake, and what for his Own.

It is an Unhappy Thing that Princes and Great Men, who seem to have the least need of Friends, should in truth have the Greatest, and yet at the same time the Greatest Difficulty of Knowing them too, for want of Occasions to put them to the Tryal. There is no Proof of Friendship like Frequent Experiment. Now Princes are above the want of Those Common Offices that pass for Friendship betwixt Man and Man, as in Matter of Money, Liberty, Protection, and the like. People do not Flock to Court so much for their Masters Service, as for the making of their Own Fortunes. How shall any Man distinguish now betwixt a Parasite, and a Man of Honour; where they are All on the Receiving Hand, and where Hypocrisie, and Interest looks so like Duty and Affection? He that well Considers the Practise of the World will find the Fiction of the Rich Man in This Fable to be in some Proportion the Common case of Mankind. An Undistinguishable Facility shall never fail of Meeting with an Undistinguishable Infidelity; which is no Other then a Just Judgment upon an Inconsiderate Bounty. ’Tis the Benefactors Fate in fine, to be either Deserted or Betray’d by those that he has fed, and with Acteon, to be Worry’d by his Own Curs. He that keeps an Open House for All Comers, should do well to Consider, that there are Oglios of Guests as well as of Dishes, and that the Liberty of a Common Table is as Good as a Tacit Invitation to All sorts of Intruders; as Buffons, Spies, Tale-Bearers, Flatterers, Epicures, Indigents, &c. Now These are All but so many Flies that Come and Go with the Meat. And whereas the Mythologist lays the Stress upon This Point, That the Master of the House could find but Two Friends in such a Crowd of People; ’tis my Admiration on the Other hand rather, that he should find so Many, in the Licence of a Conversation that was made so Scandalous by the Company.

Fab. CCCXXXVIII. A Fox Praising Hares Flesh.

As a Dog was Pressing hard upon the very Breech of a Fox, Up starts a Hare. Pray hold a Little, says the Fox, and take That Hare there while she is to be had: You never Tasted such a Morsel since you were Born; But I am all over Tainted and Rotten, and a Mouthful of My Flesh would be enough to Poyson ye. The Dog immediately left the Fox; and took a Course at the Hare; but she was too Nimble for him, it seems, and when he saw he could not Catch her, he very Discreetly let her go. The Hare had heard what pass’d; and Meeting the Fox Two or Three Days after, she told him how Basely he had serv’d her. Nay, says the Fox, if you take it so Heavily that I spoke so well of ye, what would you have done if I had spoken Ill?

The Moral.

A Designing Back-Friend is the Worst of Enemies.

REFLEXION.

There are some sorts of Commendation; and some Cases and Seasons of Applying it, that are more Malicious, and Mischievous, then the Worst of Calamities. Here’s a Fox at a Pinch; and what’s his Bus’ness now, but to Stop the Dog’s Mouth with a Piece of Hare’s Flesh, for the Saving of his Own Skin! A Puss, says he, is much Better Meat then a Fox, and This Good Office over the Left Shoulder, is the Civility that he Values himself upon. He gives her his Good Word, (as we call it) to the very End, that she may be Eaten. How many Thousands of These Foxes Complements do we meet with in Our Dayly Practice and Conversation. But a Crafty Knave is never without somewhat or Other to say for Himself, and a Bad Excuse is Better then None. The Fox’s Civility, in fine, was Roguery all over; and his Praising the Hares-Flesh to the Dog, was Effectually no more then a Letter of Recommendation to the Common Hang-man.

Fab. CCCXXXIX. A Plain Horse Wins the Prize.

There were a Great many Brave, Sightly Horses with Rich Trappings that were brought out One Day to the Course, and Only One Plain Nag in the Company that made sport for All the rest. But when they came at last to Tryal, This was the Horse that ran the Whole Field out of Distance, and Won the Race.

The Moral.

Our Senses are No Competent Judges of the Excellencies of the Mind.

REFLEXION.

He that Judges by the Outside, and Pronounces upon the Bare Appearance of Things, runs a great many Mistakes in One; for there’s Temerity, Folly, Pride, and Ill Nature in’t; Especially where the Censure is accompany’d with Mockery and Scorn. ’Tis Inhumane, at the Best, to make Sport with one Another’s Infirmities; which in Honour, and Christianity, we are bound to Cover. But it is Pleasant enough then, if People will be putting themselves upon a Trial of Skill, to see a Bantering Pretender made an Ass by the very Man that He Himself has mark’d out for a Coxcomb: Which is no other, in Plain English, then a Fair Appeal to the Company, which is the Arranter Fool of the Two. In One Word, there’s Nothing lays a Man more Open, then Laughing, out of Measure, and out of Season. To Instance in a Cavalier of my Acquaintance that was up to the Ears in Love with a very Fine Lady, that wanted neither Air, Shape, Dress, Quality, nor any Other of Those Charming Circumstances to Recommend her to any Honest Man to Play the Fool withal. He had his Mistress to a Comedy once, where she was wonderfully pleas’d, but had the Ill Hap to Laugh still in the Wrong Place: The Poor Man Observ’d it, and his Fancy fell so Sick upon’t, that the Fit went off immediately, and he was his own Man for ever after. This comes of Judging by the Eye, without Consulting the Reason of the Matter; and of setting our Hearts upon the Shape, Colour, and External Beauty of Things, without any Regard to the Internal Excellence and Virtue of them. The Plain Nag here was like to have been Laugh’d out of the Field, as well as out of Countenance, till he came upon the Tryal to Prove Those to be Jades Themselves that made Sport with him.

Fab. CCCXL. A Countryman and a Kid.

A Country-man that was Hamper’d in a Law-Suit, had a near Friend and Kinsman, it seems, that was a Lawyer, and to Him he went again and again, for Advice upon the Point; but he was still so Busie, and Busie, that he must come Another Time. The Poor Fellow took a Delicate Fat Kid with him, Next Bout, and the Lawyers Clark, upon hearing the Voice of it at the Door; let the Man in, and carry’d him to his Master, where he laid Open his Case, Took his Opinion; made Two Legs, One to the Counsel for Receiving of him; T’other to the Kid for Introducing him, and so went his Way.

The Moral.

Money is a Passe-par-Tout.

REFLEXION.

’Tis with Money as ’tis with Majesty; All Other Powers and Authorities Cease while That’s in Place. ’Tis That which makes the Pot Boyl (as the Proverb says) though the Devil Piss in the Fire. Fathers, Mothers, Brothers, Sisters, Relations, Friendships, are but Empty Names of Things, and Words Butter No Parsnips. ’Tis Interest that Governs the World; and the Rulers of it; Ecclesiastical, as well as Civil; for it Works in All Decrees and Qualities of Men; and we have learnt by Experience, that the Pulpit may be made to have a Feeling in the Case as well as the Bar. Money, in fine, is an Universal Pasport, and All Doors Fly Open to’t. It Answers All Objections, Resolves All Scruples, and turns up what Religion Trump it pleases. In One Word, Quid Dabitis & Tradam? may be the Motto of Corrupt Nature. This Fable was Excellently well Moraliz’d by a Famous Councel of our Times. One gave him a Fee of Forty Broad Pieces: He took ’em, and Counted ’em (as a Man may Count Money after his Father they say) Well, says he, Here are Forty Pieces, Pugnabo FORTITER. Make them Ten more, and Pugnabo FIFTITER. In forma Pauperis is no good Lawyers Latin. Kindred are no Wellcome Clients, where the Nearness of the Relation gives them a kind of Title to have Advice Gratis, but where the Cousin cannot Prevail, the Kid must.

Fab. CCCXLI. A Weak Young Man and a Wolfe.

A Creeping Young Fellow that had Committed Matrimony with a Brisk Gamesome Lass, was so Alter’d upon’t in a few Days, that he was liker a Sceleton then a Living Man. He was Basking himself One time in the Gleam of the Sun, and some Huntsmen pass’d by him upon the Chase of a Wolfe that led ’em That Way. Why how comes it (says he) that you don’t Catch That Wolfe? They told him that he was too Nimble for ’em. Well (says he) If My Wife had the Ordering of him, she’d Spoil his Footmanship.

The Moral.

Marriage they say breeds Cares and Cuckolds.

REFLEXION.

Flesh and Bloud is but Flesh and Bloud; and the Indulging of Inordinate Appetites is the Ruine of Body, Soul, and Estate. This Fellow should have Consulted the Circumstances of his Constitution, before he made that Desperate Leap; for when a Man is Plung’d into an Irrevocable State of Misery, he has but a Cold bus’ness on’t to Comfort himself with a Jest. And ’twas but a Measuring Cast at Last neither, whether he meant his Wife should have to do with the Wolfe, in One Sense, or the Wolfe with his Wife in Another.

Fab. CCCXLII. A Lad Robbing an Orchard.

An Old Fellow took a Boy Robbing his Orchard. Sirrah, (says he) come down the Tree, and don’t Steal my Apples. The Lad never Minded him, but went on with his Work. Well (says the Master of the Ground) they say there are Charms in Herbs, as well as in Words, and so he threw a Handful of Grass at him, which was so Ridiculous, that the Young Thief took the Old Man to be Mop’d. But in Conclusion, if Neither Words, nor Herbs will do, says he, I’ll try what may be done with Stones; for they say there’s Vertue in Them too; And that Way he did his Work.

The Moral.

Those that will not be Reclaim’d by Instruction, must be brought to a Sense of their Duty by Feeling.

REFLEXION.

A Wise Man, in all Controversies, will try what may be done by Fair Means, before he comes to Foul: and where the One fails, the Other will Certainly do the Work. The Fear of Hell does a great deal towards the Keeping of us in our Way to Heaven; and if it were not for the Penalty, the Laws neither of God, nor of Man, would be obey’d, there would have been a Charm in Wood as well as in Stones, if the Little Thief had but been soundly Drubb’d with a Good Honest Cudgel: for where Conscience and Argument will do no Good, Punishment must: But as it is the Surest, so the Good Man here made it the Last Remedy.

Fab. CCCXLIII. A Nightingale and a Hawk.

As a Nightingale was Singing in a Bush, down comes a Rascally Kite of a Sparrow-Hawk, and Whips her off the Bough: The Poor Wretch Pleaded for her self, that alas! her Little Carcass was not worth the While, and that there were Bigger Birds enough to be found. Well, says the Hawk, but am I so Mad d’ye think, as to Part with a Little Bird that I have, for a Great One that I have Not? Why then, says she, I’ll give ye a Delicate Song for my Life: No, no, says the Hawk, I want for my Belly, nor for my Ears.

The Moral.

A Bird in the Hand is Worth Two in the Bush.

REFLEXION.

This Fables carries Three Morals. 1st. That we are not to Part with a Certainty for an Uncertainty. 2dly. That Men of Appetite are not Mov’d by any Consideration of Virtue. 3dly. That Things of Use and Necessity, are to be preferr’d before Matters meerly of Delight and Pleasure.

The Nightingale in the Foot of the Hawk, is the Case of many an Innocent Creature in the Hands of Justice, when the very Equity of the Law Bends under the Weight of an Over-ruling Rigour. The Belly has no Ears, and so there’s no Charming of it. Arguments against Power, are but Wind, when Reason draws One way, and Appetite, Another. There’s no Moving of any Creature contrary to the Nature of it. Hang ’em All up (says a Pleasant Droll, upon Venner’s Rising) they are not Worth the Begging. ’Tis a piece of State-Policy sometimes, to let the Poor and the Friendless go to Pot; Nay, and to reckon the Execution of them among the Triumphs of Justice too. There is This further in’t besides; that the Uttermost Severity upon Those that have not where withal to Bid for their Lives, raises the Price of the Market upon Those that Have; and Enhances the Value of the Deliverance, or, in Plain English, of the Pardon. The Poor Nightingale had Nothing to give that the Hawk car’d for, and so she Dy’d, in truth, because she was not Worth the Begging.

Fab. CCCXLIV. A Lyon and a Hog.

A Lyon that found it Extreme Irksome to Live Alone, gave the Beasts of the Forest to Understand, that he was Resolv’d to make Choice of Some or Other of his Subjects for a Friend and Companion. There was a Mighty Busle, who should be the Favourite, and to the Wonder of All the rest, the Lyon Pitch’d upon a Hog; for, says the Lyon, he is True and Faithful to his Friend, and will stand by him in All Times, and Hazards.

The Moral.

A True Friend can ne’er fail of being a Loyal Subject: And That’s the Man that a Brave Prince will make Choice of for a Particular Favourite.

REFLEXION.

Solitude is against Nature, but Ill Company is worse then None. So that Life is not Life without the Blessing of a Friendly and an Edifying Conversation. The Difficulty only rests in the Choice; wherein the Lyon here has taken his Right Measures: That is to say, he has made a True Judgment of the Matter: For he only Deserves the Character of a Friend, that’s Proof against all Tryals and Temptations, either of Profit, or of Loss.

Fab. CCCXLV. A Gnat and a Bee.

A Gnat that was Half Starv’d with Cold and Hunger, went out one Frosty Morning to a Bee-Hive, to beg a Charity, and offer’d to Teach Musick in the Bees Family, for her Dyet and Lodging. The Bee very Civilly desir’d to be Excus’d; for, says she, I bring up all my Children to my Own Trade, that they may be able to get their Living Another Day by their Industry.

The Moral.

Lazy Beggars that Can Work, and Will not, have scarce a Right to Common Charity: And This Misery befalls them for want of an Industrious Education.

REFLEXION.

’Tis a Necessary piece of Providence, in the Institution of our Children, to Train them up to somewhat in their Youth, that may Honestly Maintain them in their Age. If the Bee had taken the Necessities of the Gnat into her Consideration, as she did the Profession, she would have thought her self bound in Tenderness and Good Nature, according to the Moral of the Fable, to have Contributed to her Relief: But the Stress is rather to be laid upon a Preference of an Education of Industry, to That of Pleasure, and to shew, that we are in the First Place to Consult the Necessities of Life, rather then Matters of Ornament and Delight.

Fab. CCCXLVI. A Lyon, Ass, and Hare.

Upon the Breaking out of a War betwixt the Birds and the Beasts, the Lyon Summon’d All his Subjects from Sixteen to Sixty, to appear in Arms, at such a Certain Time, and Place, upon pain of his High Displeasure; and there were a World of Asses and Hares at the Rendezvouz among the rest. Several of the Commanders were for turning ’em off, and Discharging ’em, as Creatures utterly Unfit for Service. Do not Mistake your self (says the Lyon,) The Asses will do very well for Trumpeters, and the Hares will make Excellent Letter-Carriers.

The Moral.

God and Nature, made Nothing in Vain. There is No Member of a Political Body so Mean, and Inconsiderable, but it may be useful to the Publique in some Station or Other.

REFLEXION.

There’s Nothing so Great as not to stand in Need of many things, in Common Appearance, the most Contemptible: And there is Nothing again so Despicable; but that at some Time, or in some Case or other, it may be of Use and Service to us. ’Tis True, That one Thing is Preferible to another, in some Sort, or in some Respect; but it is True withal, that every Distinct Being has somewhat Peculiar to it self, to make Good in one Circumstance what it Wants in Another. It is the Ignorance of the Nature of things, that makes us Despise, even the Meanest of Creatures. All Things are Created Good in their several Kinds, as All things severally are Subservient, in some Degree or other, to the Beauty, the Order, and the Well-being of the Whole. That which we find in the Course of Nature, holds likewise in Government, where the Lowest has its Post Allotted it as well as the Highest. All Created Beings, in fine, are the Works of Providence and Nature, that never did any thing in Vain. And the Moral of this Parable of the Lyon, the Ass, and the Hare, runs through the Universe; for there are Hares, Lyons, and Asses, in Kingdoms and Commonwealths, as well as in Fields and in Forests: And the Drift of This Figure holds good in All the Parts of the Creation.

Fab. CCCXLVII. Pigeons Reconcile the Hawks.

There Happen’d a Bloudy Civil War once among the Hawks, and what did the Poor, Peaceable, Innocent Pigeons, but in Pure Pity, and Good Nature, send their Deputies and Mediators to do the Best they could to make ’em Friends again, so long as This Feud Lasted; they were so Intent upon Killing one another, that they Minded nothing else; but no sooner was the Quarrel taken up among Themselves, then they fell to their Old sport again of Destroying the Pigeons. This brought them to a Sight of their Error, and to Understand the Danger of Uniting a Common Enemy to their Own Ruine.

The Moral.

Good Men are never safe but when Wicked Men are at Odds. So that the Divisions of the One are the Security of the Other.

REFLEXION.

’Tis a Hard Matter in This Case to Reconcile Policy, and Good Nature; or to bring a Plain-dealing Innocence into a Consistency with Necessary Prudence; For Singleness of Mind passes in the World for want of Brains, and where Knavery is in Credit, Honesty is sure to be a Drug; But Every Man must stand or fall to his own Conscience, and so Divide the Matter, as neither to Offend Christian Charity, nor Civil Discretion. The Blessing that is pronounc’d upon the Peace-Makers, does not Extend to Those Cases, where the Effect of the Peace shall be the Ruine of the Reconcilers. ’Tis Dangerous Parting a Fray, whether it be Jest or Earnest; for there are Sham-Quarrels as well as Bloudy Ones: In the One, a Man runs the risque of his Hat, or his Cloak; In the Other, of his Life. We have liv’d to see This Fable remarkably Moraliz’d among our selves upon the like Occasion; for still as the Common Enemy were at Variance, we had a sort of Peace-making Pigeons that would needs be Reconciling them, though the Only Security they had under the Sun was their Divisions.

Fab. CCCXLVIII. A Woman that brought Fire into the House.

The Question was put to an Honest Man Newly Marry’d, What might be the Meaning of his New Brides bringing a Torch out of her Father’s House into her Husbands. Why This says he; I have Eas’d my Father-in-Law of a Fire-brand, to set my Own House in a Flame.

The Moral.

A Contentious Woman puts all into a Flame where-ever she comes.

REFLEXION.

This Torch may be an Allusion either to Strife, and Contention, or to the Profusion and Consumption of the Husband’s Estate. ’Tis to be hop’d that there are Shrews, and Wasteful Women enow in the World, to Answer This Moral Both Ways.