一条金枪鱼在水中急速穿行，而追赶他的海豚一直在后面穷追不舍，眼看着就要被海豚捉住了，金枪鱼猛然一跳，不料用劲太猛，让自己在岸边搁浅了。紧追不舍的海豚因为惯性也跟着金枪鱼一跳，同样搁浅在岸边。这时，金枪鱼看到敌人也像自己一样奄奄一息，便说：“现在，死对我来说已经无所谓了，因为我已亲眼看到，那个引我致死的家伙也与我一起同归于尽了。”
THE THREE TRADESMEN
三个工匠
The citizens of a certain city were debating about the best material to use in the forti？cations which were about to be erected for the greater security of the town.A Carpenter got up and advised the use of wood，which he said was readily procurable and easily worked.A Stone-mason objected to wood on the ground that it was so in？ammable，and recommended stones instead.Then a Tanner got on his legs and said，“In my opinion there’s nothing like leather.”
Every man for himself.
｛中文阅读｝
某个城镇中的居民在讨论什么样的好材料才能用于对抗敌人的进攻，从而可以确保全城人的安全。一个木匠挺身而出，主张用木头作为防御材料，既随手可得又操作简单；一个石匠毅然反对，他说木头容易被点燃，太不安全了，而他则提议用石头。接着，一个皮匠站起来，说：“依我看来，没有什么能比皮子更适合做防御工事的材料了。”
人们都习惯于从自身角度考虑问题，总认为自己所熟悉的东西是最好的。
THE MOUSE AND THE BULL
老鼠和公牛
A Bull gave chase to a Mouse which had bitten him in the nose：but the Mouse was too quick for him and slipped into a hole in a wall.The Bull charged furiously into the wall again and again until he was tired out，and sank down on the ground exhausted with his efforts.When all was quiet，the Mouse darted out and bit him again.Beside himself with rage he started to his feet，but by that time the Mouse was back in his hole again，and he could do nothing but bellow and fume in helpless anger.Presently he heard a shrill little voice say from inside the wall，“You big fellows don’t always have it your own way，you see：sometimes we little ones come off best.”
The battle is not always to the strong.
｛中文阅读｝
一头公牛被老鼠咬了鼻子，到处追赶老鼠。但是，老鼠可比公牛跑得快多了，一下就溜进了墙边的洞里。气得公牛一次又一次地撞墙，最后累得筋疲力尽，一下就瘫在了地上。这时，小老鼠一听没了动静，又跑出来再咬公牛。公牛狂怒，又开始用脚踢墙，而此时小老鼠早已跑回到洞里去了。除了大吼和无用的生闷气之外，公牛一筹莫展。不久，他听到一个微弱的声音从墙壁里传出来：“你这个大家伙也不能总逞强吧，你看，有时我们这样的小不点也会占上风的。”
强者并非总是战争的胜方。
THE HARE AND THE HOUND
野兔和猎狗
A Hound started a Hare from her form，and pursued her for some distance；but as she gradually gained upon him，he gave up the chase.A rustic who had seen the race met the Hound as he was returning，and taunted him with his defeat.“The little one was too much for you，”said he.“Ah，well，”said the Hound，“don’t forget it’s one thing to be running for your dinner，but quite another to be running for your life.”
｛中文阅读｝
一条猎狗在追赶兔子，从兔窝边一直追出去好远。眼看着要追上兔子时，猎狗却放弃了。一个农民关注了整个过程，在路上遇见往回走的猎狗时，讥笑它是个失败者。“那个小家伙可比你强多了，”农民说。“噢，是吗？”猎狗说，“不要忘了，一个是仅为一顿饭在跑，而另一个则是为了一条命在跑。”
THE TOWN MOUSE AND THE COUNTRY MOUSE
城市鼠和乡下鼠
A Town Mouse and a Country Mouse were acquaintances，and the Country Mouse one day invited his friend to come and see him at his home in the fields.The Town Mouse came，and they sat down to a dinner of barleycorns and roots，the latter of which had a distinctly earthy flavour.The fare was not much to the taste of the guest，and presently he broke out with “My poor dear friend，you live here no better than the ants.Now，you should just see how I fare！My larder is a regularhorn of plenty.You must come and stay with me，and I promise you youshall live on the fat of the land.”So when he returned to town he took the Country Mouse with him，and showed him into a larder containing ？our and oatmeal and ？gs and honey and dates.The Country Mouse had never seen anything like it，and sat down to enjoy the luxuries his friend provided：but before they had well begun，the door of the larder opened and some one came in.The two Mice scampered off and hid themselves in a narrow and exceedingly uncomfortable hole.Presently，when all was quiet，they ventured out again；but some one else came in，and off they scuttled again.This was too much for the visitor.“Good-bye，”said he，“I’m off.You live in the lap of luxury，I can see，but you are surrounded by dangers；whereas at home I can enjoy my simple dinner of roots and corn in peace.”
｛中文阅读｝
一只住在城里的老鼠和一只住在乡下的老鼠是好朋友。有一天，乡下鼠邀请城市老鼠到他的家里来玩，看看他那田地里的家。城里鼠如约而至，他们坐下来分享了以大麦粒和树根为主的晚餐，那些树根还带着一种独特的泥土气息。这些食物显然不太对客人的胃口，最后，客人忍不住脱口而出：“可怜的朋友，你在这里生活，比蚂蚁好不到哪里去。你真应该去看看我都吃些什么！我的储藏室里可都是好东西，你一定得来和我一起生活，我保证你一定会过上锦衣玉食的日子！”于是，城里鼠带着乡下鼠回到了城里，还让他欣赏了装满面粉、燕麦、无花果、蜂蜜和大枣的储藏室。乡下鼠从未见过这么多的美食，坐下来好好欣赏着朋友提供的这些佳肴，就在他们正要开始吃的时候，储藏室的门被打开了，有人走了进来。两只老鼠立刻惊慌而逃，赶紧钻进了一个窄小的鼠洞。不久，储藏室里又恢复了平静，他们接着跑出来，不过，接着又有人进屋来拿东西。乡下来的客人可不习惯这种躲躲藏藏的生活方式。“再见了，朋友！”他说，“我要走了。你的确是过着锦衣玉食的日子，我已经看到了，但是你却时刻处在危险之中，而我还是回家去平平安安地享受那简单的树根和大麦吧。”
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THE LION AND THE BULL
狮子和公牛
A Lion saw a fine fat Bull pasturing among a herd of cattle and cast about for some means of getting him into his clutches；so he sent him word that he was sacri？cing a sheep，and asked if he would do him the honour of dining with him.The Bull accepted the invitation，but，on arriving at the Lion’s den，he saw a great array of saucepans and spits，but no sign of a sheep；so he turned on his heel and walked quietly away.The Lion called after him in an injured tone to ask the reason，and the Bull turned round and said，“I have reason enough.When I saw all your preparations it struck me at once that the victim was to be a Bull and not a sheep.”
The net is spread in vain in sight of the bird.
｛中文阅读｝
狮子看见牛群中有一头体态肥硕的公牛在吃草，便思忖着用什么方法能让公牛受骗上当。于是，狮子对公牛说自己杀了一只羊，并问他是否愿意赏光，和自己共同分享这只羊。公牛接受了邀请，但是当公牛向着狮子的巢穴走时，只看到了炖锅和水，根本没看见羊的痕迹。于是，他一声不吭地转身走了。狮子在他身后大喊，带着受伤的语气询问原因，而公牛则转身说：“我的理由很充分，一看到你准备的那些东西，我就惊呆了，那个受害者可能不是一只羊，而是一头公牛。”
网虽然张开，但对心知肚明的鸟来说，却是徒劳。
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THE WOLF，THE FOX，AND THE APE
狼、狐狸和猿猴
A Wolf charged a Fox with theft，which he denied，and the case was brought before an Ape to be tried.When he had heard the evidence on both sides，the Ape gave judgment as follows：“I do not think，”he said，“that you，O Wolf，ever lost what you claim；but all the same I believe that you，Fox，are guilty of the theft，in spite of all your denials.”
The dishonest get no credit，even if they act honestly.
｛中文阅读｝
一只狼指责狐狸偷了他的东西，而狐狸却根本不承认，于是，他们请猿猴来裁决。他们双方各自陈述了理由后，猿猴给出了如下裁决：“狼，我认为你没有丢失什么东西；但同时我也相信，狐狸即使偷过东西，也死不承认。”