A TRAVELER about to set out on a journey saw his Dog stand at the
door stretching himself. He asked him sharply: "Why do you stand
there gaping? Everything is ready but you, so come with me
instantly." The Dog, wagging his tail, replied: "O, master! I am
quite ready; it is you for whom I am waiting."

The loiterer often blames delay on his more active friend.


The Dog and the Shadow

A DOG, crossing a bridge over a stream with a piece of flesh in
his mouth, saw his own shadow in the water and took it for that
of another Dog, with a piece of meat double his own in size. He
immediately let go of his own, and fiercely attacked the other
Dog to get his larger piece from him. He thus lost both: that
which he grasped at in the water, because it was a shadow; and
his own, because the stream swept it away.


The Mole and His Mother

A MOLE, a creature blind from birth, once said to his Mother: "I
am sure than I can see, Mother!" In the desire to prove to him
his mistake, his Mother placed before him a few grains of
frankincense, and asked, "What is it?' The young Mole said, "It
is a pebble." His Mother exclaimed: "My son, I am afraid that you
are not only blind, but that you have lost your sense of smell.