"Well," said Xanthus to the guests, "pray do me the favor of dining with
me again to-morrow. And if this is your best," continued he turning to
Aesop, "pray, to-morrow let us have some of the worst meat you can
find."

The next day, when dinner-time came, the guests were assembled. Great
was their astonishment and great the anger of Xanthus at finding that
again nothing but tongue was put upon the table.

"How, sir," said Xanthus, "should tongues be the best of meat one day,
and the worst another?"

"What," replied Aesop, "can be worse than the tongue? What wickedness is
there under the sun that it has not a part in? Treasons, violence,
injustice, and fraud are debated and resolved upon by the tongue. It is
the ruin of empires, of cities, and of private friendships."

* * * * *

At another time Xanthus very foolishly bet with a scholar that he could
drink the sea dry. Alarmed, he consulted Aesop.

"To perform your wager," said Aesop, "you know is impossible, but I will
show you how to evade it."

They accordingly met the scholar, and went with him and a great number
of people to the seashore, where Aesop had provided a table with several
large glasses upon it, and men who stood around with ladles with which
to fill the glasses.