Who hence shall count his conquests by his days,
And gather from the proudest lips his praise,
A louder voice than mine must tell in song
What virtues to thy kingly line belong.
I seek thine ear to gain by lighter themes,
Slight pictures, deck'd in magic nature's beams;
And if to please thee shall not be my pride,
I'll gain at least the praise of having tried.


[1] This dedication prefaced La Fontaine's first collection of his
Fables, which comprised Books I. to VI., published in 1668. The
Dauphin was Louis, the only son of Louis XIV. and Marie-Therese of
Austria. He was born at Fontainebleau in 1661, and died at Meudon in
1712, before his father, the "Grand Monarque," had ceased to reign.
The Dauphin being but a child, between six and seven years old, at
the time of this dedication, La Fontaine's act may be viewed rather
as an offering to the King, than to the child himself. See the
Translator's Preface.


* * * * *


BOOK I.


I.--THE GRASSHOPPER AND THE ANT.[1]

A Grasshopper gay