THE ASS AND THE DOG.

MUTUAL assistance is the law of Nature; however, an ass, one day, defied it, and being naturally a kind-hearted beast, I scarcely know how it came about. He was journeying across the country, accompanied by the dog, and very gravely thinking of nothing. Their joint master followed; but soon lay down to sleep. The ass commenced grazing, being at that time in a meadow, the grass of which was very much to his liking. True there were no thistles; but as one must not always be dainty, he overlooked that; and, in the absence of this dish, our donkey knew very well how to make a banquet without it. The dog, dying with hunger, said to him: "Dear comrade, pray stoop a little, that I may get my dinner from your bread-pannier." No reply; the long-eared beast was fearful of losing a bite if he wasted an instant; and remained a long time deaf to his comrade's petition. At length he replied: "Friend, I advise you to wait till our master has taken his nap; when he awakes, he will not fail to give you your usual portion: he will not be long." During this conversation, another famished beast, a wolf, emerging from the forest, approached. The ass immediately called the dog to his assistance, who, without stirring, replied: "Friend, I advise you to fly, until your master wakes, he will not be long, set off at once, and run. What if the wolf overtake you? break his skull, you have been newly shod; and doubtless you will at once make him measure his length." During this sage counsel, Master Wolf effectually strangled the selfish ass.

THE STORK AND THE FOX.

"TELL me something about all the foreign countries you have seen," said the fox to the widely-travelled stork.

Hereupon, the stork began to tell him every lake, and every marsh, where he had feasted on the most delicate worms, and the plumpest frogs.

"What a time you have been in Paris, my friend. Which are the best eatinghouses there? What wines did you like best?"

THE OWL AND THE EAGLE.

NARROW minds think that the system of the universe should have been framed to suit their own predilections and prejudices alone.

sun.

An owl sate blinking in the trunk of a tree, and arraigned the brightness of the "What is the use of its beams," said she, "but to dazzle one's eyes so that one cannot see a mouse? For my part, I am at a loss to conceive for what purpose so glaring an object was created. We had certainly been much better without it."—" O fool!" replied an eagle, perched on a branch of the same tree, "to rail at excellence which thou can'st not taste. Ignorant! the fault is not in the sun, but in thyself. All, it is true, have not faculties to understand, nor powers to enjoy the benefit of it; but must the business and the pleasures of the world be obstructed, that an owl may catch mice?"

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