Twistales

One hot summer’s day, a traveller hired a donkey to carry him. At noon the sun’s heat was so scorching that he dismounted and wanted to relax under the donkey’s shadow. But the driver of the donkey claimed that he had equal rights to the spot and wanted to sit there, too. “What! cried the…

Three bulls were such great friends that they always grazed together in the same field. A lion had watched them for many days with longing in his eyes in the hope of seizing them for his prize, but he found that there was little chance so long as they all kept together. Therefore, he secretly…

A thrifty old widow had two hired maids whom she used to call to work at the first crow of the cock. The maids hated getting up so early in the morning and decided to wring the cock’s neck, since he was the one who woke their mistress and was the cause of all their…

After putting on a lion’s skin, an ass roamed about and amused himself by frightening all the foolish animals encountered. Upon meeting a fox, he tried to scare him as well, but once Reynard heard his voice, he said, “I would’ve been frightened, too, but your braying gave you away.” Old Learning: Those who assume…

A crow was jealous of a swan’s white feathers, and he thought that her beauty was due to the water in which she lived. Therefore, he deserted the altars, where he used to find his livelihood, and flew to the ponds and streams. After arriving, he plumed himself and washed his coat, but it was…

To make sure that his property would always remain safe and protected, a miser sold all that he had and converted it into one great lump of gold, which he hid in a hole in the ground. Since he went there continually to visit and inspect it, one of his workers became curious and suspected…

Once Mercury wished to learn what men thought about him. So he disguised himself as a traveller and entered a sculptor’s workshop, where he began asking the price of the different statues he saw there. Pointing to an image of Jupiter, he asked how much the sculptor wanted for it. “A drachma,” said the sculptor.…

A man who went out to hunt lions in a forest met a woodcutter, and he asked him whether he had seen any lion’s tracks and whether he knew where the lion’s den was. “Yes” said the man, “and if you’ll come with me. I’ll show you the lion himself.” Upon hearing this, the hunter…

A crow had snatched a large piece of cheese from a window sill and was now perched securely on a high tree, about to enjoy her prize. A fox spied the dainty morsel in her beak and tried to think of a way to make it his. “Oh crow,” he said, “how beautiful your wings…

As some travellers were walking along a sea shore, they came to a high cliff, and looking out at the sea, they saw a log floating at some distance. At first they thought it must be a large ship, and so they waited in hope of seeing it enter the harbour. But as the log…