Page:The Book of the Thousand Nights and One Night, Vol 3.djvu/58

42 THE SPARROW AND THE EAGLE.

A sparrow was once hovering over a sheep-fold, when he saw a great eagle swoop down upon a lamb and carry it off in his claws. Thereupon the sparrow clapped his wings and said, “I will do even as the eagle hath done;” and he conceited himself and aped a greater than he. So he flew down forthright and lighted on the back of a fat ram, with a thick fleece that was become matted, by his lying in his dung and stale, till it was like felt. As soon as the sparrow lighted on the sheep’s back, he clapped his wings and would have flown away, but his feet became tangled in the wool and he could not win free. All this while the shepherd was looking on, having seen as well what happened with the eagle as with the sparrow; so he came up to the latter in a rage and seized him. Then he plucked out his wing-feathers and tying his feet with a twine, carried him to his children and threw him to them. “What is this?” asked they and he answered, “This is one that aped a greater than himself and came to grief.” Now thou, O fox,’ continued the crow, ‘art like this and I would have thee beware of aping a greater than thou, lest thou perish. This is all I have to say to thee; so go from me in peace.’ When the fox despaired of the crow’s friendship, he turned away, groaning and gnashing his teeth for sorrow and disappointment, which when the crow heard, he said to him, ‘O fox, why dost thou gnash thy teeth?’ ‘Because I find thee wilier than myself,’ answered the fox and made off to his den.”

“O Shehrzad,” said the Sultan, “how excellent and delightful are these thy stories! Hast thou more of the like edifying tales?” “It is said,” answered she, “that