Chapter V: Usurers and Curryers., 392 (3)

But after all that’s said upon this Subject, of our Mistake, and Punishment, the Great Nicety will lye in Rightly Distinguishing betwixt the _Substance_, and the _Shadow_; and in what degree of Preference the one stands to the other. Now this must be according to _Epictetus’s_ Distribution of Matters, into _what we have in our own Power_; and _what not_; and in Placing things Honest and Necessary, before other Subordinate Satisfactions. _Æsop’s Dog_ here was in the Possession of a very Good Breakfast, and he knew very well what he had in his Mouth; but still, either out of Levity, Curiosity, or Greediness, he must be Chopping at something else, that he neither wanted, nor Understood, till he lost All for a _Shadow_; that is to say, for just nothing at All.

FAB. VII.

A _Lion_, an _Ass_, &c. a Hunting.

A _Lion_, an _Ass_, and some other of their Fellow-Forresters, went a Hunting one day; and every one to go _share and share-like_ in what they took. They pluck’d down a Stag, and cut him up into so many Parts; but as they were entering upon the Dividend, _Hands off_ says the _Lion_: _This_ Part is mine by the Privilege of my _Quality_: _This_, because I’ll have it _in spite of your Teeth_: _This_ again, because I took most _Pains_ for’t; and if you Dispute the _Fourth_, we must e’en Pluck a Crow about it. So the Confederates Mouths were all stopt, and they went away as mute as Fishes.

The MORAL.

_There’s no Entring into Leagues or Partnerships, with those that are either too Powerful, or too crafty for us. He that has the Staff in his Hand will be his own carver._ Bought Wit is Best.

REFLEXION.

Saving the Incongruity of making the _Ass_ a Beast of _Prey_, we are to learn from hence the danger of Unequal Alliances; where the Poor and the Weak lye at the Mercy of the Rich and the Powerful; and no Remedy but Patience and Resignation.

People should have a care how they Engage themselves in Partnerships with Men that are too Mighty for them, whether it be in Mony, Pleasure, or Bus’ness. _Find out something_, says a Court-Minion, and then upon the Discovery, he lays hands on’t for himself. So Says, and so Does the _Lion_ here to the _Ass_ and his Companions. Now this is only a State-way of Fishing with Cormorants. Men in Power, Plunge their Clients into the Mud, with a Ring about their Necks; So that let them bring up what they will, nothing goes down with them that they shall be ever the Better for. And when they come in Conclusion to Cast up the Profit and Loss of the Purchase, or the Project; what betwixt Force, Interest, and Good Manners, the Adventurer scapes well if he can but get off at last with _his Labour for his Pains_.

Ambition, and the Insatiable Thirst of Mony, Greatness, and Glory, know no other Bonds of Justice or Conscience, then the Measures of a Corrupt Appetite. Services are paid with Smoak and Fair Words; and there goes a World of Unprofitable Ceremony to the Mortifying of an Honest Man. Promises and Protestations are only Passages of Course, and meer Expletives; that in the Construction of Civility, and Good Breeding, signifie no more then [_Your Humble Servant Sir._] All, in short, that the _Lion_ says and does, in this Instance, is but according to the Practice of Men in Power in a Thousand other Cases.

FAB. VIII.

A _Wolf_ and a _Crane_.

A _Wolf_ had got a Bone in’s Throat, and could think of no better Instrument to Ease him of it, than the Bill of a _Crane_; so he went and Treated with a _Crane_ to help him out with it, upon Condition of a very considerable Reward for his pains. The _Crane_ did him the Good Office, and then claim’d his Promise. Why how now Impudence! (says t’other) Do you put your Head into the Mouth of a _Wolf_, and then, when y’ave brought it out again safe and sound, do you talk of a Reward? Why Sirrah, you have your Head again, and is not that a Sufficient Recompence?

The MORAL.

_One Good Turn they say requires another: But yet He that has to do with Wild Beasts (as some Men are No Better) and comes of with a Whol Skin, let him Expect No Other Reward._

REFLEXION.

This Fable will bear Divers Morals; as First, That it is but Due Gratitude to be Thankful to our Preservers. Secondly, The _Crane’s_ Good Fortune can hardly Excuse his Facility. And then the _Crane_ did Ill again, to Insist upon a Reward; for a Good Office pays it self; neither was he reasonably to Expect that so Perfidious a Creature should keep Touch with him. Thirdly, Though the _Wolf_ was to blame for not making Good his Promise, there is yet in Equity, a kind of Reward, in not Chopping off his Head when he had it at Mercy.

The Case of the _Crane_ here, is a Case of Conscience; for ’tis a Nice Business to Determine, how far Wicked Men in their Distresses _May_ be Reliev’d; How far they _Ought_ to be Reliev’d; and to what Degree of Loss, Labor, and Difficulty, a Sober, a Wise, and a Good Man may Interpose to their Redress. He may _Give_; he may _Lend_, he may _Venture_, so far as Generosity and Good Nature shall prompt him; provided always that he go no farther than the Conscience of the Cause, or of the Action will Warrant him. A Man is at _Liberty_, ’tis true, to do many Kind and Brave Offices, which he is not _Bound_ to do: And if the Largeness of his Heart shall carry him beyond the Line of Necessary Prudence, we may only reckon upon it as a more Illustrious Weakness.

Here is a Fiction of One _Crane_ that scap’d, that there might not want One Instance of an Encouragement to a Dangerous Act of Charity: But this One Instance is not yet sufficient to justifie the making a Common Practice of it, upon the same Terms. ’Tis possible for One Blot not to be Hit; or to be Over-seen perhaps. And so ’tis as possible for One Ill Man, either not to think of the Mischief he could do, or to slip the Occasion of it; but such a Deliverance however, is a Thing to Thank Providence for, without standing upon a Reward for the Service. The Bone in the Throat of the _Wolf_, may be Understood of any sort of Pinch, or Calamity either in Body, Liberty, or Fortune. How many do we see Daily, Gaping and Struggling with Bones in their Throats, that when they have gotten them drawn out, have Attempted the Ruin of their Deliverers! The World, in short, is full of Practices and Examples to Answer the Intent of this Fable; and there are Thousands of Consciences that will be Touch’d with the Reading of it, whose Names are not written in their Foreheads.

FAB. IX.

A _Countryman_ and a _Snake_.

A _Countryman_ happen’d in a Hard Winter to spy a _Snake_ under a Hedge, that was half Frozen to Death. The Man was Good Natur’d and Took it up, and kept it in his Bosom, till Warmth brought it to Life again; and so soon as ever it was in Condition to do Mischief, it bit the very Man that sav’d the Life on’t. Ah thou Ungrateful Wretch! Says he, Is that Venemous Ill Nature of thine to be Satisfi’d with nothing less then the Ruine of thy Preserver?

The MORAL.

_There are Some Men like Some Snakes; ’Tis Natural to them to be doing Mischief; and the Greater the Benefit on the One side, the More implacable is the Malice on the other._

REFLEXION.

He that takes an Ungrateful Man into his Bosom, is well nigh sure to be Betray’d; and it is no longer Charity, but Folly, to think of Obliging the Common Enemies of Mankind. But ’tis no New thing for good Natur’d Men to meet with Ungrateful Returns. Wherefore Friendships, Charities, and Kindnesses, should be well Weigh’d and Examin’d, as to the Circumstances of Time, Place, Manner, Person, and Proportion, before we Sign and Seal. A Man had much better take a _Tyger_ into his Grounds, then a _Snake_ into his Bosom. How many Examples have we seen with our own Eyes, of Men that have been pick’d up, and Reliev’d out of Starving Necessities, without either Spirit, or Strength to do Mischief, who in requital have afterwards conspir’d against the Life, Honour, and Fortune of their Patrons and Redeemers. Did ever any of these Human _Snakes_ lose their Venom for lying under some Temporary Incapacity of Using it? Will they be ever the less Dangerous and Malicious, when Warmth shall bring them to themselves again; because they were once Frozen and Benumm’d with Cold? The very Credulity Encourages an Abuse, where the Will to do Mischief only waits for the Power, and Opportunity of putting it in Execution. Facility makes the Innocent a Prey to the Crafty: The _Snake_, after his Recovery, is the very same _Snake_ still, that he was at first. How many People have we read of in Story, that after a Pardon for One Rebellion, have been taken in Another with that very Pardon in their Pockets, and the Ink scarce Dry upon the Parchment? Now all this is no more then the _Proverb_ in a _Fable_: _Save a Thief from the Gallows, and he’ll Cut your Throat_.

FAB. X.

A _Lion_ and an _Asse_.

An _Asse_ was so Hardy once, as to fall a Mopping and Braying at a _Lion_. The _Lion_ began at first to shew his Teeth, and to Stomack the Affront; but upon Second Thoughts; Well! (says he) _Jeer on, and be an_ _Asse_ still. Take notice only by the way, that ’tis the Baseness of your Character that has sav’d your Carcass.

The MORAL.

_It is below the Dignity of a Great Mind to Entertain Contests with People that have neither Quality nor Courage: Beside the Folly of Contending with a Miserable Wretch, where the very Competition is a Scandal._

REFLEXION.

Scoundrels are apt to be Insolent toward their Superiours; but it does not yet become a Man of Honour and Wisdom, to Contest with Mean Rascals; and to Answer Every Fool in his Folly. One Indignity is not to be Reveng’d by Another.

The very Contest sets the Master and the Man upon the Same Level; and the _Lion_ was in the Right, not to Cast away his Displeasure upon an _Asse_, where there was only Reputation to be Lost, and None to be Gotten. The very Beasts of the Forrest will Rise up in Judgment against such men. Contempt in such a Case as This, is the only Honorable Revenge.

FAB. XI.

A _City Mouse_ and a _Country Mouse_.

There goes an Old Story of a _Country Mouse_ that Invited a _City-Sister_ of hers to a Country Collation, where she spar’d for Nothing that the Place afforded; as Mouldy Crusts, Cheese-Parings, Musty Oatmeal, Rusty Bacon, and the like. Now the _City-Dame_ was so well bred, as Seemingly to take All in Good Part: But yet at last, Sister (says she, after the Civilest Fashion) why will you be Miserable when you may be Happy? Why will you lie Pining, and Pinching your self in such a Lonesome Starving Course of Life as This is; when ’tis but going to Town along with me; to Enjoy all the Pleasures, and Plenty that your Heart can Wish? This was a Temptation the _Country Mouse_ was not able to Resist; so that away they Trudg’d together, and about Midnight got to their Journeys End. The _City Mouse_ shew’d her Friend the Larder, the Pantry, the Kitchin, and Other Offices where she laid her Stores; and after This, carry’d her into the Parlour, where they found, yet upon the Table, the Reliques of a Mighty Entertainment of That very Night. The _City-Mouse_ Carv’d her Companion of what she lik’d Best, and so to’t they fell upon a Velvet Couch together: The Poor _Bumkin_ that had never seen, nor heard of such Doings before, Bless’d her self at the Change of her Condition, when (as ill luck would have it) all on a Sudden, the Doors flew open, and in comes a Crew of Roaring Bullies, with their Wenches, their Dogs and their Bottles, and put the Poor _Mice_ to their Wits End, how to save their Skins. The Stranger Especially, that had never been at This Sport before; but she made a Shift however for the present, to slink into a Corner, where she lay Trembling and Panting ’till the Company went their Way. So soon as ever the House was Quiet again, Well: My _Court Sister_, says she, If This be the Way of Your _Town-Gamboles_, I’ll e’en back to my Cottage, and my Mouldy Cheese again; for I had much rather lie Knabbing of Crusts, without either Fear or Danger, in my Own Little Hole, then be Mistress of the Whole World with Perpetual Cares and Alarums.

The MORAL.

_The Difference betwixt a Court and a Country Life. The Delights, Innocence, and Security of the One, Compar’d with the Anxiety, the Lewdness, and the Hazards of the Other._

REFLEXION.

The Design of This Fable is to set forth the Advantages of a Private Life, above those of a Publick; which are certainly very Great, if the Blessings of Innocence, Security, Meditation, Good Air, Health, and Sound Sleeps, without the Rages of Wine, and Lust, or the Contagion of Idle Examples, can make them so: For every Thing there, is Natural and Gracious. There’s the Diversion of All Healthful Exercises for the Body; The Entertainment of the Place, and of the Rivers, without any base Interest to Corrupt, either the Virtue, or the Peace of our Lives. He that’s a Slave in the Town is a kind of a Petty Prince in the Country. He loves his Neighbours, without Pride, and lives in Charity with the Whole World. All that he sees is his Own, as to the Delight of it, without Envying the Prosperity. His Doors are not troubled with either Dunns, or Fools, and he has the Sages of All Times in his Cabinet for his Companions. He lives to Himself as well as to the World, without Brawles or Quarrels, of any sort whatsoever. He sees no Bloody Murders; He hears No Blasphemous Execrations; He Lives Free from the Plagues of Jealousie and Envy: And This is the Life in fine, that the Greatest, and the Wisest Men in the World, Have, or would have made Choice of, if Cares and Business had not Hinder’d them from so Great a Blessing.

’Tis against Common Justice to pass Sentence without hearing Both sides: And the Only way to come to a True Estimate upon the Odds betwixt a Publick and a Private Life, is to Try Both. Virtue is only Glorious in the Native Simplicity of it, and while it holds no Communication with Interest, Fancy, Sense, or Ornament: Wherefore _Æsop_ has done Wisely to cast the Issue of the Question upon the Experiment, _Far from_ Jupiter (says the _Adage_) _far from the Thunder_. What signifies the Splendor, and the Luxury of Courts, considering the Slavish Attendances, the Invidious Competitions, and the Mortal Disappointments that go along with it. The Frowns of Princes, and the Envy of those that Judge by Hearsay, or Appearance; without either Reason, or Truth! To say nothing of the Innumerable Temptations, Vices, and Excesses, of a Life of Pomp, and Pleasure. Let a man but set the Pleasing of his Palate against the Surfeits of Gluttony and Excess, The Starving of his Mind against a Pamper’d Carcase; The Restless Importunities of Tale-bearers and Back Friends, against Fair Words and Professions only from the Teeth outward: Let him, I say, but set the One in Ballance against the Other, and he shall find himself Miserable, even in the very Glutt of his Delights. To say All in a Word; Let him but set the Comforts of a Life spent in Noise, Formality, and Tumult, against the Blessings of a Retreat with Competency and Freedom, and then Cast up his Account.

What Man then, that is not stark Mad, will Voluntarily Expose himself to the Imperious Brow-beatings and Scorns of Great Men! to have a Dagger struck to his Heart in an Embrace; To be torn to pieces by Calumny, nay to be a Knave in his own Defence! for the Honester the Worse, in a Vicious Age, and where ’tis a Crime not to be like the Company. Men of that Character are not to be Read, and Understood by their Words, but by their Interests; their Promises and Protestations are no longer Binding then while they are Profitable. But _Baudoin_ has done so well upon this Fable, that there needs no more to be said to’t.

FAB. XII.

A _Crow_ and a _Muscle_.

There was one of Your _Royston-Crows_, that lay Battering upon a _Muscle_, and could not for his Blood break the Shell to come at the Fish. A _Carrion-Crow_, in this _Interim_, comes up, and tells him, that what he could not do by Force, he might do by Stratagem. Take this _Muscle_ up in the Air, says the _Crow_, as High as you can carry it, and then let him fall upon that Rock there; His Own Weight, You shall see, shall break him. The _Roystoner_ took his Advice, and it succeeded accordingly; but while the One was upon Wing, the Other stood Lurching upon the Ground, and flew away with the Fish.

The MORAL.

Charity begins at Home, _they say; and most People are kind to their Neighbours for their Own sakes_.

REFLEXION.

It is no longer an Amity of Virtue, but of Design, when we seek our Own Interest, under Colour of obliging Others; and men of Frankness and Simplicity, are the most easily Impos’d upon, where they have Craft and Treachery to deal withal. The Imposture, in Truth, can hardly Miscarry, where there is a full Confidence on the One side, and a Plausible Address and Disposition on the Other; wherefore ’tis good to be Wary, but so as not to be Inexorable, where there is but any place for Charity it self to hope for better Things; Not but that a Supine, Credulous Facility exposes a man to be both a Prey, and a Laughing-stock, at once. ’Tis not for us to judg of the good Faith of mens Intentions, but by the Light we receive from their Works. We may set up this for a Rule however, that where the Adviser is to be evidently the Better for the Council, and the Advised, in Manifest Danger to be the worse for’t, there’s no Medling. The _Crow’s_ Counsel was good enough in it self; but it was given with a fraudulent Intention.

FAB. XIII.

A _Fox_ and a _Raven_.

A Certain _Fox_ spy’d out a _Raven_ upon a Tree with a Morsel in his mouth, that set his Chops a watering; but how to come at it was the Question. O thou Blessed Bird! (says he) the Delight of Gods, and of Men! and so he lays himself forth upon the Gracefulness of the _Ravens_ Person, and the Beauty of his Plumes; His Admiral Gift of _Augury_, &c. And now, says the _Fox_, If thou hadst but a Voice answerable to the rest of thy Excellent Qualities, the Sun in the Firmament could not shew the World such Another Creature. This Nauseous Flattery sets the _Raven_ immediately a Gaping as Wide as ever he could stretch, to give the _Fox_ a taste of his Pipe; but upon the Opening of his Mouth he drops his Breakfast, which the _Fox_ presently Chopt up, and then bad him remember, that whatever he had said of his _Beauty_, he had spoken nothing yet of his _Brains_.

The MORAL.

_There’s hardly any Man living that may not be wrought upon more or less by Flattery: For we do all of us Naturally Overween in our Own Favour: But when it comes to be Apply’d once to a Vain Fool, it makes him forty times an Arranter Sot than he was before._

REFLEXION.

This Fable shews us the Danger and the Nature of Flattery. It calls Good Things by Ill Names, and Ill by Good; but it will never be out of Credit, so long as there are Knaves to Give it, and Fools to Take it. It is never more Pernicious then in the Courts of Great Princes, because a good deal of it looks like Duty; as in private Cases, it carries a face of Friendship. The way to Rise is to Please, and whatever is gotten by’t, comes by Treachery. ’Tis a Design that endangers both Body, Soul, and Estate; and not One man of a Million that’s Proof against it. But Great and Good Men will rather look for their Character in the Writings and Precepts of the Philosophers, then in the _Hyperboles_ of their Flatteries. For they know very well that _Wise Books_ are the Only _True Friends_.

There’s a Fawning, Crafty Knave, and a Vain Easie Fool, well met, in this Fable of the _Fox_ and the _Raven_; which is no more at last, then One sort of Rascal _Cajoling_ Another; And then to shew us, both that Impudence will stick at nothing, and that a Self-Conceited Fop will swallow Any thing, the _Raven’s_ Beauty forsooth, and his Voice are the _Topiques_, that _Reynard_ has made choice of to Dilate upon. The two main Ends of Flattery, are Profit, or Safety, though there are many others too that are less Principal; but in some respect or other, Reducible to these Heads. The One is too Mercenary, and the other too Servile, for a man of Worth. There are also several sorts and degrees of it under this Division; and divers ways of Address and Application. But _Flattery_ is _Flattery_ still, and the Moral extends to All.

’Tis in it self an Unmanly, Slavish Vice; but it is much Worse yet for the Alliance it has to _Hypocrisie_: for while we make other people think Better of themselves then they Deserve, we make them think Better of Us too then We Deserve: For Self-love and Vanity on the One hand, Assists the Falseness and Confidence on the Other, while it serves to confirm weak Minds in the Opinion they had of Themselves before; and makes them Parties, effectually, in a Conspiracy, to their Own Ruin. The Measures, and the Artifices of it are Many, and in divers Cases so like Sincerity, that what betwixt Custom, and the Nature of the Thing, it looks, in truth, like a Virtue, and a Duty; that is to say, where it is so manag’d, as to be rather Instructive then puffing up. As for Example, for a body to say, [_This or That was Wisely foreseen_,] Or [_You intend, I presume, to go This or That Way to Work_:] and the like. Such an Insinuation as this is, carries the Force in it of a Tacite, and a prudent Advice; for it both serves to point out the Reason of the thing, and it preserves the Decency of that Respect which ought to go along with it. ’Tis a good Hint, the very suggesting of such or such a Precaution, though the consideration perhaps never came near the t’others Thoughts. But there is a certain Habitual Meanness of Soul, which has so far prevail’d in the World, that Common Civility is no less tainted by Course and Custom, then Friendship and Conversation is by Corruption.

It is the Parasites Art to cast himself into all Shapes that may sort with the Figure of his Patron, in what Post, Function, or Administration soever; and to frame the Air and Countenance of his Words, Looks, and Actions accordingly, with a respect to his Power, Wisdom, Conduct, Bravery, Generosity, Justice, or what other Subject he thinks fit to treat upon. So that let him be never so Perfidious, Shallow, Rash, Timorous, Envious, Malicious, Proud, Covetous, _&c._ a Little _Court Holy Water_ Washes off all Stains. And what is this upon the Main now, but an Exchange of Air for Substance, and parting with All that either is, or ought to be Dear to us, for a Song? The Flatterer, first Counsels his Patron to his Loss; and then betrays him into the making himself Ridiculous; as what can be more so, then for a _Raven_ to Value Himself upon his _Croaking_, or an _Asse_ upon his _Braying_? The only Benefit, or Good of Flattery is this; that by Hearing what we are _Not_, we may be Instructed what we _Ought_ to be.

FAB. XIV.

An _Old Lion_.

A _Lion_ that in the Days of his Youth and Strength, had been very Outragious and Cruel, came in the end to be Reduced by Old Age, and Infirmity, to the last Degree of Misery, and Contempt: Insomuch that All the Beasts of the Forrest; some out of Insolence, others in Revenge, some in fine, upon One Pretence, some upon Another, fell upon him by Consent. He was a Miserable Creature to all Intents and Purposes; but Nothing went so near the Heart of him in his Distress, as to find himself Batter’d by the Heel of an _Asse_.

The MORAL.

_A Prince that does not secure Friends to Himself while he is in Power and Condition to oblige them, must never expect to find Friends, when he is Old and Impotent, and no longer Able to do them any Good. If he Governs Tyrannically in his Youth, he will be sure to be Treated Contemptuously in his Age; and the Baser his Enemies are, the more Insolent, and Intollerable will be the Affront._

REFLEXION.

This may serve for a Lesson to men in Power, that they Treasure up Friends in their Prosperity, against a time of Need; for He that does not Secure himself of a stock of Reputation in his Greatness, shall most Certainly fall Unpity’d in his Adversity: And the Baser his Enemies are, the more insupportable is the Insolence, and the forwarder will they be to Trample upon him.

The Case of this Miserable _Old Lion_ may serve to put Great Men in mind, that the Wheel of Time, and of Fortune is still Rolling, and that they themselves are to lie down at last in the Grave with Common Dust; And without anything to support them in their Age, but the Reputation, Virtue and Conscience of a well-spent Youth. Nay Age it self, is well-nigh sufficient to Deface every Letter and Action in the History of a Meritorious Life. For Old Services are Bury’d under the Ruins of an Old Carcass: but there are None yet that fall so Unpitied; so Just, so Necessary, and so Grateful a Sacrifice to the Rage and Scorn of common People, as those that have rais’d themselves upon the Spoils of the Publick: Especially when that Oppression is Aggravated with a Wanton Cruelty, and with Blood and Rapine, for the very love of Wickedness. It is a kind of Arrogance, in such a case, to be Honest, where ’tis both a Fashion, and a Credit to be the contrary.

The _Lion_ is here upon his Death Bead; Not a Friend left him, nor so much as an Enemy, with either Fangs or Claws, that does not stand Gaping and Waiting for a Collop of him. Here he lies, Faint, Poor, and Defenceless, under the Judgment of Divine Vengeance, and the Animadversion of Humane Justice, both at once; stung in his own Thoughts with the guilty Remembrance of the Pride and Riot of his Youth, Abandon’d and Despis’d, by the Righteous Retaliation of Heaven it self: All his Sins, as well as all his Adversaries; his Frauds, and Cruelties; Broken Vows, Promises and Contracts, his Tyranny and Hypocrisie, and the Iniquity, in fine, of all his Councels, and Practices, for the Ruine of the Guiltless flying in the Face of him.

FAB. XV.

An _Asse_ and a _Whelp_.

A Gentleman had got a Favourite _Spaniel_, that would be still Toying and Leaping upon him, Licking his Cheeks, and playing a Thousand pretty Gamboles, which the Master was well enough pleas’d withall. This Wanton Humour succeeded so well with the _Puppy_, that an _Asse_ in the House would needs go the same Gamesome Way to Work, to Curry favour for Himself too; but he was quickly given to understand, with a Good Cudgel, the Difference betwixt the One Play-Fellow and the Other.

The MORAL.

_People that live by Example, should do well to look very Narrowly into the Force and Authority of the President, without Saying, or Doing Things at a Venture: for that may Become One Man, which would be Absolutely Intolerable in Another, under Differing Circumstances._

REFLEXION.

Under the Allegory of the _Asse_, is Insinuated the Licence of a _Buffon_. There’s Mischief and Scandal in the very Sport, and Humour of it. There are some men that seem to have Brutal Minds wrapt up in Humane Shapes, Their very Caresses are Rude and Importune, and with _Æsop’s Asse_ here, their very Complements deserve a Correction, rather then an Encouragement, or a Reward.

All Creatures have somewhat in them peculiar to their Several _Species_; and that Practice is still the Best which is most Consonant to the Nature of them, by a Common Instinct. The _Fawnings_ of an _Asse_ are as Unnatural as the _Brayings_ would be of a _Dog_, and a man would as soon Chuse him for his Bed-fellow as for his Play-fellow. He that follows Nature is never out of his Way; and that which is Best for every Man is Fittest for him too. He does it with Ease and Success, whereas all Imitation is Puti’d, and Servile.

FAB. XVI.

A _Lion_ and a _Mouse_.

Upon the Roaring of a Beast in the Wood, a _Mouse_ ran presently out to see what News: and what was it, but a _Lion_ Hamper’d in a Net! This Accident brought to her mind, how that she her self, but some few Days before, had fall’n under the Paw of a Certain Generous _Lion_, that let her go again. Upon a Strict Enquiry into the Matter, she found This to be that very _Lion_; and so set her self presently to Work upon the Couplings of the Net; Gnaw’d the Threds to pieces, and in Gratitude Deliver’d her Preserver.

The MORAL.

_Without Good Nature, and Gratitude, Men had as good live in a Wilderness, as in a Society. There is no Subject so Inconsiderable, but his Prince, at some time or Other, may have Occasion for him, and it holds through the Whole Scale of the Creation, that the Great and the Little have Need one of Another._

REFLEXION.

There is nothing so Little, but Greatness may come to Stand in need on’t, and therefore Prudence and Discretion ought to have a place in Clemency, as well as in Piety and Justice. ’Tis _Doing as we would be done by_; and the Obligation is yet stronger, when there is Gratitude, as well as Honour and Good Nature in the Case. The Generosity of the Lion, and the Gratitude of the _Mouse_; The Power, the Dignity, and the Eminence of the One, and the Meanness of the Other; do all Concur to the making of this a very Instructive Fable. Who would have thought that Providence should ever have laid the Life of a _Lion_ at the Mercy of a _Mouse_? But the Divine Wisdom that brings the greatest Ends to pass by the most Despicable Means, Orders the Reward of Virtue, and the punishment of Vice, by Ways only known to it self, in token of an Approbation of the One and a Dislike of the Other.

Here’s a Recommendation of Clemency and Wisdom, Both in One; for the _Lion_, in sparing the Life of the _Mouse_, sav’d his Own; and has left us in this Fable, an Instance of a Grateful Beast, that will stand upon Record to the Confusion of many an Ungrateful Man; that is to say, against those that in their Prosperity forget their Friends, that to their Loss and Hazard, stood by and succour’d them in their Adversity. This is a Sin of so odious and Dangerous an Example, that it puts even Piety, and Gratitude it self out of Countenance. And then the Tenderness on the other side, is Matter of Interest, and ordinary Prudence, as well as of Virtue. If this _Lion_ had kill’d the _Mouse_, what would the _other Mice_ have said or Done afterwards, when they should have found the same _Lion_ in the Toil? [Have a care Good People; for this is he that killed our Sister, and we cannot save His Life, without Hazarding our Own. If the Huntsman Kill Him, we are sure he will never Kill Us; Beside that we shall have one Enemy the fewer for’t, when he’s gone.] Now the Reason of _Æsops Mouse_ here, works quite Another way. This _Lion_, (says he) gave Me my Life, when he had it at Mercy, and it is now My Turn, and Duty, to do what I can to preserve His. No Flesh, in fine, can be so Great, as not to tremble under the Force, and Consequences of this President.

FAB. XVII.

A _Sick Kite_ and her _Mother_.

Pray _Mother_, (says a Sick _Kite_) Give over these Idle Lamentations, and let me rather have your Prayers. Alas! my Child, (says the Dam) which of the Gods shall I go to, for a Wretch that has Robb’d All their Altars?

The MORAL.

_Nothing but the Conscience of a Virtuous Life can make Death Easie to us; Wherefore there’s No trusting to the Distraction of an Agonizing, and a Death-bed Repentance._

REFLEXION.

The _Kite’s_ Death-bed Devotion and Repentance works like the Charity and Piety of a great many Penitents we meet with in the World; that after the Robbing of Temples, the prophaning of Altars, and other Violences of Rapine and Oppression, Build an Hospital perhaps, or some little Alms-House, out of the Ruins of the Church, and the spoils of Widows and Orphans; put up a Bill for the Prayers of the Congregation; Wipe their Mouths, and All’s well again. But ’tis not for a Wicked Life to trust to the Hazzards of an Uncertain State, and Disposition at the Point of Death. When Men come to that Last Extremity once, by Languor, Pain, or Sickness; and to lie Agonizing betwixt Heaven and Hell, under the stroke either of a Divine Judgment, or of Human Frailty, they are not commonly to sensible of their Wickedness, or so Effectually touch’d with the remorse of a true Repentance, as they are Distracted with the terrors of Death, and the Dark Visionary Apprehensions of what’s to come. People in that Condition do but discharge themselves of Burdensom Reflexions, as they do of the _Cargo_ of a Ship at Sea that has sprung a Leak: Every thing is done in a Hurry, and men only part with their Sins in the one Case, as they do with their _Goods_ in the other; to Fish them up again, so soon as the Storm is over. Grace must be very strong in these Conflicts, wholly to Vanquish the weaknesses of Distressed Nature. That certainly is none of the time to make Choice of for the Great Work of reconciling our selves to Heaven, when we are divided, and confounded betwixt an Anguish of Body, and of Mind: And the Man is worse then Mad that Ventures his Salvation upon that Desperate Issue. We have abundance of these _Sick Kites_ in the World, that after a Sacrilegious Life, spent in the Robbing of the Church, would willingly be thought to Die in the Bosom of it.

FAB. XVIII.

A _Swallow_ and other _Birds_.

There was a country Fellow at work a Sowing his Grounds, and a _Swallow_ (being a Bird famous for Providence and Foresight) call’d a company of _Little Birds_ about her, and bad ’em take Good Notice what that Fellow was a doing. You must know (says the _Swallow_) that all the Fowlers Nets and Snares are made of _Hemp_, or _Flax_; and that’s the Seed that he is now a Sowing. Pick it up in time for fear of what may come on’t. In short, they put it off, till it took Root; and then again, till it was sprung up into the Blade. Upon this, the _Swallow_ told ’em once for All, that it was not yet too Late to prevent the Mischief, if they would but bestir themselves, and set Heartily about it; but finding that no heed was given to what she said; She e’en bad adieu to her old Companions in the Woods, and so betook her self to a City Life, and to the Conversation of Men. This _Flax_ and _Hemp_ came in time to be gather’d, and Wrought, and it was this _Swallows_ Fortune to see Several of the very same _Birds_ that she had forewarn’d, taken in Nets, made of the very Stuff she told them of. They came at last to be Sensible of the folly of slipping their Opportunity; but they were Lost beyond All Redemption first.

The MORAL.

_Wise Men read Effects in their Causes, but Fools will not Believe them till ’tis too late to prevent the Mischief. Delay in these Cases is Mortal._

REFLEXION.

Many and Many a time has this been our own Case, both publick and private, when we would not Believe the Danger of things ’till the Evil was come upon us: But Good Counsel is cast away, upon the Arrogant, and Self conceited, or the stupid, who are either too Proud to take it, or too Heavy to Understand it.

The Sowing of _Hemp-Seed_, and of _Plot-seed_ is much at one. The Design, and the End are Destruction, Both Alike. The _Swallow_ proposes the Preventing of ill Consequences in their Causes, and Obviating the Mischief betimes: But that Counsel is either thrown off with a Raillery, or not minded at all: _Governours would have enough to do, they Cry, to trouble their Heads with the Politiques of every Medling Officious Impertinent_. Well, It takes Root; shews it self in the Blade, Advances, and Ripens: And still the _Swallow_ is but the same Fool over again, for continuing the same Advice. The Hemp comes at last to be pluckt up, Pill’d, Dress’d, and Spun; The Nets and Snares made and laid; and yet all this while the _Birds_ could never find a time to Bethink themselves, till they came to be Hamper’d, and Ruined past Recovery.

What is all this but a perfect Emblem of the Method of Destroying Kingdoms and States. Cautions, or the common Ways of Anticipating, or Defeating Conspiracies, are below the Wisdom of men of _Intrigue_, and _Cabal_; till at last, a Faction comes to be too hard for the Government. Now whether this befals a Kingdom by Envy, Ignorance, Conspiracy, Treachery, or Presumption, it comes all to a case, so long as it does the Work. It is the Bane of Society, and in truth, even of particular Persons too, when betwixt Laziness and Neglect, men slip all the Opportunities, with the _Birds_ here in the Fable, of a Safe, and of a Happy Life.

FAB. XIX.

The _Frogs_ Chuse a _King_.

In the days of Old, when the _Frogs_ were All at liberty in the Lakes, and grown quite Weary of living without Government, they Petition’d _Jupiter_ for a _King_, to the End that there might be some Distinction of Good and Evil, by Certain Equitable Rules and Methods of Rewards and Punishment. _Jupiter_, that knew the Vanity of their Hearts, threw them down a _Log_ for their Governour; which upon the first Dash, frighted the whole _Mobile_ of them into the Mudd for the very fear on’t. This _Panick_ Terror kept them in Awe for a while, till in good time one _Frog_, Bolder then the Rest, put up his Head, and look’d about him, to see how squares went with their _New King_. Upon This, he calls his Fellow-Subjects together; Opens the truth of the Case; and Nothing would serve them then, but Riding a-top of him; Insomuch that the Dread they were in before, is now turn’d into Insolence, and Tumult. _This King_, they said, was too _Tame_ for them, and _Jupiter_ must needs be entreated to send ’em Another: He did so, but, Authors are divided upon it, whether ’twas a _Stork_, or a _Serpent_; though whether of the Two soever it was, he left them neither Liberty, nor Property, but made a Prey of his Subjects. Such was their Condition in fine, that they sent _Mercury_ to _Jupiter_ yet once again for _Another King_, whose Answer was This: _They that will not be Contented when they are Well, must be Patient when things are Amiss with them_: and People had better Rest where they are, than go farther, and fare Worse.

The MORAL.

_The_ Mobile _are uneasie without a Ruler: They are as Restless with one; and the oftner they shift, the Worse they Are; So that Government, or No Government; a King of God’s Making, or of the Peoples, or none at all; the Multitude are never to be satisfied_.

REFLEXION.

This Fable, under the Emblem of the _Frogs_, sets forth the Murmuring and the Unsteadiness of the Common People; that in a State of Liberty will have a _King_: They do not like him when they have him, and so Change again, and grow Sicker of the Next, then they were of the Former. Now the Bus’ness is only this: They are never satisfy’d with their present Condition; but their Governours are still either too Dull, or too Rigid. ’Tis a Madness for Him that’s Free, to put himself into a state of Bondage, and rather then bear a Less Misfortune to Hazzard a Greater.

This Allusion of the _Frogs_ runs upon All Four (as they say) in the Resemblance of the Multitude, both for the Humour, the Murmur, the Importunity, and the subject matter of the Petition. Redress of Grievances is the Question, and the Devil of it is, that the Petitioners are never to be pleas’d. In one Fit they cannot be _Without Government_: In Another they cannot bear the _Yoke_ on’t. They find Absolute Freedom to be a Direct State of War; for where there’s no Means of either preventing Strife, or Ending it, the Weaker are still a Prey to the Stronger. _One King_ is too _Soft_, and _Easie_ for them; _Another_ too _Fiery_! And then a _Third_ Change would do better they think. Now ’tis Impossible to satisfie people that would have they know not what. They Beg and Wrangle, and Appeal, and their Answer is at last, that if they shift again, they shall be still Worse; By which, the Frogs are given to Understand the very truth of the Matter, as we find it in the World, both in the Nature, and Reason of the Thing, and in Policy and Religion; which is, That _Kings are from God_, and that it is a Sin, a Folly, and a Madness, to struggle with his Appointments.

FAB. XX.

The _Kite_, _Hawk_, and _Pigeons_.

The _Pigeons_ finding themselves Persecuted by the _Kite_, made Choice of the _Hawk_ for their Guardian. The _Hawk_ sets up for their Protector; but under Countenance of That Authority, makes more Havock in the _Dove-House_ in Two Days, then the _Kite_ could have done in Twice as many Months.

The MORAL.

_’Tis a Dangerous Thing for People to call in a powerful and Ambitious man for their Protector; and upon the Clamour of here and there a Private person, to hazard the Whole Community._

REFLEXION.

It is Highly Dangerous, and Imprudent, for a People in War to call in an Enemy-Prince to their Defence. There’s no Trusting a Perfidious Man, nor any Enmity like the Pretended Protection of a Treacherous Friend.

There is no Living in this World without Inconveniences, and therefore People should have the Wit, or the Honesty, to take up with the Least, and to bear the Lot, which is not to be Avoided, with Honour, and Patience. How many Experiments have been made in the Memory of Man, both in Religion, and in State, to mend Matters, upon pretence that they were _Uneasie_, by making them _Intolerable_. And whence is This, but from a Mistaken Opinion of the Present, and as False a Judgment of the Future! And all for want of Rightly Understanding the Nature and the Condition of Things, and for want of Foresight into Events. But we are Mad upon Variety, and so Sick of the Present, (how much soever Without, or Against Reason) that we Abandon the Wisdom, and the Providence of Heaven, and Fly from the Grievances of God’s Appointment, to Blind Chance for a Remedy. This Fable in One Word was never more Exactly Moralized then in our Broils of Famous Memory.

The _Kite_ was the _Evil Councellor_; The _Free-Born People_ that Complain’d of them were _Pigeons_; The _Hawk_ was the Power or Authority that they Appeal’d to for Protection. And what did all this come to at Last? The very _Guardians_ that took upon them to Rescue the _Pigeons_ from the _Kite_, destroy’d the Whole _Dove-House_, devour’d the Birds, and shar’d the Spoil amongst Themselves.

FAB. XXI.

A _Dog_ and a _Thief_.

As a Gang of _Thieves_ were at work to Rob a House, a _Mastiff_ took the Alarum, and fell a Baying: One of the Company spoke him fair, and would have Stopt his Mouth with a Crust: No, says the _Dog_, This will not do, for Several Reasons. First, I’ll take no Bribes to betray my master. Secondly, I am not such a fool neither, as to sell the Ease and Liberty of my Whole Life to come, for a piece of Bread in Hand: For when you have Rifled my Master; pray who shall Maintain Me?

The MORAL.

_Fair Words, Presents, and Flatteries, are the Methods of Treachery in Courts, as well as in Cottages, only the Dogs are Truer to their Masters then the Men._

REFLEXION.

When Ill Men take up a Fit of Kindness all on a sudden, and appear to be Better Natur’d then Usual, ’tis Good Discretion to suspect Fraud, and to lay their Words, and their Practices together: The Greater the Trust, the Greater is the Treachery, and the Baser is the Villany too. This Moral reaches to All sorts of Trustees whatsoever.

It were well if All _Two-Footed Servants_ were but as Faithful to their Masters as This _Four-Legg’d Animal_. A Loaf of Bread was as much to Him as a Bag of _Guineas_ to a Great-Officer; And why should not the One make as much Conscience of Betraying his Patron for Gold, as the Other of doing it for a Crust? Beside the Right Reasoning of the _Dog_ upon the Consequence of Things. _If I take Your Bread_, (says he) _You’ll Rob my Master_. But in the Other case it is not so much a Deliberation of what will follow upon’t, as a kind of Tacit Composition, that does as good as say [_For so much Mony I’ll shut my Eyes, and let You Rob my Master._] Here’s an _Emblem_ now, of the Foresight, Fidelity, and Duty of a Trusty Servant, on the One hand, and of the Flattery, Arts and Practices that are Employ’d by Evil Men to Corrupt him, on the Other.

Under the figure of This Faithful Trusty Servant, is Couch’d a Lecture to All men of Business; let them be Councellors, Confidents, Favourites, Officers, Soldiers, Traders, or what you will. For there are Good and Bad of All Kinds and Professions. So that _Æsop’s Dog_ is a Reproche to _False Men_. Publick Persons have their ways of Temptation, and Address, as well as Private; And He that Suffers a Government to be Abus’d by Carlesness, or Neglect, does the Same thing, with Him that Maliciously and Corruptly sets himself to Couzen it. This holds as well too in the Private Case, of being either Principal or Accessary to the Robbing of a House; Only the Former, is a Treachery of a Deeper Dye. There are Loaves at the Gates of Courts and Palaces, as well as at the Door of a Cottage; and to Encourage the Abuse, there are a Thousand Quirks to avoid the Stroke of the Law, though None to Avoid the Guilt of the Sin. There needs no Contract Express; No Explicit Confederacy; for the Consent, and the Assistance is Imply’d in receiving the Present; Or according to the Word in Fashion, the [_Acknowledgment_:] which is only a softer Name for a _Bribe_. Now this _Acknowledgment_ is of the Nature of a Direct Bargain, where the Sum, or the Reward is agreed upon before the Thing be done; though there’s room yet for a Distinction, even in These Cases, betwixt what’s done Openly and Barefac’d, and a Thing that’s done in _Hugger mugger_, under a Seal of Secrecy and Concealment. But the Conscience at last is the Best Judg of the Fraud. And without any more Words, the _Dog_ in the Fable perform’d All the Parts of a _Trusty Servant_.

FAB. XXII.

A _Wolf_ and a _Sow_.

A Wolf came to a Sow that was just lying down, and very kindly offer’d to take care of her Litter. The Sow as Civilly thank’d her for her Love, and desir’d she would be pleas’d to stand off a little, and do her the Good Office at a Distance.

The MORAL.

_There are no Snares so Dangerous as those that are laid for us under the Name of Good Offices._

REFLEXION.

All Men are to be Believ’d, or Trusted in All Cases; for People, Generally Speaking, are kind to their Neighbours for their Own Sakes. [_Timeo Danaos, & Dona Ferentes_] A Wise Man will keep himself upon his Guard against the whole World, and more Especially, against a Known Enemy; but most of All, against that Enemy in the Shape of a Friend. As the _Sow_ had more Wit then to Entertain a _Wolf_ for her _Nurse_.

FAB. XXIII.

A _Mountain_ in _Labour_.

When _Mountains_ cry out, people may well be Excus’d the Apprehension of some Prodigious Birth. This was the Case here in the Fable. The Neighbourhood were All at their Wits end, to consider what would be the Issue of That Labour, and instead of the Dreadful Monster that they Expected, Out comes at last a Ridiculous _Mouse_.

The MORAL.

_Much ado about Nothing._

REFLEXION.

What are All the Extravagant Attempts and Enterprizes of Vain Men in the World, but Morals, more or less of this Fable? What are Mighty Pretences without Consideration, or Effect; but the Vapours of a Distemper, that like Sickly Dreams, have neither Issue nor Connexion; And the Disappointment is not all neither; for Men make themselves Ridiculous, instead of Terrible, when this _Tympany_ shall come to End in a _Blast_: and a _Mountain_ to bring forth a _Mouse_.

FAB. XXIV.

An _Asse_ and an _Ungrateful Master_.

A Poor _Asse_, that what with Age, Labour, and Hard Burdens, was now worn out to the Stumps in the Service of an _Unmerciful Master_, had the Ill Hap one day to make a False Step, and to fall down under his Load. His Driver runs up to him Immediately, and Beats him almost to Death for’t. This (says the _Asse_ to himself) is according to the Course of the Ungrateful World. One Casual Slip is enough to Weigh down the Faithful and Affectionate Service of a Long Life.

FAB. XXV.

An _Old Dog_ and his _Master_.

An _Old Dog_, that in his Youth had led his _Master_ many a Merry Chase, and done him all the Offices of a Trusty Servant, came at last, upon falling from his Speed and Vigor, to be Loaden at every turn with Blows and Reproches for’t. Why Sir, (says the _Dog_) My Will is as Good as ever it was; but my Strength and my Teeth are gone; and you might with as good a Grace, and Every jot as much Justice, Hang me up because I’m _Old_, as Beat me because I’m _Impotent_.

The MORAL of the Two FABLES above.

_The Reward of Affection and Fidelity must be the Work of another World: Not but that the Conscience of Well Doing is a Comfort that may pass for a Recompence even in This; in Despite of Ingratitude and Injustice._

REFLEXION.

These Fables are a Reproof to the Ungrateful Cruelty of those, that will neither forgive One Slip, nor Reward a Thousand Services, but take more Notice of a Particular Unlucky Accident, then of a General Laudable Practice. But One Stumble is enough to Deface the Character of an Honourable Life. It is a Barbarous Inhumanity in Great Men to Old Servants, to make the Failings of Age to be a Crime, without allowing the Past Services of Their Strength and Youth, to have been a Virtue. And this is found in Governments, as well as in Courts, and Private Families; with Masters and Mistresses, as well as in States.