One fine day a raven found a nice piece of fresh cheese, which he carried away to a favourite resting place on the leafy branch of a beautiful fig-tree. Believing himself to be out of harm’s way, he was about to eat and enjoy his booty, when he heard a well-known voice softly calling to him,—
“Good day, dear friend Raven.”
Whence did the voice come? Lo and behold, at the foot of the fig-tree stood Master Fox, eyeing with a greedy look the raven and the cheese. How to obtain the latter was the thought uppermost in the mind of the crafty fox.
Being unable to climb the tree, he resolved to trick the raven so as to make him drop the cheese. Again Master Fox cried,—
“Good day, dear friend Raven, thou art verily the most beautiful of birds. If all the winged creatures beneath the heavens were gathered around thee, thou wouldst easily excel them all by reason of thy lovely feathers. Moreover, if [[88]]thou wouldst only sing then would thy song surpass the sweetest melody of any other of thy winged companions and thou wouldst become King of the birds.”
The sweet words sank deeply into the raven’s heart and he rejoiced at the prospect of attaining to such undreamt-of greatness. All that he had to do was merely to sing.
Excited with joy and pride he quickly opened his mouth and raising his voice, he tried to sing. Alas! he only croaked; meanwhile the cheese fell from his mouth to the ground. The greedy fox pounced upon the prey and with a joyful cry he said,—
“Dear friend Raven, never again will I listen to the voice of other sweet singers after hearing thy beautiful voice. Pray excuse me, if I hasten away to finish the cheese thou hast so generously given me as a reward for my flattery. Great indeed must be the power of pride since it overcomes the desires of thy appetite.”
(The XIIIth Fable in R. Berachyah’s Fox Fables.)