The Dog in the Manger馬槽中的狗

　　A DOG lay in a manger， and by his growling and snapping   prevented the oxen from eating the hay which had been placed for   them.   “What a selfish Dog！” said one of them to his companions； “he  cannot eat the hay himself， and yet refuses to allow those to eat  who can.”

　　一條狗躺在馬槽中，不停地叫，不讓馬吃干草。一匹馬對同伴說：“這條狗太自私了！ 他自己不會吃干草，還不讓會吃的去吃。”

　　這故事是說那些總是不愿別人得到好處的人。

　　The Fox and the Goat掉在井里的狐貍和公山羊

　　A FOX one day fell into a deep well and could find no means of  escape. A Goat， overcome with thirst， came to the same well， and  seeing the Fox， inquired if the water was good. Concealing his  sad plight under a merry guise， the Fox indulged in a lavish praise   of the water， saying it was excellent beyond measure， and   encouraging him to descend. The Goat， mindful only of his  thirst， thoughtlessly jumped down， but just as he drank， the Fox  informed him of the difficulty they were both in and suggested a  scheme for their common escape. “If，” said he， “you will place  your forefeet upon the wall and bend your head， I will run up  your back and escape， and will help you out afterwards.” The Goat  readily assented and the Fox leaped upon his back. Steadying  himself with the Goat's horns， he safely reached the mouth of the  well and made off as fast as he could. When the Goat upbraided  him for breaking his promise， he turned around and cried out，  “You foolish old fellow！ If you had as many brains in your head  as you have hairs in your beard， you would never have gone down  before you had inspected the way up， nor have exposed yourself   to dangers from which you had no means of escape.”

　　Look before you leap.

　　一只狐貍失足掉到了井里，不論他如何掙扎仍沒法爬上去，只好呆在那里。公山羊覺得 口渴極了，來到這井邊，看見狐貍在井下，便問他井水好不好喝？狐貍覺得機會來了，心中 暗喜，馬上鎮靜下來，極力贊美井水好喝，說這水是天下第一泉，清甜爽口，并勸山羊趕快 下來，與他痛飲。一心只想喝水信以為真的山羊，便不假思索地跳了下去，當他咕咚咕咚痛 飲完后，就不得不與狐貍一起共商上井的辦法。狐貍早有準備，他狡猾地說：“我倒有一個 方法。你用前腳扒在井墻上，再把角豎直了，我從你后背跳上井去，再拉你上來，我們就都 得救了。”公山羊同意了他的提議，狐貍踩著他的后腳，跳到他背上，然后再從角上用力一 跳，跳出了井口。狐貍上去以后，準備獨自逃離。公山羊指責狐貍不信守諾言。狐貍回過頭 對公山羊說：“喂，朋友，你的頭腦如果像你的胡須那樣完美，你就不至于在沒看清出口之 前就盲目地跳下去。”

　　這故事說明，聰明的人應當事先考慮清楚事情的結果，然后才去做。

　　The Bear and the Two Travelers朋友與熊

　　TWO MEN were traveling together， when a Bear suddenly met   them on their path. One of them climbed up quickly into a tree and  concealed himself in the branches. The other， seeing that he must   be attacked， fell flat on the ground， and when the Bear came up   and felt him with his snout， and smelt him all over， he held his   breath， and feigned the appearance of death as much as he could.   The Bear soon left him， for it is said he will not touch a dead body.  When he was quite gone， the other Traveler descended from the   tree， and jocularly inquired of his friend what it was the Bear had   whispered in his ear. “He gave me this advice，” his companion   replied. “Never travel with a friend who deserts you at the   approach of danger.”

　　Misfortune tests the sincerity of friends.       兩個平常非常要好的朋友一道上路。途中，突然遇到一頭大熊，其中的一個立即閃電般 地搶先爬上了樹，躲了起來，而另一個眼見逃生無望，便靈機一動馬上躺倒在地上，緊緊地 屏住呼吸，假裝死了。據說，熊從來不吃死人。熊走到他跟前，用鼻子在他臉上嗅了嗅，轉 身就走了。躲在樹上的人下來后，問熊在他耳邊說了些什么。那人委婉地回答說：“熊告訴 我，今后千萬注意，別和那些不能共患難的朋友一起同行。”

　　這故事說明，不能共患難的人不是真正的朋友。

　　The Oxen and the Axle-Trees公牛與車軸

　　A HEAVY WAGON was being dragged along a country lane by a  team of Oxen. The Axle-trees groaned and creaked terribly；   whereupon the Oxen， turning round， thus addressed the wheels：   “Hullo there！ why do you make so much noise？ We bear all the   labor， and we， not you， ought to cry out.”

　　Those who suffer most cry out the least.

　　幾頭公牛正使勁拉著貨車行走，車軸被壓得發出吱吱的響聲，牛回過頭，不耐煩地對車 軸說道：“喂，朋友，我們無聲無息負擔著全部重量，你叫喚什么？”

　　這故事是說，那些叫喚得特別響的人往往干活少，而那些不作聲的人往往承擔著全部重 量。

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