Oh Goody! Fable Day on DU. Here's one of my favorites - The Soldier and His Horse

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

http://books.google.com/books?id=UQN-4_rFU-wC&pg=PA114&lpg=PA114&dq=The+soldier+and+his+horse+aesop&source=bl&ots=78AAsSd_G3&sig=7ee-iE78xISorTx6rKUE_2zK_GY&hl=en&ei=WixLTNKOMo2ksQOHsNFJ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=8&ved=0CC0Q6AEwBw#v=onepage&q&f=false


The Soldier and His Horse

A soldier tended his horse with great care in times of war, for he needed him to be both strong and swift to bear him safely in and out of places of great peril. The horse was given good food and lavish praise while the soldier wore the warriors garb and carried a sword. But when the war was over, the soldier turned the horse into a back field and thought little of him. The horse had chaff for food and was given no shelter from harsh weather. Over time, the horse became wizened and morose.

War broke out once again and the soldier came to reclaim the horse for more battle duty. He saddled the horse and climbed aboard in his suit of heavy mail. The half-starved beast sank under the soldier's weight and said "You will have to go into battle on foot this time. Thanks to your lack of care of me, you have turned me from a horse into an ass and you cannot turn me back into a horse in just a moment."

**********************************************

That Aesop. Gets it right every time.

[texastoast]

1. K&R n/t

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

2. Ah, Aesop.

The guy who wrote the story about the fox and the sour grapes.

How pertinent.

[MineralMan]

5. I remember that one.

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

6. And here is another highly relevant one -

http://www.aesopfables.com/cgi/aesop1.cgi?2&TheGnatandtheBull

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

7. This one's good:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=8808368&mesg_id=8808586

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

8. Interesting, displays a certain malignancy in the author's character

makes me think of this one

http://www.aesopfables.com/cgi/aesop1.cgi?1&TheBeeandJupiter

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

9. What did Aesop say about people who could dish it out but not take it?

Some kind of dung beetle or leech, I'd imagine.

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

10. I don't know, but I'll be happy to do research for you.

Notably, you're sliding down a slippery slope to actual personal attack, which while sad, is not surprising.

Which takes us back in a complete circle to the Scorpion and Frog, whose moral is the fact that one cannot deny one's essential nature.

http://www.aesopfables.com/cgi/aesop1.cgi?4&TheScorpionandtheFrog

[MineralMan]

3. Aesop had mad fabling skillz!

[gateley]

4. Haven't thought of Aesop since Rocky and Bullwinkle Days! This is a good one nt

[MineralMan]

11. I've returned the favor.

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

12. What do you mean? nt

[MineralMan]

15. 'Tis a puzzlement.

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

16. Were you replying to me? What favor have you returned?

[Karenina]

13. Reminds me of the American middle class...

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

14. also makes me think of another group. Hint - f!@#king retards. nt

[LWolf]

17. I remember that one!

I haven't thought about it in years, but it's somehow still relevant. :)

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

18. I had the Aesop with the Rackham illustrations as a child

that I linked to in the OP

It was old when I had it, but I always remembered it and loved the illustrations and the full color plates within.

They have a reissue now, which of course I had to buy to replace my lost orginal. Makes a great gift. Read Aesop to your kids and talk about the human nature and character flaws cleverly revealed through anthropomorphism. Not every story had a moral or a stated moral.