A poor man was sick and in a bad way. As the doctors despaired of saving him, he turned to the gods, promising to offer them a hecatomb and to dedicate votive offerings if he recovered. His wife, who happened to be beside him, asked, "And where will you find the means to pay for all that?" "Do you suppose," he replied, "that I'm going to recover just so the gods can come and claim it of me?"
People readily make promises they have no intention of actually keeping.
Nº 55The CheatA poor man, being sick and in a bad way, promised the gods to sacrifice a hundred oxen to them if they saved him from death. The gods, wishing to…Read the fable →
Nº 10The Athenian DebtorIn Athens a debtor, pressed by his creditor to pay, first begged for more time, pleading hardship. When that failed, he brought out the one sow he…Read the fable →
Nº 12The Weasel and the CockA weasel caught a cock and looked for some plausible excuse to eat him. She charged him with annoying people by crowing at night and robbing them of…Read the fable →