The Fox, not having seen Leo,
Having met him, I was left barely alive from my passions.
So, a little later, she came across Leo again,
But he didn’t seem so scary to her.
And then the third time
The Fox started talking with Leo.
We are also afraid of something else,
Until we take a closer look at him.

Siskin and Dove

The siskin was slammed shut by the villainous trap:
The poor thing was torn and tossed in it,
And the young Dove mocked him.
“Isn’t it a shame,” he says, “in broad daylight?
Gotcha!
They wouldn't trick me like that:
I can confidently vouch for this.”
An, look, he immediately got himself caught in the snare.
And that's it!
Don’t laugh at someone else’s misfortune, Dove.

Wolf and Shepherds

Wolf walking close to the shepherd's yard
And seeing through the fence,
That, having chosen the best ram in the herd,
Calmly, the shepherds are gutting the lamb,
And the dogs lie quietly,
He said to himself as he walked away in frustration:
“What a fuss you all make here, friends,
If only I could do this!”

Waterfall and Stream

Boiling Waterfall, overthrew from the rocks,
He said with arrogance to the healing spring
(Which was barely noticeable under the mountain,
But he was famous for his healing power):
“Isn’t this strange? You are so small, so poor in water,
Do you always have a lot of guests?
It’s no wonder if someone comes to marvel at me;
Why are they coming to you?” – “To be treated,” –
The stream humbly purred.

Boy and Snake

The boy, thinking of catching an eel,
He grabbed the Snake and, staring, out of fear
He became as pale as his shirt.
The snake, looking calmly at the Boy:
“Listen,” he says, “if you’re not smarter,
That insolence will not always be easy for you.
This time God will forgive; but watch out ahead
And know who you’re joking with!”

Sheep and Dogs

In some flock of Sheep,
So that the Wolves can no longer disturb them,
The number of Dogs is supposed to be multiplied.
Well? There are so many of them, finally,
It is true that the Sheep survived from the Wolves,
But dogs also need to eat.
First, the wool was taken from the sheep,
And there, according to the draw, their skins flew off,
And there were only five or six Sheep left,
And the Dogs ate them.

Rooster and pearl grain

Tearing up a pile of manure,
The rooster found a grain of pearl
And he says: “Where is it?
What an empty thing!
Isn't it stupid that he is so highly regarded?
And I would really be much more happy
Barley grain: it is not so visible,
Yes, it's satisfying.
***
The ignorant judge exactly like this:
If they don’t understand the point, it’s all nothing.

Cloud

Above the side exhausted from the heat
A big cloud swept by;
Not a single drop refreshes her,
She fell like a big rain over the sea
And she boasted of her generosity before the Mountain,
“What? did good
Are you so generous? –
The Mountain told her. –
And it doesn’t hurt to look at it!
Whenever you would shed your rain on the fields,
You could save an entire region from hunger:
And in the sea without you, my friend, there is enough water.”

The Peasant and the Fox (Book Eight)

The Fox once said to the Peasant:
“Tell me, my dear godfather,
What did the horse do to deserve your friendship?
What, I see, she is always with you?
You keep her in contentment even in the hall;
On the road - you are with her, and often with her in the field;
But of all the animals
She’s probably the stupidest of all.” –
“Eh, gossip, the power here is not in the mind! –
The peasant answered. - All this is vanity.
My goal is not at all the same:
I need her to drive me
Yes, so that she obeys the whip.”

Fox and grapes

The hungry godfather Fox climbed into the garden;
The bunches of grapes in it were red.
The gossip's eyes and teeth flared up;
And the brushes are juicy, like yachts, burning;
The only problem is that they hang high:
Whenever and however she comes to them,
At least the eye sees
Yes, it hurts.
After wasting a whole hour,
She went and said with annoyance:
“Well then!
He looks good,
Yes it is green - no ripe berries:
You’ll set your teeth on edge right away.”

Falcon and Worm

At the top of the tree, clinging to a branch,
The worm was swinging on it.
Above the Worm Falcon, rushing through the air,
So he joked and mocked from above:
“What kind of hardships you, poor thing, have not endured!
What profit did you get that you crawled so high?
What kind of will and freedom do you have?
And you bend with a branch wherever the weather dictates.” –

“It’s easy for you to joke,”
The worm answers, flying high,
Because with your wings you are both strong and strong;
But fate gave me the wrong advantages:
I'm here on top
The only reason I’m holding on is that, fortunately, I’m tenacious!”

Dog and Horse

Serving for a peasant,
The Dog and the Horse somehow began to be reckoned with.
“Here,” says Barbos, “a great lady!”
For me, at least they would drive you out of the yard completely.
It's a great thing to carry or plow!
I’ve never heard anything else about your daring:
And can you be equal to me in any way?
Neither day nor night I know peace:
During the day, the herd is under my supervision in the meadow,
And at night I guard the house.”
“Of course,” the Horse answered, “
Your speech is true;
However, whenever I plowed,
Then there would be nothing for you to guard here.”

Mouse and Rat

“Neighbor, have you heard the good rumor? –
Running in, the Rat Mouse said,
After all, the cat, they say, fell into the claws of a lion?
Now it’s time for us to rest!”
“Don’t rejoice, my light,”
The Rat says back to her,
And don’t hope in vain!
If it reaches their claws,
That is true, the lion will not be alive:
There is no stronger beast than a cat!”

I’ve seen it so many times, take note for yourself:
When a coward is afraid of someone,
Then he thinks that
The whole world looks through his eyes.

Peasant and Robber

The peasant, starting up his house,
I bought a milk pan and a cow at the fair
And with them through the oak tree
I walked home quietly along a country path,
When suddenly the Robber got caught.
The robber ripped the guy off like a stick.
“Have mercy,” the Peasant will cry, “I’m lost,
You've completely finished me off!
For a whole year I was planning to buy a cow:
I waited for this day with great effort.”
“Okay, don’t cry at me,”
Said the Robber, feeling sorry.
And truly, because I can’t milk cows;
So be it
Take the milk pan back."

Frog and Ox

The frog, seeing Ox in the meadow,
She decided to match his stature herself:
She was envious.
And well, puff up, puff and pout.
“Look, wah, what, will I get rid of him?”
He says to his friend. “No, gossip, far away!” -
“Look how wide I am now.
Well, what's it like?
Am I replenished? - “Almost nothing.”
“Well, how now?” - “Everything is the same.” Puffed and puffed
And my idea ended with
That, not being equal to Vol,
With an effort it burst and died.

***
There is more than one example of this in the world:
And is it a wonder when a tradesman wants to live,
As a distinguished citizen,
And the fry is small, like a noble nobleman?

The funniest fables

HAPPINESS IS WHERE THERE IS LOVE!

Three girls in the evening
Gathered at a friend's house:
We looked through the catalog,
We drank cola and cognac.
We got tired, dreamed,
Slowly we started chatting...

One girl says:
- “If only I met a prince,
I would tell him for everything -
The baby girl gave birth!
But first - a fur coat, a car,
Well, there’s a dacha on Rublyovka!”

Her friend answered:
- “It’s like you fell from an oak tree!”
Nowadays princes are not in honor
We need to shepherd the “daddy”!

So that the “beaver” has gray hair,
Single or widowed,
To keep the bank solid,
To be included in the elite club!

If only I got one like this
I would throw a feast like a mountain!
So that in the evening my wife
And in the morning I’ll be a widow!”

The third girl stood up:
- “That’s no good, girls!
And there will be no use in life
Without love, but by calculation!

Let him not be a prince of elite blood,
And not a respectable “beaver” either!
If only he believed and loved
And he valued his family!”

Two friends laughed
The third durra was called.
We sat and laughed...
Well, we parted for the time being.

Five years have passed since then
How did that conversation go?
And at the behest of the pike
Or fate's favor
Friends met again
Well, we stayed to chat.

The first girl says:
- “You fool, I wanted a prince!”
There is a fur coat, there is also a car,
There is also a dacha on Rublyovka.
Only me at that dacha
Like in a golden cage!
No friends or girlfriends
Crowd of guards around!
I suffer from boredom every day
There’s gold in this cage!”

“Yes-ah,” the second answered,
- If only I had once known
What's the scariest thing in the world?
Be responsible for the life of the “beaver”!
Promised me mountains of gold
And he handed over two contracts,
Believe it or not
I'll fly out the door naked!
And now even a wolf howls
God forbid I become a widow!”

The third girl said:
- “Yes, it’s not sweet for you, sisters!
My Vanyusha is not like that -
Hard-working and simple.
People hold it in higher esteem
Our son and daughter are growing up.
We live in our own house
And we do business together!

Here he is, easy in sight
Together with my daughter and son.
Well, friends, I have to go!
No feather or fluff to you!”

She gave her hand to her husband,
She hugged her son and daughter,
Got into a white Mercedes
This is where the fairy tale ends!

A fairy tale is a lie, but there is a hint in it,
A lesson for young offspring!
We remind you again and again:
HAPPINESS IS WHERE THERE IS LOVE!!!

A family of lions without too much fuss
The issue was resolved positively, it seems.
Since then, poverty has not been seen in the forest
(And the hares, by the way, are not noticeable either).

Friends met over the weekend.
Of course, the table was laden with dishes.
There were so many alcoholic drinks there,
Bacchus would hang himself from envy!
The hostess ate and drank a lot.
Without forgetting, she poured it for the guests,
Well, and the dog, from the master's table
She served leftovers every now and then.
There was a dispute about this and that.
We laughed and joked a lot.
The conversation was conducted in a cheerful rhythm,
But, nevertheless, the heroine has become a lot.
She went away to the bedchamber,
After her, the poodle disappeared too.
Her husband pleased his friends all night
And in the morning the picture appeared.
When, at dawn, the guests left,
He sleepily wanted to cling to his beloved,
And then the evil spirits go to bed and appear
Without the need for it necessary.
In the place of the most amiable wife
Chernel with tail, hooves, horns
A disgusting image of the evil Satan,
Cast down to hell long ago by the Gods.
Hand to the switch and bright light
I opened the eyes of my screwed-up husband.
There is no beloved on the bed at all,
But he finds his girlfriend on the floor.
She sleeps on a dog mat,
And the poodle is on her bed.
Let the reader forgive me,
But who of all that evening was a giver?!!
Master, rusty like a gelding in a stable,
He loudly retreated to another box.
And I, I call everyone reading
To learn from mistakes.
The moral here is primitive and simple:
And, if a glorious holiday happened,
Since I wet my lips with nectar,
Make sure you don’t put yourself to shame by overdoing it

WOLF ON A DIET

The Hungry Wolf said to the She-Wolf:
- I miss the bird so much.
I won’t refuse lamb either.
His thigh is so delicious!
“Calm down,” said the She-Wolf, “
Or have you forgotten that it’s no good,
Even children know about this
Dreaming about meat on a diet?!
- I, dear, know too,
But I’m just melting from hunger.
There is a veil before my eyes.
Prey is often not visible.
And even if something is visible,
I can't catch up. What a shame!
My health plummeted as if into oblivion.
I'll have to stop my diet.
Even though cholesterol is high,
I'm still a wolf, not a donkey.
Read, reader, this fable,
Before you go on a diet!

DRAGONFLY AND ANANT

Jumping Dragonfly
She didn't know her stuff:
I danced the entire repertoire,
Forgetting about the brakes.

She knows different styles
You yourself must understand
Instantly the dancer was promoted
On posters all over the country.

There is no respite from touring,
There are no traces of the old days,
The Notorious Ant
The impresario is with her.

And the dragonfly tribe grows,
Having fun from the heart.
This is what it means nowadays
“So come and dance!”

TWO LOAFS OF SAUSAGE (FABLE)

One day two loaves of sausage
Before stepping on the scale,
We talked quite frankly.
The Russian loaf behaved arrogantly!
“Do you know?” he said: after all, my parent-
Our native Russian manufacturer,
It’s not like you were born abroad,
Shining and smelling dude!"
“Maybe I’m a dude,” he answered in tone
Beautiful imported loaf -
But look at yourself now.
There is nothing Russian inside you:
Lard was brought from Germany,
And the factory bought the meat from Italy!
And so that weight gain would be felt,
They put a Spanish additive in you.
Just a shell, like from Russia,
Makes everything better, more beautiful.
But the shell is like a condom
Which will hide any negativity.
And here I am, an imported loaf.
Produced abroad.
But according to the same recipe,
Where there are no traces of Russian dope:
Without soy, raw material substitutes.
That's why I look like a dude."
-MORALITY-
It doesn't matter where the loaf was born.
It should be healthy and tasty!
No need to use a condom -
The child must be healthy and beautiful!

Mice one fine evening,
(Sorry about the stamp)
Vaska the cat invited to a meeting
Movements "Cats to mice!"

Cat Vaska (current Vasily)
Presented the block he created...
(Apparently he wasn't beaten much
Because the lard was dragged away.)

I've been friends with mice since childhood! -
He said, licking his mustache,
-My slogan is for all mice to have dinner
Swiss, but free, cheese!

I solemnly give you my word, -
Here he licked his lips again,
- What about banning mousetraps?
I will push the law.

The mice squealed: “Vaska is a darling!”
What eyes he has! -
Giving it to him unanimously
Sympathy and voices.

To thunderous applause
Vaska the cat said he was glad
HAVE such an intelligent
And a loyal electorate,

Thinking: -And delicious too!-
Left with a young mouse...

With the moral of this sad fable
Figure it out for yourself, my reader!

FABLE OF THE GREEK

Once upon a time a very wise Greek
hastily built a pirogue,
said that there are no rivers in the world
in which there is no ford.
He said and launched it into the water
its not cunning structure,
leaned on the oars as hard as I could,
trying to cope with the current.
…
The rapids have passed, before him
river silence - slanting shallows,
suddenly he sees a miracle: there is no burbot,
not tench, not bream, not catfish, not perch.
Six legs, whiskers, claws and a tail,
well, definitely a caterpillar track,
and when he looks, he gets diarrhea
and I will back away like a cancer.
"Who are you?" - asked our brave Greek.
“Well, answer me quickly,
I've walked a lot of rivers,
but I haven’t seen anything worse.”
Silent like a fish, only with its tail
the sand is quietly raking in.
Our Greek wanted him with an oar,
Then I thought: what if it breaks!
And you won’t pass by either,
so you can seem like a coward,
and even the deadest ruff
the Greek will be mocked.
…
And now the Greek has five
under muddy water hid,
If he would be by the tail, but no, in the claw...
The echo howled over the river for a long time!!!

This fable has only one idea:
don't crawl into the river with your hands,
what if there is a crocodile fish
or even worse - piranha!

THE WOLF AND THE WOLF WORK (FABLE)

In one neglected forest
With thicket and swamp
The wolf came to settle down
For wolf work.

Covering gray hair with resin,
And sprinkled the wool with nectar,
The gray one comes to the boar,
Head of HR.

And straight to the point, they say, teeth
As long as there is enough
You see, I’m ready to work
Specifically, in a wolf pack.

The boar grunted as if he was waiting
Another statement.
- But you are a wolf, not a jackal? -
He sniffles indignantly.

What the hell else is a jackal?
The applicant was taken aback.
- Well, consider it a miss.
You're in our woods, buddy.

The boar smelled its butt on the stump,
He squinted slyly:
- Our staff is filled with wolves
A brigade of jackals.

Are there jackals in the forest?.. These are the times -
The wolf mumbles in an obvious trance. -
Or maybe... you have this
Other vacancies?

I could be just like a fox
Catch mice and birds.
The boar laughs:
- Oh, come on!
We no longer have chanterelles.

Instead they live in the forest
Visiting hyenas.
It's not like foxes are plowing here
Resignedly in three shifts.

So I would have become a rabbit.
Let them teach me. -
The wolf babbles. - It's a shame
But if the opportunity arises...

The boar laughs:
-Wah, I'm going to die!
You obviously got drunk!
We've had kangaroos for a long time
Here they jump instead of hares.

So should I just die?
The wolf exclaimed in despair.
- Come on, where is the bear sitting?
Toptygin, your boss?!

Bear-f-eat! - grunted like a chant,
Boar. - Well, you're great.
They even forgot the word. Lion
We now have a kingdom.

So where did I end up, boar? -
The wolf begs with a dull look.
Boar in response:
- Started by Satan
Take you to the Russian forest.

But only here we have now
Big changes -
Other fauna and animals
According to new thinking.

We don't even have a beaver in the river.
But there are hippos there,
Kulik, having collected water in his beak,
Flamingham surrendered the swamp.

Yes, I’ll tell you, myself
I warm the chair for the boa constrictor.
So, come on. Adju. Salam.
Look for another place.

TOPTYGIN AND CLUBFOOT

Together the joy rises,
Sprinkling more intrigue!
The wedding is walking through the whole forest, -
Toptygin is getting married today.
Grabbing the nice wifey
By the side, bear, playfully,
He strokes her gently with his paw, -
An irresistible diva.

All the forest inhabitants are happy, -
Happiness has come to their reserve!
Only there were connivancers,
They brought tar into the holiday.
The murmur began quietly:
"Look, there will be a wife
Clearly a little clubfooted!
Judging by her lameness..."

After the honeymoon
No consolation for Toptyzhka!
Everything goes on. He thinks. He's mad!
I took it all too closely.
How could it be otherwise, since they are dripping?
Moose, foxes and wolves:
“Why did you take the clubfoot?
What, couldn’t you find a softer wither?”

Toptygin started drinking. Tormented.
Is there a defect in the spouse?
Looks like he's trying to do housework,
Just like in family leisure.
Knits, washes and cooks.
There are no complaints about intimacy either.
But still, clubfoot, -
If you take qualifications in the taiga...

Well, disdain ridicule
Animals don't gather!
If the hares are drunk
They're talking about Clubfoot.
"Why am I still humbly
Did you allow them to be insulted?" -
Thought Toptyzhka, despicable
Changing feelings for vengeance...
There is a new churchyard in the reserve.
Nowadays there is only one grave there.
Who said at that holiday
“About my dear clubfoot”?

And there are more people with disabilities.
They partially have no legs.
Mishka's honor was amused,
Even if it’s not entirely ethical.

What concerns Clubfoot, -
She became "Mrs. Forest."
She is now admired.
The press often writes about her.

There's no moral to the story
There is no other reason for it.
There are only moratoriums for now
Blame and reproach!

EGG

Pestrushka laid an egg
Huge, like six kilos
Sensation! For the first time in the world!
There was no such thing
Correspondents, journalists
Publicists from abroad
And Guinness with his book
Wants to make an entry in it.
They all rush to the chicken coop
And they ask for an interview
Ready camera notebook:
-Tell us, Mother Pestrushka
How could you do this with Rooster?
Lay a giant egg?
“It’s a secret,” Kura tells them,
And he looks languidly into the distance.
-What are you planning next?
-Oh, you should all go away from here.
And at a distance the Rooster stands
And he glances sideways at everyone.
Correspondents all come to him
Questions are thrown at the rooster
-Tell me how you could do this
Lay a giant egg?
“Secret,” he mutters through his teeth.
And he looks very angrily into the distance.
-What are your plans for the future?
-The dream does not give rest,
I should take karate lessons,
To punch Ostrich in the face.

AT DAWN YOU DON'T WAKE HER

One rooster found a great job:
He hired himself to work in the chicken coop,
Crow something in the morning
And wake people up in time.
However, life is full of tragedies.
And soon at the neighbors' house
The young rooster began to crow.
It was a shame for the old man.
And he began to crow early,
While the neighbor was still dozing.
But he didn't wait long for revenge
And even earlier he screamed...
The night was getting shorter.
They started singing so early,
What is this singing to endure
The owners lost their breath.
Finally from the rooster
Only the giblets remained
But even they were eaten by the cat.

There is very little moral here:
Everyone needs to know that success in life
It’s not about crowing before everyone else.

Fable is one of the ancient types works of art, originating from the 3rd millennium BC. from Sumerian and Babylonian literature. There is always a moral and a narrative at the heart of a fable.

The fable exposes the dark sides of human character, and since these vices have no power over time, the tales of fables of past years are still relevant today. They help develop moral and ethical qualities in children and carry a significant educational role, guiding them on the right path.

The founder of the fable is considered to be Aesop, an ancient poet and fabulist. Ancient Greece(VI-V centuries BC), who wrote his works in prose. The original plots and wisdom of his works, which have passed through many centuries, served as the basis for the plots of other famous fabulists J. Lafontaine and I.A. Krylova.

Read Fables online

In this section you will find the best selections of fables by Krylov, Aesop, J. Lafontaine, for children of any age, which will be useful in the process of development and upbringing of the child.

Compilation, preface, notes and explanations

V.P. Anikina

Artists

S. Bordyug and N. Trepenok

Russian genius

Twenty-year-old Ivan Andreevich Krylov, a still little-known writer, published his first fables in 1788, without a signature, in the St. Petersburg magazine “Morning Hours.” And he published his first book of fables years later - only in 1809. Having worked not without success in different types creativity, Krylov realized that he was most successful in the fable genre. The fable became almost the exclusive genre of his work. And soon the fame of a first-class author came to the writer.

The artistic gift of Krylov the fabulist was fully revealed when he combined his extensive knowledge in the field of ancient and modern European literatures with the awareness that the type of creativity he has chosen by nature belongs to the kind of creativity in which folk morality is expressed. This morality, for example, is revealed in Russian fairy tales about animals, in proverbs, in teachings - in general, in peasant fables. In Rus', an intricate story has long been called fable. “Fables and fairy tales” are inseparable from the living telling of a fictional story, flavored with jokes and teaching. This was something that many of Krylov’s predecessors did not understand for a long time, who failed because they did not realize that the fable is inseparable from the spoken language.

So, known in XVIII century hardworking philologist, member of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences V.K. Tredyakovsky (1703–1768), long before Krylov, published a retelling of several “Aesopian fables.” Among them was the fable “The Wolf and the Crane.” Its plot is the same as that of Krylov, but in the presentation of the fable almost everything is alien to colloquial speech.

A wolf choked on a sharp bone one day.
So that he was not strong enough to howl, but became completely stumped.
For this purpose he hired a crane at a price
To extract the nose from the throat with longitude.

Tredyakovsky guessed that the fable story should be presented in a folk way, and it was no coincidence that he introduced some colloquial words and expressions into his translation (although not without distortion): “he was not strong enough to howl,” “he became completely stumped,” but the translation remained heavy and bookish.

Let’s compare Krylov’s fable with Tredyakovsky’s translation:

Everyone knows that wolves are greedy:
Wolf, eating, never
Doesn't understand bones.
For that, for one of them trouble came:
He almost choked on a bone.
Wolf can't neither sigh nor sigh;
It's time to stretch your legs!

The whole structure of the presentation is easy, elegant, understandable to any Russian person! This is our living speech. Krylov followed the intonation of the oral story; in the fable story there is not even a shadow of any artificiality.

The famous 20th-century philologist Viktor Vladimirovich Vinogradov specially studied the language and style of Krylov’s fables and noted dozens of folk proverbs in them. The scientist cited a long list of proverbs and sayings that the fabulist used and called them “semantic bonds,” that is, connections that impart semantic unity to the presentation of the fable story. Here are some of them: “There is a black sheep in a family” (“Elephant in the Voivodeship”), “Though the eye sees, the tooth is numb” (“The Fox and the Grapes”), “Poverty is not a vice” (“The Farmer and the Shoemaker”), “Out of the Fire and into the Fire” (“The Lady and the Two Maids”), “Don’t Spit in the Well—You’ll Need to Drink Water” (“The Lion and the Mouse”) and dozens of others. The fabulist relied on the usual in our language designations and comparisons of animals and birds with people: the crow is a prophet, but is susceptible to flattery, the donkey is stubborn, the fox is cunning, the bear is strong but stupid, the hare is cowardly, the snake is dangerous, etc. And they act like people. Proverbs and sayings, proverbs and allegorical words included in fables were developed and semantically clarified by Krylov.

Krylov's primacy among fabulists continues to this day. And in our time, his fables captivate readers. He is placed on a par with the greatest artists of all times and peoples. No one is surprised that he is compared with ancient Greek Aesop, with other world famous fabulists. But most of all he is valued in Russia as an artist who expressed the common sense and intelligence of our people.

V.P. Anikin

Crow and Fox

How many times have they told the world,
That flattery is vile and harmful; but everything is not for the future,
And a flatterer will always find a corner in the heart.
___
Somewhere God sent a piece of cheese to a crow;
Raven perched on the spruce tree,
I was just about ready to have breakfast,
Yes, I thought about it, but I held the cheese in my mouth.
To that misfortune, the Fox ran close by;
Suddenly the cheese spirit stopped the Fox:
The fox sees the cheese, and the fox is captivated by the cheese.
The cheat approaches the tree on tiptoe;
He twirls his tail and doesn’t take his eyes off Crow,
And he says so sweetly, barely breathing:
“My dear, how beautiful!
What a neck, what eyes!
Telling fairy tales, really!
What feathers! what a sock!
And surely there must be an angelic voice!
Sing, little light, don’t be ashamed! What if, sister,
With such beauty, you are a master at singing,
After all, you would be our king bird!”
Veshunin's head was spinning with praise,
The breath stole from my throat with joy, -
And to the fox’s friendly words
The crow croaked at the top of its lungs:
The cheese fell out - such was the trick with it.

Oak and Cane

With Trostinka, Oak once came into speech.
“Truly, you have the right to grumble about nature,”
He said: “The sparrow is heavy for you too.
A slight breeze will make the water ripple,
You will stagger, you will begin to weaken
And so you bend down lonely,
What a pity to look at you.
Meanwhile, on a par with the Caucasus, proudly
It’s not just the sun that I block the rays of,
But, laughing at both whirlwinds and thunderstorms,
I stand firm and straight,
As if surrounded by an inviolable peace.
Everything is a storm to you - everything seems like marshmallows to me.
Even if you grew in a circle,
Covered in the thick shadow of my branches,
I could be your protection from bad weather;
But nature has given you your destiny
Brega of the stormy Eolian domain:
Of course, she doesn’t care about you at all.” -
"You are very pitiful"
said the Cane in response,
“However, don’t be downhearted: I don’t have much to lose.
It’s not for myself that I fear the whirlwinds;
Although I bend, I don’t break:
So storms do little harm to me;
They threaten you almost more!
It is true that even hitherto their ferocity
Your strength has not overcome you,
And you did not bow your face from their blows;
But let’s wait for the end!”
As soon as the Cane said this,
Suddenly rushing from the northern sides
And with hail and rain, the noisy aquilon.
The oak is holding on, - Reed fell to the ground.
The wind is raging, it has doubled its strength,
Roared and uprooted
The one who touched heaven with his head
And in the region of shadows he rested with his heel.

Musicians

Neighbor invited neighbor to have a meal;
But there was a different intention here:
The owner loved music
And he lured his neighbor to listen to the singers.
The fellows sang: some into the forest, some for firewood,
And who has gained any strength?
The guest's ears began to crackle,
And my head started spinning.
“Have mercy on me,” he said in surprise:
“What is there to admire here? Your choir
He's babbling nonsense! -
“That’s true,” the owner answered with emotion:
“They fight a little;
But they don’t put drunken things in their mouths,
And all with excellent behavior.”
___
And I’ll say: for me it’s better to drink,
Yes, understand the matter.

Crow and Chicken

When the Prince of Smolensk,
Armed against insolence with art,
The vandals installed a new network
And he left Moscow to their destruction:
Then all the inhabitants, small and large,
Without wasting an hour, we got ready
And they rose from the walls of Moscow,
Like a swarm of bees from a hive.
A crow from the roof is here to all this alarm
He looks calmly, cleaning his nose.
“What about you, gossip, are you going on the road?”
The Chicken shouts to her from the cart:
“After all, they say that at the threshold
Our adversary." -
“What does this matter to me?”
The prophetess answered her: “I will stay here boldly.
Here are your sisters, as they wish;
But Raven is neither fried nor boiled:
So it’s no wonder for me to get along with the guests,
And maybe you can still make some money
Cheese, or a bone, or something.
Farewell, little corydalis, happy journey!”
The crow truly remained;
But, instead of all the bait for her,
How Smolensky began to starve the guests -
She herself got caught in their soup.
___
So often a person is blind and stupid in his calculations.
It seems that you are rushing on the heels of happiness:
How do you actually get along with him?
Caught like a crow in soup!

Chest

It often happens to us
And work and wisdom to see there,
Where you just have to guess
Just get down to business.
___
A Casket was brought to someone from the master.
The decoration and cleanliness of the Casket caught my eye;
Well, everyone admired the beautiful Casket.
Here the sage enters the Mechanics room.
Looking at the Chest,
he said: “A box with a secret,
So; it doesn't even have a lock;
And I undertake to open it; yes, yes, I'm sure of it;
Don't laugh so secretly!
I will find the secret and I will reveal the little chest to you:
I’m worth something in Mechanics too.”
So he set to work on the Casket:
Turns him from all sides
And he breaks his head;
First a carnation, then another, then a bracket.
Here, looking at him, another
Shakes his head;
They whisper, and they laugh among themselves.
It just rings in my ears:
“Not here, not like that, not there!” The mechanic is even more eager.
Sweated, sweated; but finally got tired
I fell behind Chest
And I couldn’t figure out how to open it:
And the casket simply opened.

Frog and Ox

The frog, seeing Ox in the meadow,
She decided to match his stature herself:
She was envious.
And well, puff up, puff and pout.
“Look, wah, what, will I get rid of him?”
He says to his friend. “No, gossip, far away!” -
“Look how wide I am now.
Well, what's it like?
Am I replenished? - “Almost nothing.” -
“Well, how now?” - “It’s all the same.”
Puffed and puffed
And my idea ended with
That, not being equal to Vol,
With an effort it burst and died.
___
There is more than one example of this in the world:
And is it a wonder when a tradesman wants to live,
As a distinguished citizen,
And the fry is small, like a noble nobleman.

Wolf and Lamb

The powerful are always to blame for the powerless:
We hear countless examples of this in History,
But we don’t write History;
Here's how they talk about it in Fables.
___
On a hot day, a lamb went to a stream to drink;
And something must happen,
That a hungry Wolf was prowling around those places.
He sees a lamb and strives for the prey;
But, to give the matter at least a legal look and feel,
Shouts: “How dare you, insolent, with an unclean snout
Here is a clean drink
My
With sand and silt?
For such insolence
I'll rip your head off." -
“When the brightest Wolf allows,
I dare to convey: what’s down the stream
From the Lordship of his steps I drink a hundred;
And he deigns to be angry in vain:
There’s no way I can make him drink worse.” -
“That's why I'm lying!
Waste! Such insolence has never been heard of in the world!
Yes, I remember that you were last summer
Here he was somehow rude to me:
I haven’t forgotten this, buddy!” -
“For mercy, I’m not even a year old yet,”
The lamb speaks. "So it was your brother." -
"I have no brothers." - “So this is godfather or matchmaker
And, in a word, someone from your own family.
You yourself, your dogs and your shepherds,
You all want me harm
And if you can, then you always harm me:
But I will clear up their sins with you.” -
“Oh, what’s my fault?” - “Be quiet! I'm tired of listening
It’s time for me to sort through your faults, puppy!
It’s your fault that I want to eat.”
He said and dragged the Lamb into the dark forest.

Monkeys

When you adopt wisely, then it’s not a miracle
And find benefit from it;
And it’s crazy to adopt,
And God forbid, how bad it is!
I will give an example of this from distant countries.
Those who have seen Monkeys know
How greedily they adopt everything.
So in Africa, where there are many Monkeys,
A whole flock of them sat
Along the branches, along the branches of a thick tree
And she looked at the catcher furtively,
As if he were rolling around on the grass in nets.
Each friend here quietly pushes her friend,
And they all whisper to each other:
“Look at the daredevil;
There really is no end to his undertakings:
It will tumble
It will turn around
It's all in a lump
He'll get it together like that
That there are no arms or legs to be seen.
Are we really not masters of everything?
But we don’t see this kind of art!
Beautiful sisters!
It would be a good idea for us to adopt this.
He seemed rather amused;
Maybe he’ll leave, then we’ll immediately...” Look,
He truly left and left the nets for them.
“Well,” they say, “should we waste time?
Let's go try!"
The beauties have come down. For dear guests
There are a lot of nets spread out below.
Well, they tumble and roll in them,
And wrap up and curl;
They scream and squeal – it’s a lot of fun!
Yes, that's the problem
When did it come to break out of the network!
Meanwhile the owner guarded
And, seeing that it’s time, he goes to the guests with bags,
Let them run away
Yes, no one could unravel:
And they were all taken by hand.

Tit

The tit took off to the sea;
She boasted
What the sea wants to burn.
The speech immediately became famous around the world.
Fear embraced the inhabitants of Neptune's capital;
Birds fly in flocks;
And the animals from the forests come running to watch,
How will the Ocean be, and how hot will it be to burn?
And even, they say, on hearing the winged rumor,
Hunters wander around feasts
Of the first to come to the shores with spoons,
To sip the fish soup of such a rich woman,
What a tax farmer and the most well-packed one
Didn't give it to secretaries.
They crowd: everyone marvels at the miracle in advance,
He is silent and, staring at the sea, waits;
Only occasionally will someone whisper:
“It’s about to boil, it’s about to catch fire!”
Not so: the sea doesn’t burn.
Is it even boiling? – and it doesn’t boil.
And how did the majestic undertakings end?
The titmouse swam away in shame;
The titmouse has made a name for itself,
But she didn’t light the sea.
___
It’s good to keep a speech here,
But without touching anyone's face:
What's going on without reaching an end?
There is no need to boast.

Donkey

When did Jupiter inhabit the universe?
And he started a tribe of various creatures,
That’s when the Donkey was born.
But with intent, or while getting pregnant,
At such a busy time
The cloud chaser made a mistake:
And the Donkey poured out almost as small as a squirrel.
Almost no one noticed the donkey,
At least in arrogance the Donkey was not inferior to anyone.
The donkey would like to boast:
But with what? having such a height,
And it’s a shame to appear in the world.
My arrogant donkey stuck to Jupiter
And he began to ask for more growth.
“Have mercy,” he says, “how can you take this down?
Lions, leopards and elephants are everywhere so honored;
Moreover, from the greatest to the least,
Everything is about them only and about them;
Why are you so daring towards Donkeys?
That they have no honor,
And no one says a word about Donkeys?
And if only I were the height of a calf,
If only I had knocked down the arrogance of lions and leopards,
And the whole world would talk about me.”
What day, then again
My donkey sang to Zeus;
And before that he was tired,
What's finally the donkey's prayers
Zeus listened:
And the Donkey became a great beast;
And on top of that, he was given such a wild voice,
What is my eared Hercules
The whole forest was scared.
“What kind of animal is this? what kind?
Tea, does he have teeth? horns, tea, no number?
Well, the only talk was about the Donkey.
But how did it end? Not even a year has passed
How everyone found out who Donkey is:
My donkey's stupidity has become a proverb.
And they carry water on a Donkey.
___
Highness is good in breed and rank;
But what is gained in it when the soul is low?

Monkey and glasses

The monkey's eyes became weak in old age;
And she heard from people,
That this evil is not yet so big:
All you have to do is get glasses.
She got herself half a dozen glasses;
He turns his glasses this way and that:
Either he will press them to the crown, or he will string them on his tail,
Sometimes he sniffs them, sometimes he licks them;
The glasses don't work at all.
“Ugh, the abyss! - she says: - and that fool,
Who listens to all human lies:
They only lied to me about the Glasses;
But there’s no use for hair in them.”
The monkey is here out of frustration and sadness
Oh stone, there were so many of them,
That only the splashes sparkled.
___
Unfortunately, this is what happens to people:
No matter how useful a thing is, without knowing its price,
The ignoramus tends to tell everything about her for the worse;
And if the ignorant is more knowledgeable,
So he also drives her away.

Atheists

There was a people in ancient times, to the shame of the earthly tribes.
Who was so hardened in his hearts,
That he armed himself against the gods.
Rebellious crowds, behind a thousand banners,
Some with a bow, some with a sling, rush noisily into the field.
The instigators, from the daring heads,
To ignite more riots among the people,
They shout that the court of heaven is both strict and stupid;
That the gods are either sleeping or ruling recklessly;
That it’s time to teach them a lesson without rank;
Which, however, is not difficult with stones from nearby mountains
Throw into the sky at the gods
And sweep Olympus with arrows.
Confused by the insolence of madmen and blasphemies,
All Olympus approached Zeus with prayer,
So that he averts trouble;
And even the whole council of the gods of those thoughts was,
Which, to the rebels’ conviction, is not bad
Show at least a small miracle:
Or a flood, or thunder with a coward,
Or at least hit them with stone rain.
"Let's wait"
Jupiter river: “and if they don’t reconcile
And in a riot they will abuse, not fearing the immortals,
They are executed for their deeds.”
Then it soared into the air with a noise
Darkness of stones, cloud of arrows from the rebel troops,
But with a thousand deaths, both evil and inevitable,
Chapters fell on their own.
___
The fruits of unbelief are terrible;
And know, peoples, you
That the supposed sages of blasphemy are bold,
What do they arm you against the deity?
Your hour of destruction is approaching,
And everything will turn into thunder arrows for you.

Eagle and chickens

Wanting to fully admire the bright day,
An eagle flew in the sky
And I walked there
Where lightning is born.
Having finally descended from the cloudy heights,
The King Bird sits on a barn to rest.
Although this is an unenviable perch for the Eagle,
But the Kings have their own quirks:
Perhaps he wanted to honor the barn,
Or if he wasn’t nearby, he should sit down according to his rank,
Neither oak nor granite rock;
I don’t know what this thought is, but just Eagle
Didn't sit much
And then he flew to another barn.
Seeing that, the crested hen
He talks like this to his godmother:
“Why are the Eagles so honored?
Is it really for the flight, dear neighbor?
Well, really, if I want,
From barn to barn I will fly too.
Let's not be such fools forward,
To honor the Eagles who are more noble than us.
They have neither legs nor eyes larger than ours;
Yes, you saw it now,
That below they fly like chickens.”
The eagle answers, bored with the nonsense:
“You're right, but not quite.
Eagles sometimes descend lower than chickens;
But chickens will never reach the clouds!”
___
When you judge talents, -
Do not waste your labors in vain by counting their weaknesses;
But, feeling that they are both strong and beautiful,
Know how to comprehend their different heights.

Krylov's fables are fascinating, interesting, written from the heart for children and adults. They are familiar to people from other countries and have been translated into more than fifty languages ​​of the world.
Today I decided to introduce you to some of the works (and help someone refresh their memory) of our great fabulist Ivan Andreevich Krylov. These are fables that are hardly taught in school and are rarely included in favorites.

Elephant in case

Once upon a time, Leo had an Elephant.
In a minute, rumors spread through the forests,
And so, as usual, the guesswork began,
How did the Elephant get into favor?
He is either handsome or funny;
What a trick, what a trick!
The animals talk among themselves.
“Whenever,” says the Fox, wagging her tail, “
He had such a fluffy tail,
I would not be surprised." - "Or, sister, -
Said the Bear, - at least by the claws
He became random
No one would consider this extraordinary:
Yes, he doesn’t even have claws, we all know
Didn’t he get into trouble with his fangs?”
Their Ox began to speak:
“Didn’t they consider them horns?”
“So you don’t know,” said the Donkey,
Ears flapping, - what could he fall in love with?
And to know what to achieve?
And so I guessed -
Without his long ears he would not have fallen into favor."
________

Often, although we don’t notice it,
We willingly glorify ourselves in others.

Wolf and Cat

A wolf ran from the forest into the village,
Not for a visit, but saving my stomach;
He trembled for his own skin:
Hunters and a pack of hounds were chasing him.
He would be glad to sneak through the first gate here,
Yes, it’s just grief,
That all the gates are locked.
Here my Wolf sees me on the fence
Kota
And he prays: “Vasenka, my friend! Tell me quickly,
Which of the peasants here is kinder,
To shelter me from my evil enemies?
You hear the barking of dogs and the terrible sound of horns!
All this is behind me." - "Ask Stepan quickly;
He’s a very kind man,” says Vaska the Cat.
“That’s right; yes, I stripped his sheep.” -
“Well, try with Demyan.” -
“I’m afraid that he’s angry with me too:
I stole the kid from him." -
“Run, Trofim lives over there.” -
"To Trofim? No, I'm afraid to meet him:
He’s been threatening me since spring for the lamb!”
“Well, that’s bad! - But maybe Klim will cover you!” -
“Oh, Vasya, I killed his calf!” -
“What do I see, godfather! You have annoyed everyone in the village,”
Here Vaska said to the Wolf, -
What kind of protection did you promise yourself here?
No, our men are not so much of little use,
So that, to their misfortune, they save you.
And you’re right, blame yourself:
Reap what you sow.”

Squirrel

Belka served with Leo.
I don’t know how or with what; but the only thing is
That Belkin's service is pleasing to Leo;
And pleasing Leo, of course, is not a trifle.
For that he promised her nuts a whole cart.
Promised - meanwhile he flies away all the time;
And my Squirrel often goes hungry
And he bares his teeth in front of Leo through his tears.
Look: they are flashing here and there through the forest
Her girlfriends are on top;
She just blinks her eyes; and one
The nuts just keep cracking and cracking.
But our Squirrel is only a step to the hazel tree,
He looks - it’s impossible;
She is either called or pushed to serve Leo.
Belka has finally become old
And Leo got bored: it was time for her to retire.
Belka was given resignation,
And sure enough, they sent her a whole cart of nuts.
Glorious nuts, such as the world has never seen;
Everything is selected: nut to nut - a miracle!
There is only one bad thing -
Belka has had no teeth for a long time.

The peasant had a Donkey,
And so he seemed to behave quietly,
That the peasant could not boast about them;
And so that he couldn’t get lost in the forest -
A man put a bell around his neck.
My Donkey pouted: he began to put on airs and be proud
(Of course, he had heard about the orders),
And he thinks that now he has become a big gentleman;
But a new rank came out to the Donkey, poor thing, with juice
(This can serve as a lesson to more than one Donkey).
I must tell you in advance:
There wasn't much honor in Donkey;
But before the call, everything went happily for him:
Will he go into the rye, oats, or garden, -
He will eat his fill and leave quietly.
Now everything has gone differently:
Wherever my noble lord goes,
A new rank rings incessantly around the neck.
Looks: the owner, taking a club,
He drives my cattle from the rye and from the ridges;
And there is a neighbor, who suddenly heard the sound of a bell,
The donkey turns its sides with a stake.
Well, so, our poor nobleman
Withered away until autumn
And the Donkey had only bones and skin left.
___________

And among people in ranks
It’s the same problem with rogues: while the rank is small and poor,
The rogue is not yet so noticeable;
But an important rank on a rogue is like a bell:
The sound from it is both loud and distant.

1829-1830

Fox the Builder

Some Leo was a big hunter of chickens;
However, they were bad for him:
Yes, this is not a miracle!
Access to them was too free.
So they were stolen
Then the chickens themselves disappeared.
To help this loss and sadness
Lev decided to build a large chicken yard
And so to kidnap him and settle him,
To completely discourage thieves,
And the chickens would have contentment and space in it.
So they inform Lev that the Fox
Great builder -
And the task was entrusted to her,
It began and ended with success;
The fox attached to it
Everything: effort and skill.
We looked and saw: the building is a sight for sore eyes!
And besides, everything is there, no matter what you ask here:
There is food under your nose, there are roosts everywhere,
There is shelter from cold and heat,
And secluded places for hens.
All glory to Lisanka and honor!
A rich reward was given to her
And immediately the command:
Immediately move the chickens to the housewarming party.
But is there any benefit to change?
No: it seems that the yard is strong,
And the fence is dense and high -
And there are more and more chickens from hour to hour.
They couldn't figure out what the problem was.
But Leo ordered to guard. Who was waylaid?
Same as the villainous Fox.
Although it’s true that she built the building like this,
So that no one breaks into it, no way,
Yes, I only left a loophole for myself.

Miller

At Melnik, the water had sucked through the dam;
The trouble would not be great at first,
Whenever I put my hands on it;
But by the way? My miller does not think of bothering;
And the flow becomes stronger day by day:
The water flows as if from a bucket.
"Hey, Miller, don't yawn! It's time,
It's time for you to come to your senses!"
And the Miller says: “Far from trouble,
It’s not the sea that I need water,
And the mill has been rich in it throughout my entire life.”
He is sleeping, and yet
Water runs like from a tub.
And then the trouble came completely:
The millstone has become a millstone, the mill does not work.
My Miller grabbed and groaned and grieved,
And he thinks about how to save water.
Here he is at the dam, inspecting the leak,
I saw that chickens had come to the river to drink.
“Wordless!” he shouts, “crested fools!
Even without you I don’t know where to get water;
And you came here to finish your fill."
And there’s plenty of logs in them!
What help did you give yourself?
Without chickens and without water, I went to my farmstead.
________

I sometimes saw
What kind of gentlemen are there?
(And this fable was given to them as a gift),
Who are not sorry to waste thousands of rubbish,
And they think to help the farm,
If the candles save the cinder,
And they are happy to raise hell with the people for him.
With such care, is it a wonder that a house
Will it soon go upside down?

Tree

Seeing that the Peasant was carrying the axe,
“Darling,” said the young tree, “
Perhaps, cut down the forest around me,
I can't grow alone:
I can't see the light of the sun,
There is no room for my roots,
No freedom for the breezes around me,
He deigned to weave such vaults above me!
If only it weren't for him to prevent me from growing,
In a year I would become the beauty of this country,
And the whole valley would be covered with my shadow;
And now I’m thin, almost like a twig.”
The peasant took up the ax,
And to the Tree, as a friend,
He provided a service:
A large space has cleared around the Tree;
But his triumph did not last long!
The sun bakes the tree,
Sometimes it comes with hail, sometimes with rain,
And the wind finally broke that tree.
“Crazy!” the Snake told him here, “
Isn't your trouble coming from you?
If, hidden in the forest, you grew up,
Neither the heat nor the winds could harm you,
The old trees would take care of you;
And if once those trees were gone,
And their time would have passed,
Then in your turn you would have grown so much,
Strengthened and strengthened
That the current trouble would not have happened to you,
And maybe you could withstand the storm!"

Once upon a time, in the old days,
Leo and Leopard waged a long war
For disputed forests, for wilds, for dens.
It was not their disposition to sue over rights;
Yes, those who are strong in rights are often blind.
They have their own charter for this:
Whoever wins is right.
However, finally, you can’t fight forever -
And the claws will become dull:
The heroes rightfully decided to sort it out.
We decided to stop the military affairs,
End all strife
Then, as usual, we conclude eternal peace
Before the first quarrel.
“Let’s appoint as soon as possible
We are secretaries from ourselves -
Bars offers Leo, and how their minds judge,
Let it be so.
For example, I will define Cat:
The animal may be unsightly, but its conscience is clear;
And you appoint a Donkey: he is of noble rank,
And, by the way, say here,
Where is he from you, you enviable beast!
Believe me as a friend: the advice and yard are all yours
His hooves are hardly worth it.
Let's rely on this
On what
He’ll be fine with my Kitty.”
And Leo approved Bars’s thought
Without a doubt,
But not the Donkey, he dressed up the Fox
He will analyze this on his own behalf,
Saying to himself (apparently he knew the world):
“Whoever the enemy praises us is surely of no use.”

1815

The motley lion did not love the sheep.
It would not be difficult for him to simply translate them;
But that would be unfair -
He wore a crown in the forests for the wrong reason,
To strangle the subjects, but give them reprisals;
But I have no patience to see the mottled sheep!
How to sell them and preserve your glory in the world?
And now he calls to himself
He and the Fox took the bear for advice -
And he reveals the secret to them,
That, every time he sees a motley sheep, he
My eyes suffer all day long,
And what will come to him is to completely lose his eyes,
And he doesn’t know how to help such a misfortune.

“Almighty Lion! - said the Bear, frowning, -
Why is there so much talk here?
We drove without long distances
To suffocate the sheep. Who should feel sorry for them?
The Fox, seeing that Leo frowned,
Humbly says: “Oh, king! Our good king!
You will rightly forbid the persecution of this poor creature -
And you won't shed innocent blood.
I dare to say another piece of advice:
Give the command to give them the meadows,
Where would there be abundant food for the queens?
And where to jump and run for the lambs.
And since we have a shortage of shepherds here,
Then tell the wolves to herd the sheep.
I don’t know, somehow it seems to me,
That their race will translate itself.
Meanwhile, let them be blissful,
And no matter what happens, you will be on the sidelines.”
The foxes' opinion in the council took power
And it went so well that, finally,
Not only the motley sheep there -
And there are few smooth ones.
What sense did the animals have for this? -
That Leo might be good, but all villains are wolves.

1823

Nightingales

Some kind of bird catcher
In the spring I caught Solovyov in the groves.
The singers were seated in cages and began to sing,
At least it would be better if they wanted to walk through the forests:
When you're in prison, is it really time to sing?
But there is nothing to do: they sing,
Some out of grief, some out of boredom.
One of them is poor Nightingale
I endured more torment for everyone:
He was separated from his girlfriend.
He is sicker than anyone else in captivity.
Through tears from the cage he looks into the field;
Yearning day and night;
However, he thinks: “Sadness cannot help evil:
A madman cries only in distress,
And the smart one looks for means,
How to help me with deeds;
And it seems that I can get rid of trouble from my neck:
After all, we were not caught with the intention of eating,
The owner, I see, is eager to listen to songs.
So if I please him with my voice,
Perhaps I will earn myself a reward,
And he will end my bondage."
So my singer reasoned:
And with a song he calls the dawn of vespers,
And he greets the sunrise with songs.
But what happened at last?
He only aggravated his evil fate.
Who sang badly, for those long ago
The owner opened both the cages and the window
And he set them all free;
And my poor Nightingale,
Than he sang more pleasantly and tenderly,
Thus they guarded him more closely.