Donkey and the Lapdog
posted in Dog, Donkey |
A MAN had a Donkey and a Maltese Lapdog, a very great beauty. The Donkey was left in a stable and had plenty of oats and hay to eat, just as any other Donkey would. The Lapdog knew many tricks and was a great favorite with his master, who often played with him and seldom went out to dine without bringing him home some tidbit to eat. The Donkey, on the other hand, had much work to do in grinding the corn-mill and in carrying wood from the forest or burdens from the farm.
The Donkey often lamented his own hard fate and contrasted it with the luxury and idleness of the Lapdog, till at last one day he broke his cords and halter, and galloped into his master’s house, kicking up his heels without measure, and frisking and fawning in the same way that he had seen the Lapdog do. The Donkey next tried to jump about his master as the Lapdog did, but he broke the table and smashed all the dishes upon it to tiny pieces. He then attempted to lick his master, and jumped upon his back.
The servants, hearing the strange hubbub and perceiving the danger of their master, quickly relieved him, and drove out the Donkey to his stable with kicks and clubs.
The Donkey, as he returned to his stall beaten nearly to death, lamented: “I have brought it all on myself! Why could I not have been contented to labor with my companions, and not wish to be idle all the day like that useless little Lapdog!”
Moral: don’t try to be something you’re not.