Folk Tales
Author's TalesA braggart, lover of the chase,
Had lost a dog of valued race,
And thought him in a lion”s maw.
He ask”d a shepherd whom he saw,
“Pray show me, man, the robber”s place,
And I'll have justice in the case.”
“Tis on this mountain side,”
The shepherd man replied.
“The tribute of a sheep I pay,
Each month, and where I please I stray.”
Out leap”d the lion as he spake,
And came that way with agile feet.
The braggart, prompt his flight to take,
Cried, “Jove, O grant a safe retreat!”
A danger close at hand
Of courage is the test.
It shows us who will stand:
Whose legs will run their best.