AESOP AND HIS FABLES

Nobody really knows who Aesop really was. However, according to tradition he was a Greek slave, who probably lived around 620 to 560 BC. There is not much real information about his life, but Aristotle made mention of him, and implies that he was freed from slavery and was made a public defender. Some believe he never existed at all and that his fables are just collections of ancient stories handed down through oriental and other ancient sources. Whatever the truth is, the stories that are attributed to Aesop are the basis for most European fables, which use stories of animals to illustrate human vices, follies and virtues.

Here are a few of the fables that mention cats:

The Cat-Maiden
The gods were once disputing whether it was possible for a living being to change its nature.
Jupiter said "Yes," but Venus said "No." So, to try the question, Jupiter turned a cat into a young girl, and gave her to a young man to be his wife.
After the wedding ceremony, the young couple sat down to the wedding-feast. "You see," said Jupiter to Venus, "How becomingly she behaves. Who could tell that yesterday she was but a Cat? Surely her nature is changed?"
"Wait a minute," replied Venus, and let a mouse loose into the room. No sooner did the bride see this than she jumped up from her seat and tried to catch it
"Ah, you see," said Venus, "Nature will out."
"Wait a minute," replied Venus, and let loose a mouse into the room. No sooner did the bride see this than she jumped up from her seat and tried to pounce upon the mouse. "Ah, you see," said Venus.

"True nature will come out."

Cat and the Birds.
A CAT heard that the Birds in an aviary were ailing. So he got himself up as a doctor, and, taking with him a set of the instruments proper to his profession, presented himself at the door, and inquired after the health of the Birds. "We shall do very well," they replied, without letting him in. "when we've seen the last of you."
The Cat took the hint and left.

Moral: A villain may disguise himself, but he will not deceive the wise.

Belling the Cat
Long ago, the mice had a general council to consider what measures they could take to outwit their common enemy, the Cat. Some said this, and some said that. At last a young mouse got up and said he had a proposal to make, which he thought would meet the case.
"You will all agree," said he, "that our chief danger is the sly and treacherous manner in which the enemy approaches us. Now, if we could receive some signal of her approach, we could easily escape from her. I venture, therefore, to propose that a small bell be obtained, and tied by a ribbon round the neck of the Cat. This means we should always know when she is about, and can easily hide when she is in the neighbourhood."
This proposal met with general applause, until an old mouse got up and said: "That is all very well, but who is to bell the Cat?"The mice looked at one another and nobody spoke. Then the old mouse said: "It is easy to propose impossible remedies."

Moral: It is no use having bright ideas unless we are willing to put them into practice.
OR
It is easy to think of impossible solutions

The Cat and the Mice
A certain house was overrun with Mice. A Cat, discovering this,made her way into it and began to catch and eat them one by one.
Fearful for their lives, the Mice kept themselves close in theirholes.

The Cat was no longer able to get at them and realised
that she must tempt them forth by some device. For this purpose she jumped upon a peg, and suspending herself from it, pretended to be dead. One of the Mice, peeping stealthily out, saw her and said,

"Ah, my good Cat, even though you should turn into a
meal-bag, we will not come near you."

Moral: He who is once deceived is doubly cautious

The Fox and the Cat
A Fox was boasting to a Cat of its clever devices for escaping its enemies. "I have a whole bag of tricks," he said, "which contains a hundred ways of escaping my enemies."
"I have only one," said the Cat; "but I can generally manage with that."
Just at that moment they heard the cry of a pack of hounds coming towards them, and the Cat immediately scampered up a tree and hid herself in the boughs.
"This is my plan," said the Cat. "What are you going to do?"
The Fox thought first of one way, then of another, and while he was debating the hounds came nearer and nearer, and at last the Fox in his confusion was caught up by the hounds and soon killed by the huntsmen. Miss Puss, who had been looking on, said:
"Better one safe way than a hundred on which you cannot reckon."

The Cat and the Cockerel
A Cat caught a Cock and thought about reasonable excuses for eating him. He accused him of being a nuisance by crowing at night; not letting men sleep. The Cock defended his action by saying this was for the benefit of men, as it wakes them for labor. The Cat replied, "you abound in apologies, but it's time for breakfast." At that he made a meal of the Cock.

Moral: Tyrants need no excuse.