The fables of Aesop by William Caxton (Jacobs)/Vol. II/Liber Quintus/Fable 12
¶ The xij fable is of the wulf and of the hongry dogge
Uche supposen somtyme wynne that
lesen / As hit appiereth by this
Fable / For hit is sayd comunly
that as moche despendeth the
nygard as the large / As hit appiereth
by this fable of a man whiche had a grete
herd of sheep / And also he had a dogge for to
kepe them fro the wulues / To this dogge he gaf
no mete / for the grete auaryce whiche held hym /
And therfore the wulf on a daye came to the
dogge and demaunded of hym the rayson / why
he was soo lene / and sayd to hym / I see wel
that thow dyest for honger / by cause that thy
mayster gyueth the no mete / by his grete scarcyte
/ but yf thow wylt byleue me I shalle gyue
to the good counceylle / And the dogge sayd to
hym / Certaynly I myster gretely of good counceylle
/ ¶ Thenne the wulf sayd to hym / This
shalt thow doo / Lete me take a lambe / And
whanne I shalle haue hit I shalle renne awey /
and whanne thow shalt see me renne / make thenne semblant to renne after me / and lete thy
self falle faynynge that thow canst not ouertake
me / for lack and fawte of mete / whiche maketh
the so feble / And thus whanne the sheepherd
shalle see that thow mayst not haue the lambe fro
me by cause of the grete feblenesse and debylyte
of thy lene body / he shell telle to thy lord that
thow myghtest not socoure the lambe / by cause
that thow arte so sore ahongryd / and by this
means thow shalt haue mete thy bely ful / ¶ The
dogge thenne acorded this with the wulf / and
eche of them made and dyde as aboue is sayd /
¶ And whane the sheep herd sawe the dogge
falle / suposed wel / that honger was a cause of
it Forthe whiche cause whanne one of the
sheep herdes came home he told hit to his mayster
/ And whan the mayster vnderstood hit / he
sayd as a man wroth for shame / I wylle that
fro hens forthon he haue breed ynough / ¶ And
thenne euery daye the sayd dogge hadde soppes
of brede / and of drye breed he hadde ynough /
¶ Thenne the dogge toke strengthe/ and vygour
ageyne / ¶ It happed within a lytyl whyle after /
that the wulf came ageyne to the dogge / and sayd
to hym / I perceyue wel / that I gaf to the good
counceylle / And the dogge sayd to the wulf /
My broder thow fayst soothe / wherfore I thanke
the moche / For of hit I hadde grete nede / ¶ And thenne the wulf sayd to hym / yf thow
wylt I shall gyue to the yet better counceylle /
And the dogge ansuerd hym with ryght a good
wylle I shalle here hit / And yf hit be good I
shalle do after hit / ¶ Thenne sayd the wulf to
hym Lete me take yet another lambe / and doo
thy dylygence for to haue hit fro me / and to
byte me / and I shalle ouerthrowe the thy feet
vpward / as he that hath no puyssaunce ne
strength withoute hurtynge of thy self / byleue
me hardyly / and wel hit shalle happe to the /
And whanne thy maysters seruaunts shalle haue
sene thy dylygence / they fhal shewen hit to thy
mayster how that thow shal kepe ful wel his
folde / yf thow be wel nourysshed / ¶ And
thenne the dogge ansuerd to the wulf that he
was contente / And as hit was sayd / ryght so
hit was done / and bothe of them maad good
dylygence The wulf bere aweye the lambe /
and the dogge renne after hym / and ouertook
hym / & bote hym fayntly / And the wulf ouerthrewe
the dogge vpsodoune to the ground /
And whan the sheepherdes sawe gyue suche
strokes amonge the dogge & the Wulf / sayd
Certaynly we haue a good dogge / we muste telle
his dylygence to our mayster / and soo they dyd /
& how he bote the wulf / and how he was ouerthrowen
/ And yet sayd Certaynly yf he hadde hadde euer mete ynough / the wulf had not
borne awey the lambe / Thenne the lord commaunded
to gyue hym pleiite of mete/ wherof
the dogge took ageyne al strengthe and vertue /
And within a whyle after the wulf came ageyne
to the dogge / and sayd to hym in this manere /
My broder haue I not gyuen to the good counceylle
/ And thenne the dogge ansuerd to hym /
Certaynly ye / wherof I thanke yow / And the
wulf sayd to the dogge / I praye the my broder
and my good frend that thow wylt yet gyue
another lambe / and the dogge sayd to hym /
Certaynly my broder / wel hit maye suffyce the
to haue had tweyne of them / ¶ Thenne sayd
the wulf to the dogge / ¶ At the left waye I
maye haue one for my labour and sallarye / That
shalt thow not haue sayd the dogge / Hast thow
not had good sallarye for to haue hadde two
lambes oute of my maysters herd / ¶ And the
wulf ansuerd to hym ageyne / My brother gyue
hit me yf hit please the / ¶ And after sayd the
dogge to hym / Nay I wylle not/ And yf thow
takest hit ageynste my wylle / I promytte and
warne the / that neuer after tyme thow shalt
ete none / And thenne the wulf sayd to hym /
Allas my broder I deye for honger / Counceylle
me for goddys loue what I shalle doo / And the
dogge sayd to hym / I shal coūceylle the wel a walle of my maysters celer is fallen doune / go
thyder this nyght and entre in hit / and there
thow mayst both ete and drynke after thy playsyr
/ For bothe breed flesshe and wyn shalt thow
fynde at plente there within / And thenne the
wulf sayd to hym / Allas my broder / beware
wel thenne / that thow accuse ne deceyue me
not / And the dogge ansuerd / I waraunt the /
but doo thy faythe soo pryuely / that none of my
felawes knowe not of hit / ¶ And the wulf
came at the nyght / and entryd in to the celer /
and / ete and dranke at his playsyre / In so
moche that he wexed dronke And whanne he
hadde dronke soo moche / that he was dronke /
He sayd to hym self / whanne the vylaynes ben
fylled wyth metes/ and that they ben dronke /
they synge theyr songes / and I wherfore shold
I not synge / ¶ And thenne he beganne to crye
and to howle / And the dogges herd the voys of
hym wherfore they beganne to barke and to
howle / And the seruaunts whiche herd them
sayd / It is the wulf / whiche is entryd within
the celer / And thenne they al to gyder wenten
thyder / and kylled the wulf / And therfore
more despendeth the nygard than the large /
For auaryce was neuer good / For many one
ben whiche dare not ete ne drynke as nature
requyreth / But neuertheles euery one oughte to use and lyue prudently of all suche goodes
as god sendeth to hym / This fable also sheweth
to vs / that none ought to do ageynste his kynde /
as of the wulf whiche wexed dronke / for the
whiche caufe he was slayne