The fables of Aesop by William Caxton (Jacobs)/Vol. II/Liber Secundus/Fable 1
¶ The fyrst fable is of the frogges and of Jupyter
O thyng is so good as to lyue Justly and at lyberte For fredome and lyberte is better than ony gold or syluer / wherof Esope reherceth to vs suche a fable / There were frogges whiche were in dyches and pondes at theyre lyberte / they alle to gyder of one assente & of one wylle maade a request to Jupiter that he wold gyue them a kynge / And Jupyter beganne ganne therof to merueylle / And for theyr kyng he called to them a grete pyece of wood / whiche maade a grete sowne and noyse in the water / wherof alle the frogges had grete drede and sered moche / And after they approched to theyr kynge for to make obeyssaunce vnto hym / ¶ And whanne they perceyued that hit was but a pyece of wood / they torned ageyne to Jupiter prayenge hym swetely that he wold gyue to them another kynge / And Jupiter gaf to them the Heron for to be theyr kynge / And then the Heron beganne to entre in to the water / and ete them one after other / And whanne the frogges sawe that theyr kyng destroyed / and ete them thus / they beganne tendyrly to wepe / sayeng in this manere to the god Jupiter / Ryght hyghe and ryght myghte god Jupiter please the to delyuere vs fro the throte of this dragon and fals tyraunt which eteth vs the one after another / And he sayd to them / the kynge whiche ye haue demounded shalle be your mayster / For whan men haue that / which men oughte to haue / they ought to be ioyful and glad And he that hath lyberte ought to kepe hit wel / For nothyng is better than lyberte / Fur lyberte shold not be wel sold for alle the gold and syluer of all the world