The fables of Aesop by William Caxton (Jacobs)/Vol. II/Liber Tertius/Fable 3
¶ The thyrd fable maketh mencion of the asse / of the hors / & of theyr fortune
E that is wel fortuned and happy /
and is atte vpperest of the whele
of fortune / may wel falle doune /
And therfore none oughte to desprayse
the poure / but oughte to
thynke how the whele of fortune is moche
doubtous as shewethe this present fable / Of a
fayr hors whiche was wel harnaysed and arayed /
and his sadel and brydel garnysshed with gold /
whiche hors mete with an asse sore laden in a
narowe way / And by cause that the asse tourned
hym not a bak Incontynent the hors sayd to
hym / Ha a chorle hast thow noo shame ne vergoyne
/ that thow doste ne berest none worshippe
ne reuerence vnto thy lord / who holdeth now
me / that wyth my foote I breke not thyn hede /
by cause that thow puttest not thy self asyde
and oute of my waye / so that I myght passe
& goo on my waye / The poure asse ansuerd
ne sayd to hym neuer a word / and was sore
aserd that the horse shold haue bete hym / sore he held his pees as wys and sage / And
the hors wente his waye / ¶ And within a lytyl
whyl after / it befelle / that fortune tourned his
whele vp sodoune / For thys fayre hors became
old lene and seke / ¶ And whanne his mayster
sawe that his hors was thus lene and seke and
oute of prosperyte / he comaūded that he shold
be had in to the toun and that in stede of his
ryche sadel men shold put and sette on his
backe a panyer for to bere dounge in to the
feldes / Now it happed that the asse whiche was
in a medowe etyng grasse perceyued and sawe
the hors and wel knewe hym / wherof he was
wonder abasshed / and merueylled moche that
he was thus poure and so lene bycome / ¶ And
the asse went toward hym and sayd / Ha a felawe.
where is now thy fayre sadel / and thy ryche
brydel / garnysshed with gold / how arte thow
now bycome soo lene and suche a payllard /
what haue prouffyted to the thy fayre and ryche
rayments / and what auaylled now to thy grete
syerste and pryde / and thy grete presumpcion
whiche ones thow shewest to me / Thynke now/
how thow arte lene and vnthryfty / and how
thow and I ben now of one offyce / And the
myserable and vnhappy hors was abasshed / and
for shame loked dounward / & ansuerd neuer
one word / for alle his felicitie was thenne turned into aduersyte / ¶ And therfore they that
ben in felycite / oughte not to dysprayse them /
whiche ben in aduersyte / For many one I
knewe ryche and myghty / whiche are now
poure