18. THE HARE AND THE TORTOISE. "What a dull, heavy creature," said a bright-eyed, nimble-footed Hare, "is this same plodding Tortoise! He trudges along in the mud, neither looking to the right nor to the left, only caring to nibble such of the dryest grass and the dirtiest roots as come in his way, and making no more progress in a day's march than I can accomplish in two or three careless bounds!"
"And yet," said the Tortoise (in whose hearing the speech had been made for his humiliation), "although I have neither your lightness of foot, nor the compact and powerful symmetry of your haunches, I will undertake to run you for a wager."
"Agreed," said the Hare, contemptuously. So a goal was named, and away they started together. The Tortoise kept jogging along at his usual rate, and was soon left behind and out of sight by the Hare, who, tired of running alone in a given direction, fell to browsing on choice plants, and then went off to a game of play with certain of his sportive companions, finally making up his form for a snug nap among some tempting long autumn grass: "For," said he, "with my great natural gift of swiftness, I can fetch up Old Humdrum Master Tortoise whenever I please."
But he overslept himself, it seems. For when he came to wake, it was already dark, the weather had changed, and the fields were heavy with clay; and though he scudded away as fast as the ground would let him, he was fain to drop at last half dead with cold and fatigue in sight of the winning-post, which the Tortoise had reached comfortably before him, — thereby winning the wager.
MORAL. Genius that may outrun the Constable, cannot overtake Time lost. [more info]
"And yet," said the Tortoise (in whose hearing the speech had been made for his humiliation), "although I have neither your lightness of foot, nor the compact and powerful symmetry of your haunches, I will undertake to run you for a wager."
"Agreed," said the Hare, contemptuously. So a goal was named, and away they started together. The Tortoise kept jogging along at his usual rate, and was soon left behind and out of sight by the Hare, who, tired of running alone in a given direction, fell to browsing on choice plants, and then went off to a game of play with certain of his sportive companions, finally making up his form for a snug nap among some tempting long autumn grass: "For," said he, "with my great natural gift of swiftness, I can fetch up Old Humdrum Master Tortoise whenever I please."
But he overslept himself, it seems. For when he came to wake, it was already dark, the weather had changed, and the fields were heavy with clay; and though he scudded away as fast as the ground would let him, he was fain to drop at last half dead with cold and fatigue in sight of the winning-post, which the Tortoise had reached comfortably before him, — thereby winning the wager.
MORAL. Genius that may outrun the Constable, cannot overtake Time lost. [more info]
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