The Fox and the Stork


26. THE FOX AND THE STORK. The fox asked the stork to dinner. Wishing to amuse himself by making fun of his guest, he gave him only one large flat dish of soup. Thus the stork, who could but dip the end of his long beak into the dish was not able to eat anything, while the fox lapped up every drop, laughing all the time at his clever trick.
The stork said nothing, but in a few days the fox received from him an invitation to dinner. On arriving, Reynard found that they were to feast on mince-meat, and that the mince-meat had been put into a glass jar with a long thin neck. The stork after telling his guest to begin, thrust his bill into the jar and ate a hearty meal, but all the hungry fox could do was to lick what crumbs were left on the brim.
At first he was very angry, but afterwards he confessed that it served him right, for it was he who had set the bad example, by breaking the laws of kindness and hospitality. [more info]

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