A Peacock having moulted, the sly Jay Put on the thrown-off plumage with delight; Amongst some other Peacocks found his way, And thought himself a fascinating sight. At last the would-be beau got recognised, A charlatan, in borrowed plumes equipt-- And laughed at, scouted, hustled, and despised, Of all his second-hand attire got stript; Returning to his friends, abashed and poor, They most politely showed him to the door. Two-footed Jays are anything but rare, Who live on facts and fancies not their own; But these are, luckily, not my affair, So let me leave the plagiarists alone. [Illustration: THE LITTLE FISH AND THE FISHERMAN.] FABLE LXXV. THE LITTLE FISH AND THE FISHERMAN. A little Fish will larger grow, in time, If God will only grant him life; and yet To let him free out of the tangling net Is folly; and I mean it, though I rhyme: The catching him again is not so sure, <i>c'est tout.</i> A little Carp, who half a summer knew, Was taken by an angler's crafty hook. "All count," the man said; "this begins my feast: I'll put it in my basket." "Here, just look!" Exclaimed, in his own way, the tiny beast. "Now what on earth can you, sir, want with me? I'm not quite half a mouthful, as you see. Let me grow up, and catch me when I'm tall, Then some rich epicure will buy me dear; But now you'll want a hundred, that is plain, Aye, and as much again, To make a dish; and what dish, after all? Why, good for nothing." "Good for nothing, eh?" Replied the Angler. "Come, my little friend, Into the pan you go; so end. Your sermon pleases me, exceedingly. To-night we'll try How you will fry." The present, not the future, tense Is that preferred by men of sense. The one is sure that you have got: The other, verily, is not. [Illustration] [Illustration] FABLE LXXVI. BATTLE BETWEEN THE RATS AND WEASELS.