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Aesop's Fables: Caxton (1484)5.15. Of the dogge / of the wulf and of the whether Grete folye is to a fool that hat no myght / that wylle begyle another
stronger than hym self / as reherceth this fable of a fader of famylle
whiche had a grete herd or flcok of sheep / and had a grete dogge
for to kepe them which was wel stronge / And of his voys all the
wolues were aferd wherfore the sheepherd slepte more surely / but
it happed / that this dogge for his grete age deyde / wherfore the
sheepherdes were sore troubled and wrothe / and sayd one to other
/ we shall nomore slepe at oure ease by cause that our dogge is dede
/ for the wulues shall now come and ete our sheep / and thenne a
grete wether fyers and prowd / whiche herd alle these wordes came
to them and sayd / I shalle gyue yow good counceylle / Shaue me /
and put on me the skynne of the dogge And whanne the wulues shalle
see me / they shalle haue grete fere of me / And whanne the wulues
came and sawe the wether clothed with the skynne of the dogge / they
beganne all to flee / and ranne awey / t happed on a day that a wulf
whiche was sore hongry / came and toke a lambe / and after ran awaye
therwith / And thenne the sayd wether ranne after hym / And the wulf
whiche supposed that it had ben the dogge shote thryes by the waye
for the grete fere that he had / And ranne euer as fast as he coude
/ and the wether also ranne after hym withoute cesse / tyl that he
ranne thurgh a busshe full of sharp thornes / the whiche thornes
rente and brake alle the dogges skynne / which was on hym / And as
the wulf loked and sawe behynde hym / beynge moche doubtuous of his
dethe / sawe and perceyued alle the decepcion and falshede of the
wether / And forthwith retorned ageynste hym / and demaunded of hym
/ what beest arte thow / And the wether ansuerd to hym in this maner
/ My lord I am a wether whiche playeth with the / And the wulf sayd
/ Ha mayster ought ye to playe with your mayster and with your lord
/ thow hast made me so sore aferd / that by the weye as I ranne before
the / I dyde shyte thre grete toordes / And thenne the wulf ledde
hym vnto the place where as he had shyte / sayenge thus to hym /
Loke hyther / callest thow this a playe / I take hit not for playe
/ For now I shalle shewe to the / how thou oughtest not to playe
so with thy lord / And thenne the wulf took and kylled hym / and
deuoured and ete hym /
 Caxton
published his edition of Aesop's fables in 1484. There are modern reprints by
Joseph Jacobs (D. Nutt: London, 1889) and more recently by Robert Lenaghan (Harvard
University Press: Cambridge, 1967). Lenaghan's edition is available at amazon.com.
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