THE WOLVES, THE SHEEP AND THE RAM

The wolves sent messengers to the sheep, offering to swear a sacred oath of everlasting peace if the sheep would just agree to hand over the dogs for punishment. It was all because of the dogs, said the wolves, that the sheep and the wolves were at war with one another. The flock of sheep, those foolish creatures who bleat at everything, were ready to send the dogs away but there was an old ram among them whose deep fleece shivered and stood on end. 'What kind of negotiation is this!' he exclaimed. 'How can I hope to survive in your company unless we have guards? Even now, with the dogs keeping watch, I cannot graze in safety.'

In Babrius, a wise old ram warns the sheep about the danger of betraying the dogs to the wolves.

In Ademar, there is no wise ram, and the sheep are slaughtered by the wolves.

Chambry has both versions, with the ram, and without.

The Romulus tradition features a complex story of negotiations and hostages, with the dogs as hostages for the sheep and the wolf cubs as hostages for the wolves. Unbeknownst to the sheep, the wolves kill the dogs. Then the wolf cubs start to howl, and on this pretext the wolves kill all the sheep as well. There is a confused and delightful version of this in Caxton where the older wolves seem ready to keep peace with the sheep, but it is the young wolves who launch the attack: "all of one accord and wylle sayd to theyre Auncestres and faders / we must ete vp alle the sheep / And theyr faders ansuerd thus to them / we haue maade pees with them / Neuertheles the yonge wolues brake the pees and ranne fyersly vpon the sheep / and theyr faders wente after them."