Aesop embodies an epigram not uncommon in human history; his time is all the more deserved because he never deserved it. The firm foundations of common sense, the shrewd shots at uncommon sense, that characterise all the fables, belong not to him but to humanity. In the earliest human history whatever is authentic is universal: and whatever is universal is anonymous. In such cases there is always some central man who had first the trouble of collecting them, and afterwards the fame of creating them. He had the time; and, on the whole, he earned the time.

Aesop's celebrated collection of fables has always been popular with both adults and children. These simple tales embody truths so powerful, the titles of individual fables - the fox and the grapes, the dog in the manger, the woff in sheep"s clothing and many others - have entered the languages and idioms of most European tongues.

This edition is beautifully illustrated in black and white by the great Arthur Rackham. and has an introduction by G.K. Chesterton.

Introduction

The Fox & the Grapes

The Goose that Laid the Golden Eggs

The Cat & the Mice

The Mischievous Dog

The Charcoal-Burner & the Fuller

The Mice in Council

The Bat & the Weasels

The Dog & the Sow

The Fox & the Crow

The Horse & the Groom

The Wolf & the Lamb

The Peacock & the Crane

The Cat & the Birds

The Spendthrift & the Swallow

The Old Woman & the Doctor

The Moon & Her Mother

Mercury & the Woodman

The Ass, the Fox & the Lion

The Lion & the Mouse

The Crow & the Pitcher

The Boys & the Frogs

The North Wind & the Sun

The Mistress & Her Servants

The Goods & the Ills

The Hares & the Frogs

The Fox & the Stork

The Wolf in Sheep"s Clothing

The Stag in the Ox-Stall

The Milkmaid & Her Pail

The Dolphins, the Whales & the Sprat

The Fox & the Monkey

The Ass & the Lap-Dog

The Fir Tree & the Bramble

The Frogs" Complaint against the Sun

The Dog, the Cock & the Fox

The Gnat & the Bull

The Bear & the Travellers

The Slave & the Lion

The Flea & the Man

The Bee & Jupiter

The Oak & the Reeds

The Blind Man & the Cub

The Boy & the Snails

The Apes & the Two Travellers

The Ass & His Burdens

The Shepherd"s Boy & the Wolf

The Fox & the Goat

The Fisherman & the Sprat

The Boasting Traveller

The Crab & His Mother

……