Acheria the fox

Here is the tale Basque on Acheria the Fox.

Acheria the Fox

Acheria the Fox

NE day a fox was hungry. He didn't know what to think. He saw a shepherd pass by every day with his flock, and he said to himself that he must steal his milk and his cheese, and make a good feast; but he needed someone to help him do anything. So he goes in search of a wolf and he says to him:

“Wolf, wolf! we should feast on such milk and shepherd's cheese. You, you will go where the herds graze, and from afar you will have to howl: 'Uhur, uhur, uhur.' The man, after milking his sheep, leads them into the field, with his dog, early in the morning, and he stops at his house to do his work, and then he makes his cheese; and, when you begin to howl, 'Uhur, uhur,' and the dog bark, the shepherd will leave everything else, and run away. Meanwhile I'll steal the milk, and we'll share it when you come to me.

The wolf agreed to make a feast and left. He did exactly as the fox told him. The dog started barking when the wolf approached. And when the man heard of this, he went away, leaving everything, and our fox went away and stole the vase in which the curds were. What does he do then, before the wolf arrives? He gently, gently removes the cream, finely, finely, and he eats the entire contents of the pitcher. 

After having eaten everything, he fills it with earth, and puts the cream back on it, and he waits for the wolf at the place where he had indicated. The fox tells him, since he is the one who must do the division, that as the top is much better than the bottom, whoever chooses this will have only that, and the other all the rest. “Now choose what you would like. »

The wolf said to him,

“I won't have the top, I prefer what's below. »

The fox then takes over, and gives the poor wolf the vase full of earth. 1 When he saw this, the wolf became angry; but the fox said to him:

" It's not my fault. Apparently, the shepherd does like that. »

And the fox goes full.

Another day, he was very hungry again and didn't know what to do. Every day he saw a boy passing on the road with his father's dinner. He says to a blackbird,

"Merle, don't you know what we have to do?" We should have dinner. A boy will pass right through here. You'll go ahead of him, and when the boy catches up with you, you'll go a little further, limping, and when you've done that a bit the boy will get impatient, and he'll put down his basket to catch you faster. I'll take the basket, and I'll go to such a place, and we'll share it, and have a nice dinner. »

The blackbird says to him: "Yes".

When the boy passes, the blackbird passes the boy limping, limping. When the boy bends down (to catch him), the blackbird escapes a little farther. Finally the waiter, impatient, puts his basket on the ground, in order to go more quickly after the blackbird. The fox, who was watching to seize the basket, goes with it, not to the agreed place, but to its hole, and there it stuffs itself, eating the blackbird's share at the same time as its own. .

Then he said to himself,

“I won't do anything to stop here. The wolf is my enemy, and the blackbird too. Something will happen to me if I stay here. I have to go to the other side of the water.

He goes and stands at the edge of the water. A boatman passed by by chance, and he said to him:

“Wow! man, hey! Do you want to cross this water for me? I will tell you three truths. »

The man said, “Yes. »

The fox jumps (into the boat), and he begins to say:

“People say cornbread is as good as wheat bread. This is a lie. Wheat bread is better. It's the truth. »

When he was in the middle of the river, he said:

“People also say, 'What a beautiful night, it's as clear as day!' This is a lie. The day is always brighter. This is the second truth.

And he told her the third as they approached the bank.

" Oh! dude, dude, you got bad pants, and they're gonna get worse if you don't get past the people who pay you more than me. »

“That's very true,” said the man; and the fox jumped down.

So I was by the river, and I learned these three truths, and I have never forgotten them since.