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The Heifer, the Goat, and their sister the Sheep,
With a proud Lion, lord of the neighborhood,
Formed a partnership, they say, in times of old,
And put in common both the gain and the loss.
In the Goat’s snares a Stag found himself caught.
To her associates she sends word at once.
When they had come, the Lion counted with his claws,
And said: “We are four to share the prey.”
Then into as many parts he carved the Stag;
Took the first for himself in his quality of Sire:
“It must be mine, said he; and the reason,
Is that I am called Lion:
To that there is nothing to be said.
The second, by right, must fall to me still:
This right, you know it, is the right of the strongest.
As the most valiant, I claim the third.
If any one of you touches the fourth,
I will strangle her straight away.”
Jean de La Fontaine
Translation generated by Poésies 123 with assistance from the deepseek-chat artificial-intelligence model.
Text published on Poésies 123: https://www.poesies123.com/en/fable-the-heifer-the-goat-and-the-sheep-in-partnership-with-the-lion-jean-de-la-fontaine/