The fables of Aesop by William Caxton (Jacobs)/Vol. II/Liber Quintus/Fable 4
¶ The fourthe fable is of the dragon and of the herte
En ought not to rendre euylle for
good / And them that helpen
ought not to be letted / As reherceth
thys fable Of a dragon
whiche was within a Ryuer / and
as this Ryuer was dymynuysshed of water / the
dragon abode at the Ryuage / whiche was al
drye / And thus for lack of watre he coude
not stere hym / A labourer or vylayne came
thēne that waye / and demaunded of the dragon /
what dost thow there / And the dragon ansuerd
to hym / I am here lefte withoute water / withoute
whiche I can not meue / but yf thow wilt
bynd me / and sette me vpon thyn asse / and
lede me in to my Ryuer / I shal gyue to the
habondaunce of gold and syluer / And the
vylayne or chorle for courtyse bound and ledde
hym in to his repayre / And whanne he had
vnbounden hym / he demaunded his sallary /
and payment / And the dragon sayd to hym /
By cause that thow hast bounden me / thow wylt be payd And by cause that I am now
hongry / I shalle ete the / and the vylayne
ansuerd and sayd / For to haue done wel / thow
wylt ete and deuoure me / And as they stryued
to gyder / the foxe whiche was within the forest
herd wel theyr question and different came to
them / and sayd in this manere / Stryue ye no
more to gyder / For I wyll acord / and make
pees bytwixt you Late eche of yow telle to me
his reason for to wete / whiche of yow hath
ryght / And whanne eche of them had told
his caas the foxe sayd to the vylayne / Shewe
thow to me / how thow boundest the dragon /
to thende / that I may gyue therof a trewe and
lawfull sentence / And the vylayne put the
dragon vpon his asse / and bound hym as he
had done before / And the fox demaunded of
the dragon / helde he thenne the so fast bounden /
as he dothe now / And the dragon ansuerd / ye
my lord / and yet more hard / And the foxe
sayd to the vylayn / Bynde hym yet more
harder / For who that wel byndeth / well can
he vnbynd And whanne the dragon was fast
and wel bounden / the fox sayd to the vylayne /
bere hym ageyne there as thow fyrst tokest hym /
And there thow shalt leue hym bounden as he
is now / And thus he shalle not ete ne deuoure
the / For he that dothe euylle / euylle he must haue / For Justly he shall ben punysshed of
god / they that done harme and dommage to
the poure folke For who so euer rendreth
euylle for good / he shalle therof iustly be rewarded