The fables of Aesop by William Caxton (Jacobs)/Annotated/Vol. II/Liber Primus/Fable 12
¶ The xij fable is of the two rats
Etter worthe is to lyue in pouerte
surely / than to lyue rychely beyng
euer in daunger / Wherof Esope
tellelh suche a fable / There were
two rats wherof the one was grete
and fatte / and held hym in the celer of a Ryche
man And the other was poure and lene / ¶ On
a daye this grete and fat ratte wente to sporte
hym in the feldes and mette by the way the
poure rat / of the whiche he was receyued as
well as he coude in his poure cauerne or hole /
and gaf from of suche mete as he had / Thenne
sayd the fatte ratte come thow wyth me / And
I shalle gyue the wel other metes / He went
with hym in to the toune / and enterd bothe
into the celer of the ryche man / the whiche
celer was full of alle goodes / And when they
were within the grete rat presented and gaf to
the poure rat of the delycious metes / saying thus
to hym / Be mery and make good chere / and
ete and drynke Joyously / ¶ And as they were
etynge / the bouteler of the place came in to the
celer / & the grete rat fled anon in to his hole / & the poure rat wist not whyther he shold goo
ne flee / But hyd hym behynd the dore with
grete fere and drede / and the bouteler turned
ageyne and sawe hym not / And whan he was
gone the fatte rat cam out of his cauerne or
hole / and called the poure ratte / whiche yet
was shakynge for fere / and said to hym / come
hyder and be not aferd / & ete as moche as thou
wylt / And the poure rat sayd to hym / for
goddes loue lete me go oute of this celer / For I
haue better ete some corne in the feldes and lyue
surely / than to be ever in this torment / for thou
arte here in grete doubte & lyuest not surely /
And therfore hit is good to lyue pourely &
surely For the poure lyueth more surely than
the ryche.