The fables of Aesop by William Caxton (Jacobs)/Annotated/Vol. II/Liber Primus/Fable 18
¶ The xviij fable is of the lyon and of the rat /
He myghte and puyssant must pardonne and forgyue to the lytyll
and feble / and ought to kepe hym
fro al euylle / For oftyme the lytyll
may wel gyue ayde and help to
the grete / wherof Esope reherceth to vs suche a
fable Of a lyon whiche slepte in a forest and the
rats desported and playd aboute hym / It happed
that the rat wente vpon the lyon / wherfore the
lyon awoke / and within his clawes or ongles he
tooke the rat / ¶ And whanne the rat sawe hym
thus taken & hold sayd thus to the lyon / My
lord pardonne me / For of my deth noughte ye
shalle Wynne / For I suppofed not to haue done
to yow ony harme ne displaysyre / ¶ Thenne
thought the lyon in hym self that no [[The fables of Aesop by William Caxton (Jacobs)/Annotated/Vol. II/Glossary#worship|worship]] ne
glorye it were to put it to dethe / wherfor he
graunted his pardonne and lete hym go within
a lytyll whyle / After this it happed so that the
same lyon was take at a grete trappe / and as he
sawe hym thus caught and taken / he beganne
to crye and make sorowe / and then whan the rat herd hym crye / he approched hym & demaunded
of hym wherfor he cryed / And the
lyon ansuerd to hym / Seest thou not how I am
take & bound with this gynne / Thenne sayd the
ratte to hym / My lord I wylle not be vnkynde /
but euer I shal remembre the grace whiche thou
hast done to me / And if I can I shall now helpe
the / The ratte beganne thenne to byte the lace
or cord / and so long he knawed it that the lace
brake / And thus the lyon escaped / ¶ Therfore
this fable techeth vs how that a man myghty and
puyssant ought not to dysprayse the lytyll / For
somtyme he that can no body hurte ne lette may
at a nede gyue help and ayde to the grete.