The fables of Aesop by William Caxton (Jacobs)/Vol. II/Alfonce/Fable 6
¶ The vj fable is of the labourer and of the nyghtyngale
Omtyme there was a labourer /
whiche had a gardeyn wel playsaunt
and moche delycious / in to
the whiche he ofte wente for to
take his desporte and playsure /
And on a day at euen when he was wery and
had trauaylled sore / for to take his recreacion he
entryd in to his gardyn and sette himself doune
vnder a tree/ where as he herd the songe of a
nyghtyngale / And for the grete plesyre and Joye
whiche he took therof / he sought and at the last
fond the meanes for to take the nyghtyngale / to
thende / that yet gretter joye and playsaunce he
myght haue of hit / And whan the nyghtyngale
was take / he demaunded of the labourer /
wherfore hast thow take so grete payne for to
take me / For wel thow knowest that of me
thow mayst not haue grete prouffyte / And the
vylayne ansuerd thus to the nyghtyngale / For to
here the songe of the I haue taken the / And the
nyghtyngale ansuerd Certaynly in vayne thou
hast payned and laboured / For / for no good I wylle synge whyle that I am in pryson / And
thenne the labourer or vylayne ansuerd / yf thow
syngest not wel / I shalle ete the / And thenne
the nyghtyngale sayd to hym / yf thow putte me
within a potte for to be soden / lytyl mete shalt
thou thenne make of my body / and yf thow settest
me for to be rosted / lesse mete shalle be thenne
made of me / And therfor neyther boylled ne
rosted shalle not be thy grete bely fylled of me /
but yf thow lete me flee / hit shall be to the a
grete good prouffyte / For thre doctrynes I shall
teche the whiche thow shalt loue better than
thre fat kyne / and thene the labourer lete the
nyghtyngale flee / And whan he was oute of his
handes / and that he was vpon a tree / he sayd to
the vylayne in this maner / My Frend I haue
promysed to the / that I shall gyue to the thre
doctrynes / wherof the fyrst is this that thow
byleue no thynge whiche is Impossyble / The
second is that thow kepe wel that thyn is / And
the thyrd is / that thow take no sorowe of the
thynge lost whiche may not be recouererd / And
soone after the nyghtyngale beganne to sygne /
& in his songe sayd thus / blessyd be god / whiche
hath delyuerd me oute of the handes of this
vylayne or chorle / whiche hath not knowen /
sene / ne touched the precious dyamond whiche
I haue within my bely / For yf he had foūde hit / he had be moche ryche / And fro his handes
I had not leaped / And thenne the vylayne whiche
herd this sunge / beganne to complayne and to
make grete sorowe . and after sayd I am wel
vnhappy / that haue lost so fayre a tresour /
whiche I had wonne / and now I haue lost hit /
And the nyghtyngale seyd thenne to the chorle /
Now knowe I wel that thow arte a fool / For
thow takest sorowe of that wherof thow sholdest
haue none / and sone thow hast forgeten my
doctryne / by cause that thow wenest that within
my bely shold be a precious stone more of weyght
than I am / And I told and taught to the / that
thow sholdest neuer byleue that thynge / which
is Impossyble / And yf that stone was thyn / why
hast thow lost hit / And yf thow hast lost hit and
mayst not recouere hit / why takest thow sorowe
for hit / And therfore hit is foly to chastyse or to
teche a fole / whiche neuer byleueth the lernynge
and doctryne whiche is gyuen to hym.