The Monkey And The Dolphin
A Sailor, bound on a long voyage, took with him a Monkey to amuse
him while on shipboard. As he sailed off the coast of Greece, a violent
tempest arose in which the ship was wrecked and he, his Monkey, and
all the crew were obliged to swim for their lives. A Dolphin saw the
Monkey contending with the waves, and supposing him to be a man (whom
he is always said to befriend), came and placed himself under him,
to convey him on his back in safety to the shore. When the Dolphin
arrived with his burden in sight of land not far from Athens, he asked
the Monkey if he were an Athenian. The latter replied that he was,
and that he was descended from one of the most noble families in that
city. The Dolphin then inquired if he knew the Piraeus (the famous
harbor of Athens). Supposing that a man was meant, the Monkey answered
that he knew him very well and that he was an intimate friend. The
Dolphin, indignant at these falsehoods, dipped the Monkey under the
water and drowned him.
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