Irenaeus Fabula 54. Leo et Rana.

I've embarked on a new Latin fable project here at the Latin Via Fables blog: digitizing the 300 fables in the Mithologica sacro-profana, seu florilegium fabularum by P. Irenaeus, published in 1666, which has recently become available at GoogleBooks. For a complete index of the fables in the book, with links to the fables I've digitized so far, check out the Aesopus wiki page at Aesopus.PBwiki.com.

Today's fable is Leo et Rana, the story of the lion who heard a frog. In Perry's indexing system, this is Perry 141.

To make reading the fable easier, I've provided a segmented version of the story below.

Propter stagnum Leo inambulans, coaxantium Ranarum cantibus ac vocibus auditis, obstupescebat, existimans tanti rumoris vocem esse cuiusdam animalis perampli, iamque iubas arrigebat et cauda latera in iram percutiebat, quodcumque animal esset, expugnatuarus, cum, propius accedens ad oram stagni, videt Ranam coaxantem sub se moveri, quam pede calcavit et attrivit, pudore suffusus, sibi tam exile et foedum animalculum fuisse terrori. Quo docemur plerumque rerum inanium vano timore homines deterreri, quae si nossent, flocci facerent.

Propter stagnum
Leo inambulans,
coaxantium Ranarum
cantibus ac vocibus auditis,
obstupescebat,
existimans
tanti rumoris vocem
esse cuiusdam animalis perampli,
iamque iubas arrigebat
et cauda
latera in iram percutiebat,
quodcumque animal esset, expugnatuarus,
cum,
propius accedens ad oram stagni,
videt
Ranam coaxantem sub se moveri,
quam pede calcavit et attrivit,
pudore suffusus,
sibi
tam exile et foedum animalculum
fuisse terrori.
Quo docemur
plerumque
rerum inanium vano timore
homines deterreri,
quae si nossent,
flocci facerent.

Here's an illustration for the fable (image source) showing a puppet theater with a lion and a frog:

---

Aesop's Fables in Latin now available at Amazon.com.