The Lion's Share
Vocabulary;
-
arbiter - a judge
-
carcass - the body of a dead
animal.
-
labors - jobs, work, toils
-
spoil - the prize one gets after
a hunt, a war, etc..
-
stag - a male deer
The Lion went once a-hunting along
with the Fox, the Jackal, and the Wolf. They hunted and they hunted till at
last they surprised a Stag, and soon took its life. Then came the question how
the spoil should be divided.
"Quarter me this Stag,"
roared the Lion; so the other animals skinned it and cut it into four parts.
Then the Lion took his stand in front of the carcass and pronounced judgment:
The first quarter is for me in my capacity as King of Beasts; the second is
mine as arbiter; another share comes to me for my part in the chase; and as
for the fourth quarter, well, as for that, I should like to see which of you
will dare to lay a paw upon it."
"Humph," grumbled the
Fox as he walked away with his tail between his legs; but he spoke in a low
growl
."You may share the
labors of the great, but you will not share the spoil."
Questions to discuss:
-
Have you ever worked on something
and gotten no credit for your efforts - what happened?
-
How else might the other animals
handled this situation with the King of Beasts?
