Long ago, the mice had a general council to consider what measures they could take to outwit their common enemy, the Cat. Some said this, and some said that; but at last a young mouse got up and said he had a proposal to make, which he thought would meet the case. "You will all agree," said he, "that our chief danger consists in the sly and treacherous manner in which the enemy approaches us. Now, if we could receive some signal of her approach, we could easily escape from her. I venture, therefore, to propose that a small bell be procured, and attached by a ribbon round the neck of the Cat. By this means we should always know when she was about, and could easily retire while she was in the neighbourhood."
This proposal met with general applause, until an old mouse got up and said: "That is all very well, but who is to bell the Cat?" The mice looked at one another and nobody spoke. Then the old mouse said: "It is easy to propose impossible remedies." Aesop Author of the Fable Belling the Cat Nationality of Aesop - Ethiopian or Greek Lifespan of Aesop - He lived approximately 620 - 560 BC Life of Aesop - Slave - Author of the book of fables Famous Works - Aesop's Fable book featuring: "The Goose With the Golden Eggs", "The Fisher", "Belling the Cat" and "The Sick Lion"
Belling the Cat Fable Moral: It is easy to propose impossible remedies |