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Aesop's Fables: Caxton (1484)

3.4. Of the beestes and of the birdes
(Perry 566)

None maye doo no good to two lordes at ones / whiche ben contrary one to that other / as sayth to vs this fable that the beestes made grete were agenyst the byrdes / & fought euery day to gyder / And the backe feryng the wulues And that the beestes shold vaynquysshe and ouercome the byrdes / wold haue hold with the beestes / and be agenyst the byrdes / And whanne that bataylle was ordeyned on both sydes / the egle beganne to entre in to the batayll of the beestes by suche a strengthe / that with the help of the other byrdes he gat the feld / and vaynquysshed / and ouercame the bestes / wherfor the bestes maade pees with the byrdes / and were alle of one accord and of one wylle / And for the treason that the backe had made / she was condempned to neuer see the day / And neuer flee / but only by nyght / And also she was despoylled of alle her fethers /
And therfore he that wylle serue two lordes contrary one to other may not be good ne trewe / And they whiche relynquen and leue theyr owne lordes for to serue another straunger / whiche is enemy to theyr lord / ben wel worthy to be punysshed / For as the Euangely sayth / None may serue bothe god and the deuyl


Caxton published his edition of Aesop's fables in 1484. There are modern reprints by Joseph Jacobs (D. Nutt: London, 1889) and more recently by Robert Lenaghan (Harvard University Press: Cambridge, 1967). Lenaghan's edition is available at amazon.com.