til 



with it to the ground. Ten thoufand wafps immediately attacked him ; 

 his howls re-echoed from the rocks, and alarmed the foreft ; the ftings 

 acutely piercing his bruifed body, infufed their poifon into his veins, and 

 he was foon numbered among the foxes viftims. The fame of this exploit 

 fpread through the foreft, and at length came to the ears of the panther, 

 who invited himfelf to eat {hare of the bear. Brother fays the fox, who 

 did not much like the looks of his guelt, " I have a nobler prey in ftore 

 " than a bears cub, one worthy of you ; a young horfe highly fed that 

 *' lies dead in the pafture, but fo near his mailers habitation, that if we 

 *' attempted to eat him where he lies, we fliould be obferved : I endea- 

 " voured laft night by tying my tail to his, to drag him into a fafe place 

 *' in the woods, but after nearly pulling off ray brufli, I was obliged to 

 " defift. Would you but lend your tail for fuch a fervice, a tail fitted by 

 " its length, its ftrength, and the pliant joints at its extremity for pow- 

 " erful exertions, we fliould enjoy a feafl in comfort, which now only 

 *' excites envy." The panther yielded to the inftances of the fox, and 

 was led by him to a favannah where a horfe lay extended on the grafs. 

 The panther turning his hinder parts to the horfe without much obferva- 

 tion fuffered the fox to proceed, who having tied the tails together in fuch 

 a manner, as that no force could loofe them, cried out to the panther, novr 

 brother my work is finiflied, yours is to begin. The panther fet him- 

 felf to pull with fuch effcft, that he dragged the horfe feveral paces. 

 His violence was fuch that it awoke the horfe, who had been all this 

 time faft afleep. The affrighted animal finding himfelf reftrained, was in 

 an inftant on his legs. The courfe of things was quickly changpd. The 

 horfe galloping at full fpeed, now dragged the panther, at every turn 

 lafliing him with his heels. The aftonilhed panther writhing round to 

 feize the limbs, and flanks of the horfe, at once terrified and provoked 

 his antagonift, and expofed himfelf to gafhing wounds. At one moment 

 his loins were- affailed by the battering hoofs, at another his head and 

 twifted folds of his neck. His paws would fometimes grafp, and his jaws 

 encompafs the hams and legs of the horfe, but the horfe's brilk and bound- 

 ing movements varying every moment, foon difengaged them from the 

 Vol. IX. C^ grafp- 



