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unheard, and ordered his tigers, leopards, and panthers to attack and destroy them.

The dogs petitioned humbly, but their petitions were rejected haughtily; and they were forced to defend themselves, which they did with bravery.

A few among them, of a mongrel race, derived from a mixture with wolves and foxes, corrupted by royal promises of great rewards, deserted the honest dogs and joined their enemies.

The dogs were finally victorious: a treaty of peace was made, in which Lion acknowledged them to be free, and disclaimed all future authority over them.

The mongrels not being permitted to return among them, claimed of the royalists the reward that had been promised.

A council of the beasts was held to consider their demand.

The wolves and the foxes agreed unanimously that the demand was just, that royal promises ought to be kept, and that every loyal subject should contribute freely to enable his majesty to fulfil them.

The horse alone, with a boldness and freedom that became the nobleness of his nature, delivered a contrary opinion.

"The king," said he, " has been misled, by bad ministers, to war unjustly upon his faithful subjects. Royal promises, when made to encourage us to act for the public good, should indeed be honorably

acquitted; but if to encourage us to betray and destroy each other, they are wicked and void from the beginning. The advisers of such promises, and those who murdered in consequence of them, instead of being recompensed should be severely punished. Consider how greatly our common strength is already diminished by our loss of the dogs. If you enable the king to reward those fratricides, you will establish a precedent that may justify a future tyrant in making like promises, and every example of such an unnatural brute rewarded, will give them additional weight. Horses and bulls, as well as dogs, may thus be divided against their own kind, and civil wars produced at pleasure, till we are so weakened that neither liberty nor safety are any longer to be found in the forest, and nothing remains but abject submission to the will of a despot, who may devour us as he pleases." The council had sense enough to resolve,―That the demand be rejected.

TO MISS GEORGIANA SHIPLEY,'

On the loss of her American Squirrel, who, escaping from his cage, was killed by a shepherd's dog.

DEAR MISS,

London, Sept. 26, 1772. ILAMENT with you most sincerely, the unfortunate end of poor MUNGO. Few squirrels were better accomplished; for he had had a good

'A daughter of the Bishop of St. Asaph.

education, had travelled far, and seen much of the world. As he had the honor of being, for his virtues, your favorite, he should not go, like common skuggs, without an elegy or an epitaph. Let us give him one in the monumental style and measure, which, being neither prose nor verse, is perhaps the properest for grief; since to use common language would look as if we were not affected, and to make rhimes would seem trifling in sorrow.

EPITAPH.

Alas! poor MUNGO!

Happy wert thou hadst thou known
Thy own felicity.

Remote from the fierce bal'd eagle,

Tyrant of thy native woods;

Thou hadst naught to fear from his piercing talons,
Nor from the murdering gun
Of the thoughtless sportsman.

Safe in thy wir'd castle,

GRIMALKIN never could annoy thee.
Daily wert thou fed with the choicest viands,
By the fair hand of an indulgent mistress;
But, discontented,

Thou wouldst have more freedom:

Too soon, alas! didst thou obtain it;
And, wandering,

Thou art fallen by the fangs of wanton, cruel RANGER!
Learn hence,

Ye who blindly seek more liberty,

Whether subjects, sons, squirrels, or daughters,
That apparent restraint may be real protection;
Yielding peace and plenty

With security.

acquitted; but if to encourage us to betray destroy each other, they are wicked and void.. the beginning. The advisers of such prom and those who murdered in consequence of instead of being recompensed should be seve punished. Consider how greatly our com strength is already diminished by our loss of dogs. If you enable the king to reward fratricides, you will establish a precedent that justify a future tyrant in making like promises, every example of such an unnatural brute rewa ed, will give them additional weight. Horses bulls, as well as dogs, may thus be divided aga their own kind, and civil wars produced at sure, till we are so weakened that neither h nor safety are any longer to be found in the and nothing remains but abject submission will of a despot, who may devour us as he The council had sense enough to resolv the demand be rejected.

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