The Lion and the Goat

 A Lion was eating up one after another the animals of a certain country. One day an old Goat said: "We must put a stop to this. I have a plan by which he may be sent away from this part of the country."

 

"Pray act up to it at once," said the other animals.

 

The old Goat laid himself down in a cave on the roadside, with his flowing beard and long curved¹ horns². The Lion on his way to the village saw him, and stopped at the mouth of the cave.

 

"So you have come, after all," said the Goat.

 

"What do you mean?" asked the Lion.

 

"Why, I have long been lying in this cave. I have eaten up one hundred elephants, a hundred tigers, a thousand wolves, and ninety-nine lions. One more lion has been wanting. I have waited long and patiently. Heaven has, after all, been kind to me," said the Goat, and shook his horns and his beard, and made a start as if he were about to spring upon the Lion.

 

The latter said to himself: "This animal looks like a Goat, but it does not talk like one, so it is very likely some wicked³ spirit in this shape. Prudence⁴ often serves us better than valour, so for the present I shall return to the wood," and he turned back.

 

The Goat rose up and, advancing to the mouth of the cave, said, "Will you come back to-morrow?"

 

"Never again," said the Lion.

 

"Do you think I shall be able to see you, at least, in the wood to-morrow?"

 

"Neither in the wood, nor in this neighbourhood any more," said the

Lion, and running to the forest, soon left it with his kindred.

 

The animals in the country, not hearing him roar⁵ any more, gathered around the Goat, and said: "The wisdom⁶ of one doth save a host."

1 curved   

a.弯曲的

参考例句：

• His lips curved in a barely perceptible smile. 他的嘴角弯了弯，露出一丝几乎察觉不到的笑容。
• The missile curved gracefully towards its target. 导弹呈优美的曲线状飞向目标。

2 horns   

n.角( horn的名词复数 )；号；角质；（蜗牛等的）触角

参考例句：

• The young goat was just beginning to grow horns. 这只小山羊刚开始长角。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The blare of horns could be heard in the distance. 可以听到远处传来的号角声。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 wicked   

adj.邪恶的，恶劣的，缺德的；淘气的

参考例句：

• Let everyone know all the wicked things she has done.把她干的坏事给大家抖搂抖搂。
• The wicked must be wiped out.恶人必须除掉。

4 prudence   

n.谨慎，精明，节俭

参考例句：

• A lack of prudence may lead to financial problems.不够谨慎可能会导致财政上出现问题。
• The happy impute all their success to prudence or merit.幸运者都把他们的成功归因于谨慎或功德。

5 roar   

n.吼，咆哮，轰鸣，喧闹；vi.吼叫，大声说出，喧闹；vt.呼喊，使轰鸣

参考例句：

• He began to roar when I took the chocolate away. 当我把巧克力拿走时，他大哭起来。
• The machines roar incessantly during the hours of daylight.机器在白天隆隆地响个不停。

6 wisdom   

n.智慧，明智的行为，学识，名言，贤人

参考例句：

• Experience is the mother of wisdom.经验为智慧之母。
• Ancient Greece was a fountain of wisdom and philosophy.古希腊是智慧和哲学的发源地。