The Shepherd and His Dog

   A Shepherd, with a single Dog,

  Was ask'd the reason why

  He kept a Dog, whose least supply

  Amounted to a loaf of bread

  For every day. The people said

  He'd better give the animal

  To guard the village seignior's hall;

  For him, a Shepherd, it would be

  A thriftier¹ economy

  To keep small curs, say two or three,

  That would not cost him half the food,

  And yet for watching be as good.

  The fools, perhaps, forgot to tell

  If they would fight the wolf as well.

  The silly Shepherd, giving heed²,

  Cast off his Dog of mastiff breed,

  And took three dogs to watch his cattle,

  Which ate far less, but fled in battle.

 

  Not vain our tale, if it convinces

    Small states that 'tis a wiser thing

    To trust a single powerful king,

  Than half a dozen petty princes.

 

1 thriftier   

节俭的( thrifty的比较级 )； 节约的； 茁壮的； 茂盛的

参考例句：

2 heed   

v.注意，留意；n.注意，留心

参考例句：

• You must take heed of what he has told.你要注意他所告诉的事。
• For the first time he had to pay heed to his appearance.这是他第一次非得注意自己的外表不可了。