A YOUNG FAWN once said to his Mother, “You are larger than a dog, and swifter, and more used to running, and you have your horns as a defense; why, then, O Mother! do the hounds frighten you so? She smiled, and said:

“I know full well, my son, that all you say is true. I have the advantages you mention, but when I hear even the bark of a single dog I feel ready to faint, and fly away as fast as I can.

No arguments will give courage to the coward.

Vocabulary Help

  • say – dizer
  • mother – mãe
  • swifter – ágil, veloz
  • used to running – acostumada a correr
  • horn – chifre
  • hounds – cães de caça, sabujos
  • frighten – assustar
  • hear (heard, heard, heard) – ouvir
  • bark – latido
  • feel (feel, felt, felt) – sentir
  • faint – desmaiar
  • fly away – fugir rápido (voar)
  • fawn – cervo