Flattery of the Fox (Aesop)

A crow was gliding through the air,
The sun was out, the day was fair.

She found some cheese beside a creek
And now did have it in her beak.

She soon would eat each tasty bite,
And rest from her long morning flight.

But down below a fox did creep
And on a rock he then did leap.

He saw the cheese, his mind then raced,
At how delicious it would taste.

He called, "Dear Crow how well you fly.
Your presence brightens up the sky.

And how your coat of feathers shines,
Like diamonds from the deepest mines.

I’ve also heard you sing so fair,
Far sweeter than the song birds there.

Please sing for me your happy song,
And I will go, I won’t stay long."

Then as she blurted out a Caw,
The cheese fell to the fox’s paw.

And she learned a great lesson true.
That I will share again with you:

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You never, never, never must
Give to a flatterer your trust.

(Aesop index references: Oxford-Gibbs 104, Perry 124)