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Lepores et Ranae

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The story of The Rabbits and The Frogs is a story found in the medieval Romulus Anglicus.

You can find this poem, Romulus 24, along with other fables from the Romulus collections, at the aesopica.net website. The Perry number for this fable is Perry 138.

There is a version of this story in the form of a poem with audio available here: Lepores et Ranae (verse).

You can see a 1501 woodcut illustration for this fable at the University of Mannheim website.

You can find a translation of a Greek version of this fable in Aesop's Fables, by Laura Gibbs (Oxford University Press, 2003).

   Use this Study Guide to organize your learning activities.

Lepores,
de summis negotiis
tractaturi,
in unum locum
congregati sunt.

Additional grammar commentary to be added... meanwhile, if you have questions, use the Comments? Questions? Suggestions? link at the top or bottom of this page if you have a query. You might also want to look at these Tips on Using Segmented Texts.
Erat autem
huius causa,
ordinare scilicet
communi consilio
qualiter innato timori
resistere possent,
nec sic prae omnibus bestiis
timidi haberentur.
Facto itaque conventu,
unus eorum,
ab eminenti loco
silentium indicens,
magnis vocibus exclamavit:
Naturae equidem
obviandum est,
et usu et viribus resistendum,
ut fortes et audaces fiant.		 resistendum = resistendum est
Ad huius ergo clamorem
omne Leporum vulgus
terrore concutitur,
et omnes una voce dixerunt
se malle mori
quam talem plus timorem pati,
  
et data fide iuraverunt,
quod,
cum primo timor eos invaderet,
litus adirent
et de summis rupibus
in mare se mitterent
submergendos.
Cum haec ita tractarent,
ecce homines
in equis
cum canibus
adveniunt,
venandi studia promittentes. 		 
Hi veniunt
et isti fugiunt,
iurata petentes aequora. 		 
Sed Ranarum palus interposita
dum profugos istos suscipit,
tota plebs Ranarum
fugere coepit,
et vada
festinatis saltibus resonabant.
His igitur visis,
unus Leporum restitit,
et ait: 		 
O celeres socii,
frenate turpem fugam,
et inhibete timorem,
considerantes
quod nihil vivat
expers timoris. 		 
Ecce enim timor Ranarum
nostrum timorem fugit.
Omni igitur quod vivit
suum habet iudicem et dominum. 		 
Revertamur ergo,
nostrae naturae consentientes,
quae nusquam exui potest. 		 
Placuit itaque omnibus consilium,
et ad agnita nemora revertuntur,
et modo metuunt,
modo secure vivunt.
© The segmented texts, annotations and audio files at BestLatin.net
are copyrighted by Laura Gibbs, 2007. No copyright is claimed for any images.