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Barlow 33. DE QUERCU ET ARUNDINE

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Validiore vento effracta Quercus huc illuc in amnem praecipitata fluitat et, ramis suis in Arundine forte fixis, haeret miraturque Arundinem in tanto turbine stare incolumem. Arundo respondet cedendo et declinando se esse tutam; inclinare se etenim ad Boream, ad Notum, ad Eurum, denique ad omnem flatum; nec mirum esse si Quercus exciderit, quae non cedere, sed resistere molita est.

Translation: The oak was broken by a rather strong wind, and tossed hither and thither it fell headlong into the stream and by chance its branches got tangled and stuck in some reeds. The oak was amazed that the reed could stand unharmed in such a whirldwind. The reed answered that by yielding and bending she kept itself safe, and so she bent to the North wind, the South wind, the East wind, in fact to every puff of breeze. The reed said that it was no wonder that the oak had been knocked down, since the oak did not yield but instead tried to resist.

[This translation is meant as a help in understanding the story, not as a "crib" for the Latin. I have not hesitated to change the syntax to make it flow more smoothly in English, altering the verb tense consistently to narrative past tense, etc.]

Illustration: Here is an illustration from this edition, by the renowned artist Francis Barlow; click on the image for a larger view.