Prevod

A farmer once had a faithful dog called Sultan, who had grown old and lost all his teeth, so that he could no longer get a firm grip on anything. One day the farmer was standing with his wife outside their door and said, "Tomorrow I'll shoot old Sultan. He's no use to us anymore." His wife, who felt sorry for the faithful creature, replied, "Since he has served us for so many years and always stood faithfully by us, surely we could feed him for the rest of his days." "Nonsense," said her husband. "You're out of your wits. He hasn't a tooth left in his mouth, and no thief is afraid of him. It's time he was gone. If he's served us, he's had good food in return."

The poor dog, who lay stretched out in the sunshine not far away, had heard every word and was sad to think that tomorrow would be his last day. He had a good friend, the wolf, and that evening he crept out into the forest to tell him of the fate that awaited him. "Listen, my friend," said the wolf, "take heart. I'll help you out of your trouble. I've thought of a plan. Early tomorrow morning your master and his wife are going out to make hay, and they'll take their little child along, because no one will be left at home. While they work, they usually lay the child in the shade behind the hedge. Lie down beside it, as though you mean to guard it. Then I'll come out of the forest and carry the child off. You must chase after me as fast as you can, as though you mean to snatch it back. I'll let it fall, and you'll carry it back to its parents. They'll think you've saved it and will be far too grateful to do you any harm. On the contrary, you'll be restored to full favor, and they'll never let you want for anything again."

The dog liked the plan, and it was carried out just as it had been devised. The father cried out when he saw the wolf running across the field with his child, but when old Sultan brought it back, he was overjoyed, stroked him, and said, "Not a hair of your head shall be harmed. You shall be fed and cared for as long as you live." Then he said to his wife, "Go straight home and make old Sultan some bread porridge that he won't have to chew, and bring the pillow from my bed. I'll give it to him to sleep on." From then on, old Sultan lived as well as he could possibly wish. Soon afterward the wolf came to visit him and was pleased that everything had turned out so well. "But, my friend," he said, "you'll surely turn a blind eye if I happen to carry off a fat sheep belonging to your master. It's hard to get by these days." "Don't count on that," replied the dog. "I'll stay faithful to my master. I can't allow it!" The wolf thought he could not be serious, and that night he crept up to steal the sheep. But the farmer, to whom faithful Sultan had revealed the wolf's plan, was lying in wait and gave his coat a thorough combing with a threshing flail. The wolf had to flee, but he shouted to the dog, "Just you wait, you scoundrel! You'll pay for this!"

The next morning the wolf sent the wild boar to challenge the dog to come out into the forest, where they would settle their quarrel. Old Sultan could find no one to stand by him but a cat with only three legs, and as they set off together, the poor cat limped along, holding her tail high in the air with pain. The wolf and his companion were already at the appointed place, but when they saw their opponent approaching, they thought he was bringing a saber, for that was what they took the cat's raised tail to be. And whenever the poor creature hopped along on her three legs, they imagined she was picking up a stone to throw at them. Both of them took fright: the wild boar hid in the leaves, and the wolf jumped up into a tree. When the dog and the cat arrived, they were surprised to find no one in sight. But the wild boar had not managed to hide himself entirely beneath the leaves, and his ears were still sticking out. As the cat looked carefully about her, the boar twitched his ears. Thinking a mouse was stirring there, the cat pounced and bit down hard. The boar leaped up with a mighty squeal, ran away, and cried, "Up there in the tree! That's where the guilty one is!" The dog and the cat looked up and saw the wolf, who was ashamed of having shown himself so cowardly and agreed to make peace with the dog.