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DE HERINACEIS VIPERAS HOSPITES EIICIENTIBUS

 

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Source: Aesop's Fables, 1687 (illustrated by Francis Barlow).

 

Introduction: This is a fable composed by the Renaissance Latin writer, Abstemius. Normally, you would expect that a snake in a story would be the villain, but that is not the case here. instead, the snakes act very kindly towards the hedgehogs, and end up suffering badly as a result. As the snakes go out into the cold of winter, driven out of their own home, what moral do you think they would apply to this story? What is the lesson that they have learned? For another fable about guests and hosts, see the story of the stork and the fox who had dinner together. For a fable about a creature who did not act generously when winter was coming, see the story of the ant and the cicada.

 

Latin Text:

 

Herinacei, hiemem adventare praesentientes, blande Viperas rogaverunt ut in propria illarum caverna adversus vim frigoris locum sibi concederent. Quod cum illae fecissent, Herinacei, huc atque illuc se provolventes, spinarum acumine Viperas pungebant et vehementi dolore torquebant. Illae, male secum actum videntes, blandis verbis orabant Herinaceos ut exirent, quandoquidem tam multis locus esset angustus nimis. Cui Herinacei: "Exeant (inquiunt) qui hic manere non possunt." Quare Viperae, sentientes ibi locum non esse, cesserunt hospitio.

 

Here is a segmented version to help you see the grammatical patterns:

 

Herinacei,

hiemem adventare

praesentientes,

blande Viperas rogaverunt

ut in propria illarum caverna

adversus vim frigoris

locum sibi concederent.

Quod cum illae fecissent,

Herinacei,

huc atque illuc se provolventes,

spinarum acumine Viperas pungebant

et vehementi dolore torquebant.

Illae,

male secum actum

videntes,

blandis verbis

orabant Herinaceos

ut exirent,

quandoquidem

tam multis

locus esset angustus nimis.

Cui Herinacei:

"Exeant (inquiunt)

qui hic manere non possunt."

Quare Viperae,

sentientes

ibi locum non esse,

cesserunt hospitio.

 

Translation: The hedgehogs, anticipating that winter was about to arrive, sweetly asked the vipers to make room for them in their own hole, against the force of the cold. When the vipers did this, the hedgehogs rolled here and there, and they poked the vipers with the sharp points of their spines and tortured the vipers with violent pain. When the vipers saw the trouble that they were in, with sweet words they asked the hedgehogs to leave, since the place was too cramped for so many inhabitants. The hedgehogs said to the vipers, "Let those depart who cannot stand to remain here." Consequently, the vipers, realizing that there was no room there, withdrew from the quarters. The fable shows that we should not become partners with people we are not able to get rid of.

 

[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.]

 

Parallels: This fable does not appear in Perry, but you can find the story in early modern editions of Aesop, such as Abstemius.

 

Related Links: Crossword Puzzle

 

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

 

 

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