The Frogs Who Asked for a King

Jean de La Fontaine

The frogs, tired of living in a democracy,
cried out so loudly that Jupiter put them under royal rule.
A very peaceful king fell from the sky for them.
But this king made such a racket upon landing,
that all those silly, timid creatures hid themselves underwater—
in reeds and rushes, in holes in the marsh.
For a long time they dared not even look at this “new giant.”
In reality, it was just an ordinary man; his seriousness frightened them at first.
One frog, however, dared to leave its hiding place upon seeing him.
Others followed suit; soon there was a whole crowd of frogs around him.
They even jumped onto the king’s shoulders!
The good king tolerated this behavior and remained silent.
Jupiter soon became exasperated:
“Give us a king who actually does something!” cried the frogs.
So the king of the gods sent them a crane, which ate them all up…