Acheria the Fox--a Basque Folktale

The Basque are an interesting people. For those of you who've never heard of them, they live in a region known as Andorra (which is actually its own country) in the Pyrenees Mountains between France and Spain. Much of their folklore hasn't been written down until recently. I picked up some "light reading" from the library for inspiration for this blog, and this story was included in the book. (Check the Sources section of this entry--it's really a cool book.)

A fox was lazing around in the sun one day and realized that he was hungry. He had been watching a shepherd bring his flock to graze, and decided to steal his milk and cheese. The only problem was that he had the wit, but lacked the physical ability to accomplish the feat.

So he enlisted the help of a wolf, telling him, "The shepherd leaves his flock in the field every morning while he stops at home to make his cheese. Go out to the field and howl, and the shepherd will leave his work and hasten to protect his sheep. While he is distracted, I will steal his milk, and share it with you." The wolf agrees to the plan.

When the fox found the milk, however, he took off the cream, drank the contents of the jar, filled it back with dirt, and replaced the cream on top. He then delivered the vessel to the wolf, and said, "Since the top is much better than that which is underneath, he who chooses the top will have only that, and the other gets the rest."

The wolf, not happy with having only the cream, says, "I will have what is at the bottom."

The fox took the cream, then, as well, and gave the wolf the jar of dirt. When the wolf became angry, the fox simply shrugged and said, "I suppose that is how the shepherd makes it."

Another day, the fox was watching a boy pass by on the road with dinner for his father in a basket under his arm. The fox resolved that he wanted that dinner, so he solicited the aid of a blackbird, and told him, "When the boy passes by, go in front of him, and he will try to catch you, putting his basket down in order to reach you faster. I will steal the basket, and share its contents with you."

The blackbird agreed. When the boy chased after him, the fox grabbed the abandoned basket and ran off with it, declining to give the blackbird his share.

After he had eaten, he thought to himself, "The wolf and the blackbird are now my enemies. Surely some misfortune will befall me if I stay here. I must cross the river and move on."

So he went to the ferryman and said to him, "Ferry me over the river, and I will tell you three truths."

The boatman agreed. The fox jumped into the boat and as the man pushed off from the bank, said, "There are some who would have you believe that maize bread is better than wheat bread. They are lying; wheat bread is always better. That is the first truth."

When they were in the middle of the river, the fox spoke again: "There are some who will tell you, 'What a fine night! It is as clear as the day!' That is a lie. The night can never be as clear as the day; the day will always be clearer. That is the second truth."

When they reached the other bank, the fox said, "Oh, sir! Your trousers are worn! And I fear that they will get worse if you do not ferry people over who will pay more than I."

The man admitted the truth of the fox's third statement, and the fox leapt out of the boat and onto the bank.

(The story is meant to be told orally, and ends with, "And I happened to be standing there, and heard these three truths, and I have never forgotten them since.")


Source:
Nye, Robert. "Acheria the Fox."Classic folk-tales from around the world. London: Leopard, 1996. 111-113. Print.