The Sole

The fish had been unhappy for a long time because there was no order in their kingdom. None of them moved aside for the others, but all swam to the right or left as they pleased, or darted between those who wanted to stay together, or got in their way.

And a strong fish gave a weak one a blow with its tail, which drove it away, or else swallowed it up without more ado. "How wonderful it would be," they said, "if we had a king who enforced law and justice among us!" So they met together to choose as their ruler the one who could swim through the water the fastest and help the weak.

They lined up by the shore, and the pike gave the signal with its tail, and they all started. Like an arrow, the pike darted away, and with him the herring, the gudgeon, the perch, the carp, and all the rest.

Even the sole swam with them, hoping to reach the winning place. All at once, a cry was heard: "The herring is first!" "Who is first?" screamed the flat, envious sole, who had been left far behind. "Who is first?" "The herring! The herring!" was the answer.

"The naked herring?" cried the jealous creature. "The naked herring?" Since that time, the sole's mouth has been on one side as a punishment.