A YOUNG FAWN once said to his Mother, "You are larger than a dog, and swifter, and more used to running, and you have your horns as a defense; why, then, O Mother! do the hounds frighten you so?"

She smiled, and said:  "I know full well, my son, that all you say is true.  I have the advantages you mention, but when I hear even the bark of a single dog I feel ready to faint, and fly away as fast as I can."  

No arguments will give courage to the coward. 

有一天，小鹿对公鹿说道，“母亲，你怎么还怕狗呢？你比他高大，比他跑得更快，而且还有很大的角用于自卫。”母鹿笑着说：“孩儿，你说得都对，可我只知道一点，一听到狗的叫声，我就会不由自主地立刻逃跑。”

这故事说明，激励那些天生胆小、软弱的人毫无用处。