One winter's day, during a severe storm, a Horse, an Ox, and a Dog came and begged for shelter in the house of a Man. He readily admitted them, and, as they were cold and wet, he lit a fire for their comfort: and he put oats before the Horse, and hay before the Ox, while he fed the Dog with the remains of his own dinner. When the storm abated, and they were about to depart, they determined to show their gratitude in the following way. They divided the life of Man among them, and each endowed one part of it with the qualities which were peculiarly his own. The Horse took youth, and hence young men are high-mettled and impatient of restraint; the Ox took middle age, and accordingly men in middle life are steady and hard-working; while the Dog took old age, which is the reason why old men are so often peevish and ill-tempered, and, like dogs, attached chiefly to those who look to their comfort, while they are disposed to snap at those who are unfamiliar or distasteful to them.
有一个冬天，遇到了一场猛烈的暴风雪，一匹马、一头公牛和一只狗到了一户人家恳求能进屋去避一避。人很热情地请他们进去，由于他们又冷又湿，便点起火来让他们舒服一些。他给马提供了燕麦，给公牛提供了干草，把自己晚饭剩下的东西给了狗吃。等暴风雪渐渐变弱，他们准备离开，决定要报答人的恩情。他们将人的一生划分成几段，各自根据自己所长，负责其中一部分。马负责照顾青年，因为年轻人精神饱满，不愿受束缚；公牛负责中年，因为人在中年脚踏实地，认真工作；狗则负责晚年，因为老人脾气暴躁，就像狗一样，喜欢依赖那些让他们舒服的人，对那些陌生的或是他们讨厌的人则撕咬不停。