On Unbelievable Tales

story give their approval, whereas others, who possess the power of judgment and deeper insight, are accustomed to denying such events altogether. To me, it seems that fables are based entirely upon events. original: "Dies ist der Grundsatz, nach dem Palaephatus alle seine Fabeln behandelt." (This is the principle according to which Palaephatus treats all his fables.) At the very least, they were not merely empty sounds, about which one would have nothing to say; rather, they occurred initially as

marginal note: Actually lived cannot be determined exactly. It seems evident from his simple and artless style of writing that he cannot be counted among the younger Greek writers.

editorial note: This is the principle according to which Palaephatus treats all his fables. However, he does not seem careful enough here. For while it is probable that the largest part of the fables is historical, it is likely not all of them. Some seem physical, others moral and allegorical, and still others are mixed, having a historical, moral, or allegorical component. Furthermore, the well-founded reproach has been made against him that he often invented new fables to explain old ones. Nevertheless, it would be desirable that more of his work had reached our times.