11.Thumbling拇指宝宝-双语名著无障碍阅读丛书——《格林童话精选Grimms'FairyTales》

Thumbling There was once a poor peasant who sat in the evening by the hearth{① and poked the fire, and his wife sat and span②. Then said he, "How sad it is that we have no children! With us all is so quiet, and in other houses it is noisy and lively." "Yes," replied the wife, and sighed, "even if we had only one, and it were quite small, and only as big as a thumb. I should be quite satisfied. and we would stil love it with all our hearts."Now it so happened that the woman fell ill. and afte seven months gave birth to a child, that was perfect in all its limbs③}, but no longer than a thumb. Then said they, "It is as we wished it to be, and it shall be our dear child:" and because of its size. they called it Thumbling, They did not let it wan for food, but the child did not grow taller, but remained as it had been at the first nevertheless it looked sensibly out of its eves, and soon showed itself to be a wise and nimble④ creature, for everything it did turned out well One day the peasant was getting ready to go into the forest to cut wood when he said as if to himself. "How I wish that there was any one who would bring the cart to me!"“Oh father."cried Thumbling, "I will soon bring the cart rely on that: it shall be in the forest at the appointed time."The man smiled and said. "How can that be done, thou art far too small to lead the horse by the reins?' "That's of no consequence, father, if my mother will only harness it, I shall sit in the horse's ear and call out to him how he is to go."“Well." answered the man .126· 拇指宝宝 从前有个贫穷的农民,一天晚上,他坐在壁炉前 ① hearth ha:oln. 壁炉 ② span[spen]v [古] 拨着炉里的火,他的妻子坐在一边纺纱。农民说:“我 (spin的过去式)纺纱 们无儿无女多可怜啊!你看我们这里一点声音都没有 而别人家里吼矶嘹嘹的好不热闹。” “是啊,”他的妻子叹着气回答说,“哪怕我们只有 一个孩子,哪怕小得只有拇指那么大,我都会心满意足 了,我们会全心全意去爱它。”后来她病了,过了七个 ③ limb [limln.肢,臂 月之后生了一个孩子,四肢健全,但只有拇指那么大。 夫妻俩说:“我们当初许愿的时候就是这么说的,他就 是我们亲爱的孩子。”因为他长得实在太小,他们就叫 他“拇指宝宝”。他们不让他缺吃少喝,可是这孩子就 是长不高,还是和生出来时一样大,但是他的眼神非常 ④ nimble ['nimbl]a.聪明 懂事,看得出他是个既聪明又灵活的孩子,他做的一切 的,敏锐的 事情都让人很满意。 一天,农民准备去森林砍柴,他似乎是在自言自 语:“我多么希望有人能帮我把马车赶过去呀!”“哦 爸爸,”拇指宝宝叫道,“我马上把马车赶过去,你相 信我,马车一定会在你指定的时间送到的。”农民笑着 说:“这怎么可能呢?你长得太小了,根本没法驾驭马 车。”“没有问题,爸爸,只要妈妈把马车套好,我就 坐在马的耳朵里,告诉他应该往哪儿去就行了。”“好 ·127· ThumbGng “for once we will try it." When the time came, the mother harnessed the horse, and placed Thumbling in its ear, and then the little creature cried, "Gee up{①}, gee up!" Then it went quite properly as if with its master, and the cart went the right way into the forest. It so happened that just as he was turning a corner, and the little one was crying,"Gee up," two strange men came towards him. "My word!" said one of them, "What is this? There is a cart coming, and a driver is calling to the horse and still he is not to be seen!""That can't be right."said the other, "we will follow the cart and see where it stops." The cart, however, drove right into the forest, and exactly to the place where the wood had been cut. When Thumbling saw his father he cried to him. "Seest thou. father, here I am with the cart: now take me down." The father got hold of the horse with his left hand and with the right took his little son out of the ear. Thumbling sat down quite merrily on a straw, but when the twc strange men saw him, they did not know what to say for astonishment. Then one of them took the other aside and said. "Hark, the little fellow would make our fortune if we exhibited him in a large town, for money. We will buy him."They went to the peasant and said, "Sell us the little man. He shall be well treated with us.""No," replied the father, "he is the apple of my eye, and all the money in the world cannot buy him from me." Thumbling, however, when he heard of the bargain, had crept up the folds of his father's coat, placed himself on his shoulder, and whispered ir his ear, "Father do give me away, I will soon come back again."Then the fathe parted with him to the two men for a handsome bit of money. "Where wilt thou sit?" they said to him. "Oh just set me on the rim② of your hat, and then I can walk backwards and forwards and look at the country, and still not fall down." They did as he wished, and when Thumbling had taken leave of his father, they went away with him. They walked until it was dusk, and then the little fellow said. "Dc take me down, I want to come down."The man took his hat off, and put the little fellow on the ground by the wayside, and he leapt and crept about a little between the sods③}, and then he suddenly slipped into a mouse-hole which he had sough out. "Good evening, gentlemen, just go home without me," he cried to them, and .128· 拇指宝室 吧,”农民回答说,“我们就试一试吧。” 等到了时间,妈妈把马车套好,把拇指宝宝放在马 ①gee up(命令马)往前 的耳朵里,然后这个小东西就开始吆喝起来:“驾,驾!” 跑 马跑得飞快,就像老主人在的时候一样,马车向森 林直奔而去。在一个转弯的地方,小东西叫了声“驾”, 这时正好有两个陌生人朝他走来。“天哪!”其中一个 说,“这是怎么回事?这里有一辆马车,车夫在对着马 叫,可是却看不见车夫的人影!”“这太奇怪了,”另一 个人说,“我们跟着马车,看看它停在哪里。”马车跑进 了森林,正正好好就停在了农民砍柴的地方。拇指宝宝 看到爸爸开心地叫起来:“你看,爸爸,我把马车赶来 了,快把我抱下来吧。”爸爸一边用左手拉着马,一边 用右手把他的小不点儿儿子从马的耳朵里拘出来。拇指 宝宝开心地坐在一根草上,这时那两个陌生人看见了 他,他们一下子都呆住了,不知道该说什么。其中一个 把另一个拉到一旁说:“听着,如果我们把这小东西带 到大城市里展览,我们肯定能发大财,我们把他买下来 吧。”他们走到农民面前说:“把这个小东西卖给我们吧 我们会好好待他的。”“不行,”爸爸回答说,“他是我 的心肝宝贝,你们给我再多的钱我也不可能把他卖掉。” 可是,拇指宝宝听到他们的对话后悄悄地沿着爸爸外套 的皱褶爬到了他的肩膀上,轻轻地在他耳边说:“爸爸 你把我卖给他们吧,我会很快就回来的。”于是爸爸从 那两个人手里拿到了一笔可观的钱,把拇指宝宝卖给了 ② rim[rimln.(圆形物的) 边,边缘 他们。“你坐在哪里?”那两个人问道。“哦,就让我坐 在你们的帽檐上,这样我可以走来走去,看看乡村景色 而且也不会掉下来。”他们就按他说的做了,拇指宝宝 和爸爸告别,跟着那两个人走了。他们走啊走啊,一直 走到黄昏,小东西说:“快把我拿下来,我想下来了。” 那个人取下帽子,把小东西放在路边的地上。小东西在 ③ sod [sod]n.草地,草皮 草皮间蹴来去,爬来爬去,突然他钻进了他找到的一 个老鼠洞里。“再见了,先生们,你们赶紧回家吧。”他 ·129· ThumbGng mocked them. They ran thither and stuck their sticks into the mouse-hole, but it was all lost labour. Thumbling crept still farther in, and as it soon became quite dark, they were forced to go home with their vexation{} and their empty purses. When Thumbling saw that they were gone, he crept back out of the subterranean{②} passage. "It is so dangerous to walk on the ground in the dark," said he: "how easily a neck or a leg is broken!" Fortunately he knocked against an empty snail-shell. "Thank God!" said he. "In that I can pass the night in safety," and got into it. Not long afterwards, when he was just going to sleep, he heard two men go by, and one of them was saying,"How shall we contrive③ to get hold of the rich pastor's④ silver and gold?""I could tell thee that," cried Thumbling interrupting them. "What was that?" said one of the thieves in fright, "I heard some one speaking."They stood still listening, and Thumbling spoke again, and said. "Take me with you, and I'll help you." "But where art thou?""Just look on the ground, and observe from whence my voice comes," he replied. There the thieves at length found him, and lifted him up. "Thou little imp, how wilt thou help us?" they said."A great deal." said he," will creep into the pastor's room through the iron bars, and will reach out to you whatever you want to have.""Come then." they said. "and we will see what thou canst do." When they got to the pastor's house, Thumbling crept into the room. but instantly cried out with all his might. "Do you want to have everything that is here?" The thieves were alarmed, and said, "But do speak softly, so as not to waken any one!" Thumbling however, behaved as if he had not understood this and cried again, "What do you want? Do you want to have everything that is here?" The cook, who slept in the next room, heard this and sat up in bed, and listened The thieves, however, had in their fright run some distance away, but at last they took courage, and thought. "The little rascal{} wants to mock us."They came back and whispered to him, "Come, be serious, and reach something out to us." Then Thumbling again cried as loudly as he could, "I really will give you everything just put your hands in." The maid who was listening, heard this quite distinctly, and jumped out of bed and rushed to the door. The thieves took flight, and ran as if .130. 拇指宝宝 对着他们大叫着,嘲笑他们。那两个人跑过去,把棍子 伸到老鼠洞里,可是都是白费力气。拇指宝宝钻得更深 ① ) vexation [vek'seifon] n 了,这时天已经非常黑了,那两个人只好空着腰包回家 烦恼 了,了一肚子的火气。 ② subterranean [sabto'reinion] 拇指宝宝看到他们走了,就从地下通道爬了出来。 a.地下的 “这么黑的天在路上走实在太危险了,”他说,“要是把 脖子或腿折断就糟糕了!”幸运的是,他撞上了一个空 蜗牛壳。“谢天谢地!”他说,“这下子我可以安全地过 夜了。”于是,他爬到了蜗牛壳里。没过多久,他正准 ③ contrive kan'traivlv 策 划,计谋 备睡觉的时候,听到两个人经过,其中一个说:“我们 ④ pastor I'pasta:'paes-]n 怎么才能想办法从那个有钱的牧师那里把金子和银子弄 牧师 到手?”“我可以告诉你们,”拇指宝宝插嘴叫道。“这 是什么声音?”一个小偷惊恐地说,“我听到有人说话。” 他们站定了仔细听,拇指宝宝又说话了:“把我带上吧 我会帮助你们的。” “可是你在哪里呀?”“你们看地上,听听我的声 imp limpln.小魔鬼, 音是从哪里出来的。”拇指宝宝回答说。两个小偷终于 小淘气 找到了他,把他举起来。“你这小淘气,你怎么能帮我 们?”他们说。“我可以帮大忙,”拇指宝宝说,“我可 以从铁栏杆缝里爬到牧师的房间里,然后把你们想要的 东西递给你们。”“好吧,”他们说,“我们倒要看看你能 做什么。”他们到了牧师的家后,拇指宝宝爬进了房间 他马上用尽力气大声叫道:“你们想要这里所有的东西 吗?”两个小偷吓坏了,他们说:“你轻点说话,不要把 人吵醒了。”可是拇指宝宝好像听不懂他们的话,还是 和原来一样又大声叫起来:“你们想要什么?你们想要 这里所有的东西吗?”睡在隔壁房间的厨师听到了声音 rascal ['ra:skol; 'rae-]n. 坐起身来仔细听。两个小偷已经吓得跑得老远,可是最 小坏蛋 后他们还是鼓起勇气,他们想:“那个小坏蛋想要嘲弄 我们。”他们又跑回来,压低嗓门对他说:“好了,你别 闹了,快拿东西给我们。”拇指宝宝又扯着喉咙叫道:“我 肯定会把所有东西都给你们,你们把手伸进来。”女拥 ·131· Thum6Ging the Wild Huntsman were behind them, but as the maid could not see anything, she went to strike a light. When she came to the place with it. Thumbling, unperceived betook himself to the granary{}, and the maid, after she had examined every corner and found nothing, lay down in her bed again, and believed that, after all, she had only been dreaming with open eyes and ears Thumbling had climbed up among the hay and found a beautiful place to sleer in: there he intended to rest until day, and then go home again to his parents. But he had other things to go through. Truly, there is much affliction② and misery in this world! When day dawned. the maid arose from her bed to feed the cows. Her first walk was into the barn, where she laid hold of an armful of hay, and precisely that very one in which poor Thumbling was lying asleep. He, however, was sleeping so soundly that he was aware of nothing, and did not awake until he was in the mouth of the cow, who had picked him up with the hay. "Ah, heavens!" cried he, "how have I got into the fulling mill?" but he soon discovered where he was Then it was necessary to be careful not to let himself go between the teeth and be dismembered③, but he was nevertheless forced to slip down into the stomach with the hay. "Jn this little room the windows are forgotten." said he, "and no sun shines in, neither will a candle be brought." His quarters④ were especially unpleasing to him, and the worst was, more and more hay was always coming in by the door, and the space grew less and less. Then at length in his anguish{}, he cried as loud as he could, "Bring me no more fodder{}, bring me no more fodder." The maid was just milking the cow, and when she heard some one speaking, and saw no one, and perceived that it was the same voice that she had heard in the night, she was so terrified that she slipped off her stool, and spilt the milk. She ran in great haste to her master, and said, "Oh heavens, pastor, the cow has been speaking!""Thou art mad," replied the pastor: but he went himself to the byre{ to see what was there. Hardly, however had he set his foot inside when Thumbling again cried, "Bring me no more fodder, bring me no more fodder." Then the pastor himself was alarmed, and thought that an evil spirit had gone into the cow, and ordered her to be killed. She was killed but the stomach, in which Thumbling was, was thrown on the midden{}. Thumblin .132. 拇指宝室 一直在听,这回听得真真切切,她从床上跳起来冲到门 边。两个小偷吓得拔腿就跑,就好像后面有鬼追他们一 ① granary 'grenarl n.谷 样。因为天黑,女拥什么也看不见,她就去点了一盏灯。 仓 等她再回来的时候,拇指宝宝已经神不知鬼不觉地跑进 了谷仓,女拥检查了角角落落,什么也没找到。于是她 又回到床上躺下,心想自己一定是在夜游。 拇指宝宝爬到干草堆里,找了一个好地方躺下来 ② affliction [a'flikfan]n. 苦 睡觉。他想在那里休息到天亮,然后就回家找爸爸妈妈。 恼,折磨 可是,他还有其他好多罪要受呢。确实,这世上的痛 苦和不幸实在太多了!天刚蒙蒙亮,女拥就爬起来给 奶牛喂草。她先走到谷仓里,抓了一大把干草,正好 就是拇指宝宝睡觉的那把干草。他睡得实在太香了, 什么也没察觉到,直到奶牛把他和干草一起吃进了嘴 巴他才醒过来。“哦,天哪!”他叫起来,“我怎么会进 了碾磨机?”但是很快他就发现自已在哪里了。现在他 得非常小心,不让自已落到奶牛的牙齿间被咬得粉碎 ③ dismember [dis'membel 可是他还是和干草一起滑落到了奶牛的胃里。“这个小 v.撕碎,割裂 房间连个窗户也没有,”他说,“没有阳光,也没有蜡 ④ quarters f'kwotazln. 住处 烛。”他的安身之地让他感到特别不舒服,最糟糕的是 越来越多的干草从胃门进来,胃里的空间越来越拥挤。 anguish['aengwi门]n.痛 最后,他觉得实在太痛苦了,就拼足了力气大声叫道; 苦 “我不要词料了,我不要词料了。”女俩正在给奶牛挤 fodder ['fodo]n. 粗词料, 奶,听到有人说话,可是又没看见人,她听出来这个 声音和昨晚她听到的声音是同一个人,吓得从凳子上 滚了下来,把牛奶都打翻了。她急忙跑去找她的主人 告诉他说:“哦,天哪,牧师先生,奶牛在说话!”“你 一定是疯了。”牧师回答道,但他还是亲自到牛棚去看 byrelbaialn. 牛棚,牛栏 个究竟。他刚刚把脚踏进牛棚的门,拇指宝宝就又叫 了起来:“我不要词料了,我不要词料了。”牧师自已也 吓坏了,他想奶牛一定是被恶魔附体了,于是就命令 ⑧ midden['midan]n. 粪雄, 把奶牛杀了。奶牛被杀了之后,拇指宝宝还在她的胃 垃圾堆 里,被一起扔到了垃圾堆里。拇指宝宝怎么也钻不出来 ·133· ThumbGng had great difficulty in working his way: however, he succeeded so far as to get some room, but just as he was going to thrust his head out, a new misfortune occurred. A hungry wolf ran thither, and swallowed the whole stomach at one gulp{①}. Thumbling did not lose courage. "Perhaps," thought he, "the wolf will listen to what I have got to say," and he called to him from out of his stomach, "Dear wolf, I know of a magnificent feast for you." "Where is it to be had?"said the wolf "In such and such a house: thou must creep into it through the kitchen-sink② and wilt find cakes, and bacon, and sausages, and as much of them as thou canst eat." and he described to him exactly his father's house. The wolf did not require to be told this twice, saueezed himself in at night through the sink, and ate to his heart's content in the larder③. When he had eaten his fill, he wanted to go out again, but he had become so big that he could not go out by the same way Thumbling had reckoned on this, and now began to make a violent noise in the wolf's body, and raged and screamed as loudly as he could. "Wilt thou be quiet." said the wolf, "thou wilt waken up the people!""Eh. what."replied the little fellow “thou hast eaten thy fill, and I will make merry likewise," and began once more tc scream with all his strength. At last his father and mother were aroused by it, and ran to the room and looked in through the opening in the door. When they saw that a wolf was inside, they ran away, and the husband fetched his axe, and the wife the scythe④."Stay behind," said the man, when they entered the room."When I have given him a blow, if he is not killed by it, thou must cut him down and hew} his body to pieces." Then Thumbling heard his parents, voices and cried, "Dear father I am here: I am in the wolf's body."Said the father, full of joy, "Thank God, our dear child has found us again," and bade the woman take away her scythe, that Thumbling might not be hurt with it. After that he raised his arm, and struck the wolf such a blow on his head that he fell down dead, and then they got knives and scissors and cut his body open and drew the little fellow forth."Ah," said the father, "what sorrow we have gone through for thy sake."“Yes father, I have gone about the world a great deal. Thank heaven, I breathe fresh air again!""Where has ·134· 拇指宝宝 不过他还是给自己腾了一点地方出来,他正准备把头 伸出来的时候,新的灾难降临了。一只饿狼正好跑过来 ① gulp [qalp]n. 吞咽 一口就把牛胃吞了下去。拇指宝宝还没有绝望,他想; “也许,狼会听我的话。”他从牛胃里对狼喊道:“亲爱 的狼先生,我知道有个地方可以让你大饱口福。” “在哪里?”狼问道。 “在某某地方有憧房子,你必须从厨房的洗碗池那 ② kitchen-sink厨房洗潦池 里爬进去,你会找到蛋糕、火腿和香肠,你想吃多少就 有多少。”他说的正是他自己的家。狼听了,根本不需 要再问第二遍,当天晚上就从洗碗池那里钻了进去,在 食品柜里敞开肚皮吃了个饱。吃饱后,他想再从老地方 出去,可是他的肚子撑得很大,根本没办法从原来的地 ③ larder ['la:da]n.食品贮 方钻出去。拇指宝宝早就料到了这一点,他开始在狼的 藏处 身体里发出很响的声音,他用尽力气在里面一边闹腾一 边尖叫。“你给我安静点,”狼对他说,“你会把人吵醒 的!”“哼,那又怎么样?”小东西说,“你已经吃饱了 也要让我快活快活。”紧接着他又用尽力气大声尖叫起 来。最后,他的爸爸妈妈被吵醒了,他们跑过去,从门 缝里往里看。他们看到有只狼在里面,就赶紧跑开,爸 爸拿了把斧子,妈妈拿了把镰刀。“你跟在后面,”进了 房间后,爸爸对妈妈说,“等我给他一斧子,如果他还 ④ scythe [saio]n. 长柄大 没有死,你就把他砍倒,然后把他剁成碎片。”拇指宝 罐刀 宝听到了爸爸妈妈的声音,赶紧叫起来:“亲爱的爸爸 hewlhju]v(用刀、斧 我在这里,我在狼的身体里。”爸爸欣喜若狂,他开心 等)砍,劈 地叫道:“谢天谢地,我们亲爱的孩子又回来了。”他让 妈妈把镰刀拿开,以免伤到拇指宝宝。然后他抬起胳膊 用斧子狠狠地对着狼的头砍下去,狼一下子就被砍死 了。他们拿来刀和剪刀,把狼的身体剖开,把小东西从 里面拽了出来。“唤,”爸爸说,“为了你我们是多么伤 心啊!”“不过,爸爸,我这次见了很多世面。谢天谢 地,我又呼吸到新鲜空气了!”“你去了哪些地方?”“哦 爸爸,我去过老鼠洞,去过奶牛的胃,还去过狼的胃 ·135·