狼和七只小山羊

The Wolf and the Seven Little Kids

There was once upon a time an old goat who had seven little kids, and loved them with all the love of a mother for her children. One day she wanted to go into the forest and fetch some food. So she called all seven to her and said, dear children, I have to go into the forest, be on your guard against the wolf, if he comes in, he will devour you all - skin, hair, and everything. The wretch often disguises himself, but you will know him at once by his rough voice and his black feet. The kids said, dear mother, we will take good care of ourselves, you may go away without any anxiety. Then the old one bleated, and went on her way with an easy mind.

It was not long before some one knocked at the house-door and called, open the door, dear children, your mother is here, and has brought something back with her for each of you. But the little kids knew that it was the wolf, by the rough voice. We will not open the door, cried they, you are not our mother. She has a soft, pleasant voice, but your voice is rough, you are the wolf. Then the wolf went away to a shopkeeper and bought himself a great lump of chalk, ate this and made his voice soft with it. The he came back, knocked at the door of the house, and called, open the door, dear children, your mother is here and has brought something back with her for each of you. But the wolf had laid his black paws against the window, and the children saw them and cried, we will not open the door, our mother has not black feet like you, you are the wolf. Then the wolf ran to a baker and said, I have hurt my feet, rub some dough over them for me. And when the baker had rubbed his feet over, he ran to the miller and said, strew some white meal over my feet for me. The miller thought to himself, the wolf wants to deceive someone, and refused, but the wolf said, if you will not do it, I will devour you. Then the miller was afraid, and made his paws white for him. Truly, this the way of mankind.

So now the wretch went for the third time to the house-door, knocked at it and said, open the door for me, children, your dear little mother has come home, and has brought every one of you something back from the forest with her. The little kids cried, first show us your paws that we may know if you are our dear little mother. Then he put his paws in through the window, and when the kids saw that they were white, they believed that all he said was true, and opened the door. But who should come in but the wolf they were terrified and wanted to hide themselves. One sprang under the table, the second into the bed, the third into the stove, the fourth into the kitchen, the fifth into the cupboard, the sixth under the washing-bowl, and the seventh into the clock-case. But the wolf found them all, and used no great ceremony, one after the other he swallowed them down his throat. The youngest, who was in the clock-case, was the only one he did not find. When the wolf had satisfied his appetite he took himself off, laid himself down under a tree in the green meadow outside, and began to sleep. Soon afterwards the old goat came home again from the forest. Ah. What a sight she saw there. The house-door stood wide open. The table, chairs, and benches were thrown down, the washing-bowl lay broken to pieces, and the quilts and pillows were pulled off the bed. She sought her children, but they were nowhere to be found. She called them one after another by name, but no one answered. At last, when she came to the youngest, a soft voice cried, dear mother, I am in the clock-case. She took the kid out, and it told her that the wolf had come and had eaten all the others. Then you may imagine how she wept over her poor children.

At length in her grief she went out, and the youngest kid ran with her. When they came to the meadow, there lay the wolf by the tree and snored so loud that the branches shook. She looked at him on every side and saw that something was moving and struggling in his gorged belly. Ah, heavens, she said, is it possible that my poor children whom he has swallowed down for his supper, can be still alive. Then the kid had to run home and fetch scissors, and a needle and thread and the goat cut open the monster’s stomach, and hardly had she make one cut, than one little kid thrust its head out, and when she cut farther, all six sprang out one after another, and were all still alive, and had suffered no injury whatever, for in his greediness the monster had swallowed them down whole. What rejoicing there was. They embraced their dear mother, and jumped like a sailor at his wedding. The mother, however, said, now go and look for some big stones, and we will fill the wicked beast’s stomach with them while he is still asleep. Then the seven kids dragged the stones thither with all speed, and put as many of them into his stomach as they could get in, and the mother sewed him up again in the greatest haste, so that he was not aware of anything and never once stirred.

When the wolf at length had had his fill of sleep, he got on his legs, and as the stones in his stomach made him very thirsty, he wanted to go to a well to drink. But when he began to walk and move about, the stones in his stomach knocked against each other and rattled. Then cried he, what rumbles and tumbles against my poor

bones. I thought ’twas six kids, but it feels like big stones. And when he got to the well and stooped over the water to drink, the heavy stones made him fall in, and he had to drown miserably. When the seven kids saw that, they came running to the spot and cried aloud, the wolf is dead. The wolf is dead, and danced for joy round about the well with their mother.

譯文

從前有只老山羊。它生了七只小山羊，并且像所有母親愛孩子一樣愛它們。一天，它要到森林里去取食物，便把七個孩子全叫過來，對它們說：“親愛的孩子們，我要到森林里去一下，你們一定要提防狼。要是讓狼進屋，它會把你們全部吃掉的——連皮帶毛通通吃光。這個壞蛋常常把自己化裝成別的樣子，但是，你們只要一聽到他那粗啞的聲音、一看到它那黑黑的爪子，就能認出它來。”小山羊們說：“好媽媽，我們會當心的。你去吧，不用擔心。”老山羊咩咩地叫了幾聲，便放心地去了。

沒過多久，有人敲門，而且大聲說：“開門哪，我的好孩子。你們的媽媽回來了，還給你們每個人帶來了一點東西。”可是，小山羊們聽到粗啞的聲音，立刻知道是狼來了。“我們不開門，”它們大聲說，“你不是我們的媽媽。我們的媽媽說話時聲音又軟又好聽，而你的聲音非常粗啞，你是狼!”于是，狼跑到雜貨商那里，買了一大塊白堊土，吃了下去，結果嗓子變細了。然后它又回來敲山羊家的門，喊道：“開門哪，我的好孩子。你們的媽媽回來了，給你們每個人都帶了點東西。”可是狼把它的黑爪子搭在了窗戶上，小山羊們看到黑爪子便一起叫道：“我們不開門。我們的媽媽沒有你這樣的黑爪子。你是狼!”于是狼跑到面包師那里，對他說：“我的腳受了點傷，給我用面團揉一揉。”等面包師用面團給它揉過之后，狼又跑到磨坊主那里，對他說：“在我的腳上灑點白面粉。”磨坊主想：“狼肯定是想去騙什么人”，便拒絕了它的要求?？墒抢钦f：“要是你不給我灑面粉，我就把你吃掉。”磨坊主害怕了，只好灑了點面粉，把狼的爪子弄成了白色。人就是這個德行!

這個壞蛋第三次跑到山羊家，一面敲門一面說：“開門哪，孩子們。你們的好媽媽回來了，還從森林里給你們每個人帶回來一些東西。”小山羊們叫道：“你先把腳給我們看看，好讓我們知道你是不是我們的媽媽。”狼把爪子伸進窗戶，小山羊們看到爪子是白的，便相信它說的是真話，打開了屋門。然而進來的是狼!小山羊們嚇壞了，一個個都想躲起來。第一只小山羊跳到了桌子下，第二只鉆進了被子，第三只躲到了爐子里，第四只跑進了廚房，第五只藏在柜子里，第六只擠在洗臉盆下，第七只爬進了鐘盒里。狼把它們一個個都找了出來，毫不客氣地把它們全都吞進了肚子。只有躲在鐘盒里的那只最小的山羊沒有被狼發(fā)現。狼吃飽了之后，心滿意足地離開了山羊家，來到綠草地上的一棵大樹下，躺下身子開始呼呼大睡起來。

沒過多久，老山羊從森林里回來了。啊!它都看到了些什么呀!屋門敞開著，桌子、椅子和凳子倒在地上，洗臉盆摔成了碎片，被子和枕頭掉到了地上。它找它的孩子，可哪里也找不到。它一個個地叫它們的名字，可是沒有一個出來答應它。最后，當它叫到最小的山羊的名字時，一個細細的聲音喊叫道：“好媽媽，我在鐘盒里。”老山羊把它抱了出來，它告訴媽媽狼來過了，并且把哥哥姐姐們都吃掉了。大家可以想象出老山羊失去孩子后哭得多么傷心!

老山羊最后傷心地哭著走了出去，最小的山羊也跟著跑了出去。當它們來到草地上時，狼還躺在大樹下睡覺，呼嚕聲震得樹枝直抖。老山羊從前后左右打量著狼，看到那家伙鼓得老高的肚子里有什么東西在動個不停。“天哪，”它說，“我的那些被它吞進肚子里當晚餐的可憐的孩子，難道它們還活著嗎?”最小的山羊跑回家，拿來了剪刀和針線。老山羊剪開那惡魔的肚子，剛剪了第一刀，一只小羊就把頭探了出來。它繼續(xù)剪下去，六只小羊一個個都跳了出來，全都活著，而且一點也沒有受傷，因為那貪婪的壞蛋是把它們整個吞下去的。

這是多么令人開心的事啊!它們擁抱自己的媽媽，像當新娘的裁縫一樣高興得又蹦又跳?？墒茄驄寢屨f：“你們去找些大石頭來。我們趁這壞蛋還沒有醒過來，把石頭裝到它的肚子里去。”七只小山羊飛快地拖來很多石頭，拼命地往狼肚子里塞;然后山羊媽媽飛快地把狼肚皮縫好，結果狼一點也沒有發(fā)覺，它根本都沒有動彈。

狼終于睡醒了。它站起身，想到井邊去喝水，因為肚子里裝著的石頭使它口渴得要死。可它剛一邁腳，肚子里的石頭便互相碰撞，發(fā)出嘩啦嘩啦的響聲。它叫道：“是什么東西，在碰撞我的骨頭?我以為是六只小羊，可怎么感覺像是石頭?”它到了井邊，彎腰去喝水，可沉重的石頭壓得它掉進了井里，淹死了。七只小山羊看到后，全跑到這里來叫道：“狼死了!狼死了!”它們高興地和媽媽一起圍著水井跳起舞來。