The Elves and the Shoemaker
　　There was once a shoemaker, who, through no fault of hisown, became so poor that at last he had nothing left but just enough leatherto make one pair of shoes. He cut out the shoes at night, so as to set to workupon them next morning; and as he had a good conscience, he laid himselfquietly down in his bed, committed himself to heaven, and fell asleep. In themorning, after he had said his prayers, and was going to get to work, he foundthe pair of shoes made and finished, and standing on his table. He was verymuch astonished, and could not tell what to think, and he took the shoes inhis hand to examine them more nearly; and they were so well made that everystitch was in its right place, just as if they had come from the hand of amaster-workman.
　　Soon after, a purchaser entered, and as the shoes fittedhim very well, he gave more than the usual price for them, so that theshoemaker had enough money to buy leather for two more pairs of shoes.
　　He cut them at night, and intended to set to work the nextmorning with fresh spirit; when he got up they were already finished, and acustomer even was not lacking, who gave him so much money that he was able tobuy leather enough for four new pairs. Early next morning he found the fourpairs also finished, and so it always happened; whatever he cut out in theevening was worked up by the morning, so that he was soon in the way of makinga gook living, and in the end became very well to do.
　　One night, not long before Christmas, when the shoemakerhad finished cutting out, and before he went to bed, he said to his wife,
　　“How would it be if we wereto sit up tonight and see who it is that does us this service?”
　　His wife agreed, and set a light to burn. Then they bothhid in a corner of the room, behind some coats that were hanging up, and thenthey began to watch. As soon as it was midnight they saw come in twoneatly-formed naked little men, who seated themselves before the shoemaker'stable, and took up the work that was already prepared, and began to stitch, topierce, and to hammer so cleverly and quickly with their little fingers thatthe shoemaker's eyes could scarcely follow them, so full of wonder was he. Andthey never left off until everything was finished and was standing ready onthe table, and then they jumped up and ran off.
　　The next morning the shoemaker's wife said to her husband, “Thoselittle men have made us rich, and we ought to show ourselves grateful. Withall their running about, and having nothing to cover them, they must be cold.I'll tell you what: I will make little shirts, coats, waistcoats, and breechesfor them, and knit each of them a pair of stockings, and you shall make eachof them a pair of shoes. ”
　　The husband consented willingly, and at night, wheneverything was finished, they laid the gifts together on the table, instead ofthe cut-out work, and placed themselves so that they could observe how thelittle men would behave. When midnight came, they rushed in, ready to setwork, but when they found, instead of the pieces of prepared leather, the neatlittle garments put ready forthem, they stood a moment in surprise, and thenthey testified the greatest delight. With the greatest swiftness they took upthe pretty garments and slipped them on, singing,
　　“What spruce and dandy boysare we!
　　No longer cobblers we will be. ”
　　Then they hopped and danced about, jumping over the chairsand tables, and at last danced out at the door.
　　From that time they were never seen again; but it alwayswent well with the shoemaker as long as he lived, and whatever he took in handprospered.
　　　　小精灵和鞋匠
　　以前有个鞋匠. 虽然并不是因为他自己的过错，但是他变得很穷困，最后他只剩下仅够做一双鞋的皮料，别的一无所有.于是，他在晚上把鞋料裁好，准备第二天上午开始把皮料制成皮鞋.由于他心安理得，所以能安然躺在床上，把自己的一切托付上苍，然后就入睡了.第二天早晨，他做过祷告后，准备开始工作，但是发现想要做的那双鞋子已经做好，放在自己的桌上.他吃惊得目瞪口呆，不知该怎么想.他把鞋子拿在手里，再加仔细端详.这双鞋做得好极了，就像是出自一个制鞋大师之手，一针一线的位置都恰到好处.
　　不久，一位买主走进来.因为那双鞋穿在他脚上大小很服贴，他给了比一般都高的价钱.这样，鞋匠就有钱买了做两双鞋的皮料.他在晚上把皮料裁剪好，准备第二天早晨精神焕发地开始工作.但当他起身时，发现鞋料又已经被做成了鞋子.甚至连买主也不缺. 那位买主给他很多的钱，使他可以购买做四双皮鞋的皮料.隔天一大早，他又发现那四双鞋也已有人帮他做好.如此反复，无论他晚上裁剪了多少双鞋料，到早上这些鞋料必然被做成了鞋子.如是，他的生活很快得到了改善，最后还是变得十分富有.
　　圣诞节前不久的一个晚上，鞋匠在裁完皮料上床之前对他的妻子说：
　　“今天晚上如果我们熬个夜，看看谁在为我们干活，好吗？”
　　他的妻子同意了. 他们点了一盏灯，然后躲在屋子一角挂了几件上衣的后面，再就开始观察.一到半夜时，他们发现两个五官端正，但身上赤条条的小人，来到屋内，坐在鞋匠的桌子前，干起为他们准备好的活儿.他们时儿穿针引线，时儿用锥钉钉子，他们的小手指如此灵敏俐落，连鞋匠的眼光也几乎赶不上，他真是惊叹不已.他们总是先把活儿干完，把做好的放在桌上，然后才跳跳蹦蹦地离去.
　　第二天早晨，鞋匠的妻子对鞋匠说：“那两个小人使我们发了财，我们也应该对他们表示感激之情.他们一丝不挂地跑东跑西，一定很冷.我有个主意. 我会给他们做些小衬衫，小外套，小马甲，小马裤，并且为他们每人织一双长统袜，你再为他们每人做一双鞋子.”
　　丈夫欣然同意. 晚上，当他们做完所有的事情后，他们把礼物一起放在桌上，而不再放裁剪好的鞋料，然后，他们躲到可以观察小精灵如何行动的地方.半夜一到，两个小精灵匆匆而来，准备开始工作.但是他们没有发现裁剪好的皮料，却发现了为他们准备好的整洁的小衣裳，他们呆了一阵子，然后喜形于色，很快地拿起了漂亮的衣服，一面穿在身上，一面唱着：
　　“我们是多么时髦漂亮的小伙子啊!
　　“我们不再是臭皮匠了.”
　　他们又跳又唱，在屋里的桌子和椅子上跳来跳去，最后跳出了大门.
　　从那以后，再也没有见到过他们，但是鞋匠后来终其一生都过得幸福美满，凡是所经营的事业，无不兴旺发达.
　　.

The Wolf and the Seven Little Goats
　　　　There was once an old goat who had seven little ones, andwas as fond of them as ever mother was of her children. One day she had to gointo the wood to fetch food for them, so she called them all round her.
　　“Dear children, ”saidshe,“I am going out into the wood; andwhile I am gone, be on your guard against the wolf, for when he were once toget inside he would eat you up, skin, bones, and all. The wretch oftendisguises himself, but he may always be known by his hoarse voice and blackpaws. ”
　　“Dear mother, ”answeredthe kids, “you need not be afraid, wewill take good care of ourselves.” Andthe mother bleated good-bye, and went on her way with an easy mind.
　　It was not long before someone came knocking at the housedoor, and crying out,
　　“Open the door, my dearchildren, your mother has come back, and has brought each of you something. ”
　　But the little kids knew it was the wolf by the hoarsevoice.
　　“We will not open the door,”cried they; “you are not our mother; shehas a delicate and sweet voice, and your voice is hoarse; you must be thewolf. ”
　　Then off went the wolf to a shop and bought a big lump ofchalk, and ate it up to make his voice soft. And then he came back, knocked atthe house door, and cried,
　　“Open the door, my dearchildren, your mother is here, and has brought each of you something. ”
　　But the wolf had put up his black paws against the window,and the kids, seeing this, cried out,
　　“We will not open the door;our mother has no black paws like you; you must be the wolf. ”
　　The wolf then ran to a baker.
　　“Baker, ”saidhe, “I am hurt in the foot; pray spreadsome dough over the place. ”
　　And when the baker had plastered his feet, he ran to themiller.
　　“Miller,”saidhe, “strew me some white meal over mypaws. ”But the miller refused, thinkingthe wolf must be meaning harm to someone.
　　“If you don't do it,”cried the wolf, “I'll eat you up!”
　　And the miller was afraid and did as he was told. And thatjust shows what men are.
　　And now came the rogue the third time to the door andknocked. “Open, children!”criedhe. “Your dear mother has come home, andbrought you each something from the wood. ”
　　“First show us your paws,”said the kids, “so that we may know ifyou are really our mother or not. ”
　　And he put up his paws against the window, and when theysaw that they were white, all seemed right, and they opened the door; and whenhe was inside they saw it was the wolf, and they were terrified and tried tohide themselves. One ran under the table, the second got into the bed, thethird into the oven, the fourth ran into the kitchen, the fifth hid in thecupboard, the sixth under the sink, the seventh in the clock-case. But thewolf found them all, and gave them short shrift; one after the other heswallowed down, all but the youngest, who was hid in the clock-case. And sothe wolf, having got what he wanted, strolled forth into the green meadows,and laying himself down under a tree, he fell asleep.
　　Not long after, the mother goat came back from the wood;and, oh! what a sight met her eyes! The door was standing wide open; table,chairs, and stools, all thrown about; dishes broken; quilt and pillows tornoff the bed. She sought her children; they were nowhere to be found. Shecalled to each of them by name, but nobody answered, until she came to thename of the youngest.
　　“Here I am, Mother,”a little voice cried,“ here, in theclock-case. ”
　　And so she helped him out, and heard how the wolf had come,and eaten all the rest. And you may think how she cried for the loss of herdear children. At last in her grief she wandered out of doors, and theyoungest kid with her; and when they came into the meadow, there they saw thewolf lying under a tree, and snoring so that the branches shook. The mothergoat looked at him carefully on all sides and she noticed how something insidehis body was moving and struggling.
　　“Dear me!”thought she. “Can it be that my poorchildren that he devoured for his evening meal are still alive?”And she sent the little kid back to the house for a pair of shears, andneedle, and thread. Then she cut the wolf's body open, and no sooner had shemade one snip than out came the head of one of the kids; and then anothersnip, and then one after the other the six little kids all jumped out aliveand well, for in his greediness the rogue had swallowed them down whole. Howdelightful this was! So they comforted their dear mother and hopped about liketailors at a wedding.
　　“Now fetch some good hardstones,” said the mother, “andwe will fill his body with them, as he lies asleep. ”
　　And so they fetched some in all haste, and put them insidehim, and the mother sewed him up so quickly again that he was none the wiser.
　　When the wolf at last awoke, and got up, the stones insidehim made him feel very thirsty, and as he was going to the brook to drink,they struck and rattled one against another. And so he cried out:
　　What is this I feel inside me
　　Knocking hard against my bones?
　　How should such a thing betide me!
　　They were kids, and now they're stones.
　　So he came to the brook, and stooped to drink, but theheavy stones weighed him down, so he fell over into the water and was drowned.And when the seven little kids saw it they came up running.
　　“The wolf is dead, the wolfis dead! ” they cried, and taking hands,they danced with their mother all about the place.
　　　　七只小山羊和狼
　　从前有个羊妈妈，她有七个孩子——七只小山羊.像每个母亲一样，她也很爱自己的孩子.有一天，她要到树林里去为他们寻找食物，所以，她就把孩子们叫到身边.
　　“亲爱的孩子们，”她说，“我就要去森林里了，我走了以后，你们一定要提防那头狼，因为万一他溜进了屋里，他一定会把你们连皮带骨吃个精光.那个坏蛋常常伪装，但是，你们总是可从它那吵哑的声音和黑黑的爪子认出他来.”
　　“亲爱的妈妈，”孩子们回答，“你不要害怕，我们会好好地照顾自己的.”羊妈妈与孩子们道别后，就放心地走了.
　　羊妈妈走了没多久，就有人来敲门，并大声喊道：
　　“亲爱的孩子们，快开门吧，你们的妈妈回来了，我还为每个小乖乖都带了东西!”
　　但是小家伙们从那个吵哑的声音中，就知道它是狼.
　　“我们不会开门的，”他们高声答道.“你不是我们的妈妈；她的声音柔和甜美，而你的声音粗哑.你一定是狼. ”
　　于是狼离开了，前往一家商店买了一大块白垩.它把白垩吃了，使自己的声音柔和一些，然后他又卷土重来，一边敲门一边喊道：
　　“开门呀，亲爱的孩子们.你们的妈妈到家了. 我给你们每人都带了东西.”
　　但是，那头狼把自己的黑爪子搭在窗上，给孩子们看见了.于是，孩子们喊道：
　　“我们才不会开门呢!”我们的妈妈没有像你那种黑黑的爪子.你一定是狼. ”
　　于是狼跑到一个面包师那里，对面包师说，“面包师，我的脚受伤了，请你给我在脚上敷些生面团吧.”
　　面包师给他敷上生面团后，他又跑到一个磨坊主人那里说道：
　　“磨坊老板，请你在我的脚上洒些白面粉.”
　　但磨坊主人回绝了，他想狼一定在动坏脑筋害人.
　　“如果你不给我在脚上洒面粉，我就把你吃掉!”
　　于是磨坊主人害怕了，就按狼的要求，给它的脚上洒了些白面粉.人就是这样，先求自保.
　　随后，那个恶棍第三次来到羊妈妈的家，敲门.
　　“孩子们，开门来!”他喊道，“你们亲爱的妈妈回来了，我还从林子里给你们大家带来了好东西!”
　　“先给我们看看你的爪子，”孩子们说.“这样我们才会知道你是否真正是我们的母亲.”
　　于是狼把它的爪子搭在窗上.当孩子们看到爪子是白的，一切似乎都很正常，他们就把门打开了.当狼进屋后，他们才发现它是狼.孩子们怕极了，大家都想把自己藏起来.第一只山羊躲到了桌下，第二只山羊钻进了床上的被子里，第三只山羊躲到了烤炉内，第四只山羊逃进了厨房，第五只山羊钻进了碗橱里，第六只山羊躲到了水槽下面，第七只山羊钻进了大钟的钟壳之中.但是，除了那只钻进钟壳的小羊幸免之外，老狼把其余的六只都找了出来，而且毫不留情地把他们一一吞下了肚子.
　　吃饱后，狼心满意足地走到一片如茵的草地，躺在一棵大树下进入了梦乡.
　　没多久，羊妈妈从林子里回来.啊!她看到的是一副什么景象啊!大门敞开着，屋内的桌子，椅子，小凳子摔的到处都是，地上是被打碎的碗碟和从床上扯下的床单和枕头，却什么地方也找不到孩子.于是，她开始一个个地呼唤他们的名字，只有当叫到最小的那个孩子时，才听到回答：
　　“妈妈，”一个微弱的声音回答道，“我在这里，在大钟的钟壳里.”
　　羊妈妈帮助小山羊爬出了钟壳，并听他讲狼怎样来把其余的羊都吃光了的经过.你们可以想像，羊妈妈是怎么样地为失去了她亲爱的孩子们而痛哭流涕.最后，她伤心地带着那只最小的羊，漫无目的的走到户外.在那草地上，他们发现那头狼躺在树下，鼾声如雷，把树枝都震得发抖.羊妈妈对狼仔细地左看右看，发现它的肚子里有东西在动，在挣扎.
　　“天啊!”她想，“我的那些被狼吞食当晚餐的可怜的孩子们，是否有可能还活着!”于是她叫小羊回家去拿一把剪羊毛用的大剪刀和一些针线.然后，她就动手把狼的肚子剪开.她刚刚剪开一个口子，一只小羊的头就冒了出来，她又剪下去，于是狼肚子内的小羊一个接一个地从开口处跳了出来，因为恶狼贪婪得很，在吃小羊时是整个吞下去的，所以小羊们能安然无恙地活着.这是多么令人高兴的事啊!小羊们一边安慰着羊妈妈，一边兴高采烈跳跳蹦蹦，就像在参加一个婚礼一样.
　　“去搬些又大又硬的石头来，”羊妈妈说，“我们要乘狼熟睡时把它的肚子填满石头.”
　　于是，小羊们急急忙忙地搬了些石头来，塞进了狼的肚子，随后羊妈妈很迅速地把狼肚子又缝合了起来，而狼一点也没有发觉.
　　狼醒来之后，肚子里的石头使它感到很渴，当他动身到溪水旁边去喝水时，一路上石头还相互碰撞，响个不停.于是他自言自语地说：
　　我肚里到底是什么东西？
　　硬绑绑顶着我的骨头.
　　事情怎么会这样希奇!
　　吃下的是小羊羔，现在却成了石头.
　　走到小溪边，狼就弯下身子准备饮水，但是重的石头压得他直不起腰来.于是，他跌进水里淹死了. 小羊们看到狼淹死了，都跑了出来.“狼死了，狼死了. ”他们喊道，同时手挽着手，和羊妈妈一起在周围跳起舞来.
　　align]

The Frog Prince
　　　　In the old times, when peo ple could have all they wished,there lived a King whose daughters were all handsome, but the youngest was sobeautiful that the sun himself, who has seen so much, wondered each time heshone over her because of her beauty. Near the royal castle there was a greatdark wood, and in the wood under an old linden tree was a well; and when theday was hot, the King's daughter used to go forth into the wood and sit by thebrink of the cool well, and if the time seemed long, she would take out agolden ball, and throw it up and catch it again, and this was her favoritepastime.
　　Now it happened one day that the golden ball, instead offalling back into the maiden's little hand which had sent it aloft, dropped tothe ground near the edge of the well and rolled in. The King's daughterfollowed it with her eyes as it sank, but the well was deep, so deep that thebottom could not be seen. Then she began to weep, and she wept and wept as ifshe could never be comforted. And in the midst of her weeping she heard avoice saying to her.
　　“What ails you, King'sdaughter? The tears would melt a heart of stone. ”
　　And when she looked to see where the voice came from, therewas nothing but a frog stretching his thick ugly head out of the water.
　　“Oh, is it you, old waddler?”saidshe. “I weep because my golden ball hasfallen into the well. ”
　　“Never mind, do not weep, ”answeredthe frog; “I can help you; but what willyou give me if I fetch up your ball again?”
　　“Whatever you like, dearfrog, ”said she; “anyof my clothes, my pearls and jewels, or even the golden crown that I wear. ”
　　“Your clothes, your pearlsand jewels, and your golden crown are not for me. ”answered the frog; “but if you wouldlove me, and have me for your companion and playfellow, and let me sit by youat table, and eat from your plate, and drink from your cup, and sleep in yourlittle bed-if you would promise all this, then would I dive below the waterand fetch you your golden ball again. ”
　　“Oh, yes,”she answered; “I will promise it all,whatever you want, if you will only get me my ball again. ”
　　But she thought to herself, “whatnonsense he talks! as if he could do anything but sit in the water and croakwith the other frogs, or could possibly be anyone's companion. ”
　　But the frog, as soon as he heard her promise, drew hishead under the water and sank down out of sight. But after a while he came tothe surface again with the ball in his mouth, and he threw it on the grass.
　　The King's daughter was overjoyed to see her prettyplaything again, and she caught it up and ran off with it.
　　“Stop, stop! ”criedthe frog. “Take me up, too; I cannot runas fast as you!”
　　But it was of no use. The King's daughter would not listento his croaking, but made haste home, and very soon forgot all about the poorfrog, who had to betake himself to his well again.
　　The next day, when the King's daughter was sitting at tablewith the King and all the court, and eating from her golden plate, there camea knocking at the door, and a voice crying, “YoungestKing's daughter, let me in!”
　　And she got up and ran to see who it could be, but when sheopened the door, there was the frog sitting outside. Then she shut the doorhastily and went back to her seat, feeling very uneasy. The King noticed howquickly her heart was beating and said:
　　“My child, what are youafraid of? Is there a giant standing at the door ready to carry you away?”
　　“Oh, no, ”answeredshe; “No giant, but a horrid frog. ”
　　“And what does the frogwant?” asked the King.
　　“O dear father,”answered she, “when I was sitting by thewell yesterday, and playing with my golden ball, it fell into the water, andwhile I was crying for the loss of it, the frog came and got it again for meon condition I would let him be my companion, but I never thought that hecould leave the water and come after me; but now there he is outside the door,and he wants to come in to me. ”
　　And then they all heard him knocking the second time andcrying:
　　“Youngest King's daughter,
　　Open to me!
　　By the well water
　　What promised you me?
　　Youngest King's daughter
　　Now open to me!”
　　“ That which you havepromised must you perform, ”said theking; “so go now and let him in. ”
　　So she went and opened the door, and the frog hopped in,following at her heels, till she reached her chair. Then he stopped and cried:
　　“Lift me up to sit by you. ”
　　But she delayed doing it until the King ordered her. Whenonce the frog was on the chair, he wanted to get on the table; and there hesat and said! “Now push your goldenplate a little nearer, so that we may eat together. ”
　　And so she did; but everybody saw how unwilling she was,and the frog feasted heartily, butevery morsel seemed to stick in her throat.
　　“I have had enough now,”said the frog at last, “And as I amtired, you must carry me to your room, and make ready your silken bed, and wewill lie down and go to sleep.”
　　Then the King's daughter began to weep, and was afraid ofthe cold frog; she could not even touch him, and now he actually wanted tosleep in her pretty clean bed. Now the King grew angry with her, saying:
　　“That which you havepromised in your time of necessity, must you now perform.”
　　So she picked up the frog with her finger and thumb,carried him upstairs and put him in a corner, and when she had lain down tosleep, he came creeping up, saying!“I amtired and want sleep as much as you; take me up, or I will tell your father.”
　　Then she felt beside herself with the rage, and picking himup, she threw the frog with all her strength against the wall, crying:
　　“Now will you be quiet, youhorrid frog!”
　　But as he fell, he ceased to be a frog, and became all atonce a prince with beautiful kind eyes. And it came to pass that, with herfather's consent, they became bride and bridegroom. And he told her how awicked witch had bound him by her spells, and how no one but she alone couldhave released him, and that they two would go together to his father'skingdom. And there came to the door a carriage drawn by eight white horses,with white plumes on their heads, and with golden harness, and behind thecarriage was standing faithful Henry, the servant of the young prince. Now,faithful Henry had suffered such care and pain when his master was turned intoa frog, that he had been obliged to wear three iron bands over his heart, tokeep it from breaking with trouble and anxiety. When the carriage started totake the prince to his kingdom, and faithful Henry had helped them both in, hegot up behind, and was full of joy at his master's deliverence. And when theyhad gone a part of the way, the prince heard a sound at the back of thecarriage, as if something had broken, and he turned round and cried:
　　“Henry, the wheel mustbreaking!”but Henry answered:
　　“The wheel does not break,
　　Tis the band round my heart
　　That, to lessen its ache,
　　When I grieved for your sake,
　　I bound round my heart.”
　　Again, and yet once again there was the same sound, and theprince thought it must be the wheel breaking, but it was the breaking of theother bands from faithful Henry's heart, Because it was now so relieved andhappy.
　　　　青蛙王子
　　在人们还可以实现愿望的古代，那时候有个国王，他有好几位公主.虽然每位公主都貌美如花，但是她们中的小公主更是光艳照人，连见过很多世面的太阳，在每次向她洒下万道金光时，也因她的美而惊奇不已.在国王城堡附近有一片广阔无垠的黑森林.
　　在林中的一棵老菩堤树下，有一口水井.天气炎热时，小公主总会到林中的那口井边，坐在凉爽的井台上.如果呆的时间比较长，她还会拿出一个金球，在手里抛上抛下，这是她最喜欢的游戏.
　　有一天，小公主把球抛出后，球却没有落回她抛球的小手里，球掉在井边，然后就滚进了井里，小公主眼睁睁地看着它下沉.那口井很深，简直是深不见底，小公主开始哭泣.哭呀哭呀，似乎谁也安慰不了她.就在这时，她听到有个声音对她说，
　　“什么事使您如此伤心啊，公主？您的眼泪连铁石心肠的人也能感动.”
　　小公主抬起头来朝发出声音的地方看去，发现有只青蛙正把那难看的笨脑袋瓜子伸出水面.
　　“噢!是你吗？你这个摇摇晃晃的家伙，”小公主说道.“我是在为我掉到井里的金球而哭呀.”
　　“没有关系，别哭了. ”青蛙回答.“我能够帮助你，但是如果我再把你的球捡起来，你会给我什么报酬呢？”
　　“你要什么我就给你什么，亲爱的青蛙，”公主说.“我的任何衣服，珍珠宝石，甚至我头上的金冠.都可以. ”
　　“你的衣服，你的珍珠宝石，你的金冠我都用不着，”青蛙回答说，“但是，如果你会爱我，把我当作你的同伴和游伴，用餐时坐在你身边，同吃一盘菜，同喝一杯水，而且还要睡在你的小床上.如果你答应所有这些条件，那么我就潜入水底，替你把金球再拿上来.”
　　“好的，”公主答道，“无论你提出什么要求我都同意，只要你再把球给我拿回来.”
　　但是公主又暗暗自己在想，“他在讲什么废话!好像什么事它都能干似的.他除了和其它青蛙一样坐在井里呱呱叫而外，或者说他还可能成为别人的同伴.”
　　然而那青蛙一听到她表示同意，就一缩头钻进水里不见踪影了.一会儿，它嘴里衔着球冒出了水面，然后就把球扔在草地上.
　　当公主看到她的漂亮的玩具时，心里非常欢喜，拣起球就走了.
　　“等等，等等!”青蛙叫道.“把我也拣起来. 我可不能跑得像你那么快.”
　　但这样叫也没有用，公主不听青蛙呱呱叫，只是赶着回家，并且很快就把可怜的青蛙全忘了，那只青蛙毫无办法只有回到自己的井里.
　　第二天，当小公主和皇帝以及所有朝臣们坐在桌旁，正在从金盘中取食用餐时，突然有敲门声，并且有声音喊道：“国王的小公主，快开门让我进来呀!”
　　小公主起身跑去看那究竟可能是谁，当她发现门外坐着的是那只青蛙.她急急忙忙把门关上，然后回到自己的座位上，心里感到十分不安.国王看到她心情很紧张，于是就问道：
　　“孩子，你害怕什么？是不是门外站着个巨人准备要把你抢去呀？”
　　“啊，没有，”她回答，“不是巨人，是只可怕的青蛙.”
　　“那只青蛙要什么？”国王问道.
　　“啊，亲爱的父王，”公主答道，“昨天我坐在井边玩球时，球掉进了水里.当我在为此而哭泣时，那只青蛙跑来为我拣回了球，条件是要我让它成为我的伴侣.当时我并没有想到它能离开水井而跟我走的.但是现在它却已到了门外，要来找我.”
　　正在这时，他们都听到了青蛙再次的敲门声和叫喊声：
　　“小公主，
　　快来替我开门!
　　你在井边答应过我什么事？
　　小公主，
　　快来开门. ”
　　国王说：“你答应做的事一定要做，所以你现在就去开门让他进来.”
　　于是，小公主去开了门.青蛙紧跟在她的后面. 一跳一跳地一直跟到她的椅子前.然后，青蛙停下来说道：
　　“请把我抱起来，让我坐在你身旁.”
　　但是小公主一直等到国王命令她，她才把青蛙放在椅子上.青蛙一上了椅子，又要求，让他坐在桌子上.坐上了桌子后，青蛙说道，“请把你的金盘子推到离我近一点的地方，这样我才能和你一起吃!”
　　小公主照做了，但每个人都看得出她是多么地不情愿.青蛙开始开怀大嚼，但是小公主却感到每一小口似乎都难以下咽.
　　最后，青蛙说：“我吃饱了，而且因为我觉得疲倦了，你现在必须把我抱到你的房间去，把你的锦缎的床铺好，我们要一起躺下睡觉.”
　　小公主听罢开始哭泣，她害拍那冷冰冰的青蛙，连碰也不敢碰他，而他现在硬要睡在她那又漂亮又干净的床上.于是国王对她变得很生气，他说，
　　“你在需要别人帮助时答应别人的事，现在你一定要言出必行.”
　　于是，小公主用大拇指和另一个手指把青蛙拈起来带上了楼，并且将它放在屋里的一个角落里.当小公主自己躺在床上准备睡觉时，青蛙爬了过来，对小公主说：“我和你一样累，我同样也要睡觉，请你把我抱上床.否则我就去告诉国王. ”这时，小公主简直怒不可遏.她把青蛙拾起，然后用尽全身力气向墙上扔去，一边叫道：
　　“你这个可怕的青蛙，现在你可以安静了吧!”
　　然而，青蛙掉下时不再是个青蛙了，突然间变成了一个有着一双迷人而亲切的眼睛的王子.事情后来演变成在国王同意下，他们结为夫妇成了新娘和新郎.王子告诉公主，他是如何地被一个邪恶的女巫用咒语作弄，而只有小公主一人才能解求他.他还告诉公主他将带着她返回自己父王的国度.于是，有一天，王宫前来了一辆由八匹白色骏马拉着的马车，马头上还插着白羽毛，背上是金鞍.在马车后面站着王子的忠仆亨利.在王子被变成青蛙的日子里，亨利心情非常沉痛，因此他箍了三个法圈在他心的周围，以免他的心由于过分不安和担忧而破碎.那一天亨利首先帮助王子与公主上了马车，当马车带着王子朝着他的国家出发时，亨利心里充满了喜悦，他上了车，站在车后，为王子得到拯救而高兴.马车走了一段路时，王子就听到车后咔嚓一声，好像什么东西震断了，于是他回过头大声说道：
　　“亨利，一定是轮子断了!”但是亨利答道：“轮子没有断，
　　而是箍在我心上的铁圈，
　　当我为你而伤心时，
　　为了减缓我的心痛，
　　我在心的周围箍了铁圈.”
　　接着，同样的声音又响起了，王子以为一定是车轮断了，而实际上断的是亨利箍在心口的另外两个铁箍，因为忠实的亨利现在已心花怒放了.
　　.

Rapunzel
　　There once lived a man and his wife, who had long wishedfor a child, but in vain. Now there was at the back of their house a littlewindow which overlooked a beautiful garden full of the finest vegetables andflowers; but there was a high wall all round it, and no one ventured into it,for it belonged to a witch of great might, and of whom all the world wasafraid. One day, when the wife was standing at the window, and looking intothe garden, she saw a bed filled with the finest rampion; and it looked sofresh and green that she began to wish for some; and at length she longed forit greatly.
　　This went on for days, and she knew she could not get therampion, she pined away, and grew pale and miserable. Then the man was uneasy,and asked:
　　“What is the matter, dearwile？”
　　“Oh,”answered she,“I shall die unless I canhave some of that rampion to eat that grows in the garden at the back of ourhouse.
　　The man, who loved her very much, thought to himself:
　　“Rather than lose my wife Iwill get some rampion, cost what it will.”
　　So in the twilight he climbed over the wall into thewitch's garden, plucked hastily a handful of rampion and brought it to hiswife. She made a salad of it at once, and ate of it to her heart's content.But she liked it so much, and it tasted so good, that the next day she longedfor it thrice as much as she had done before; if she was to have any rest theman must climb over the wall once more. So he went in the twilight again; andas he was climbing back, he saw, all at once, the witch standing before him,and was terribly frightened, as she cried, with angry eyes:
　　“How dare you climb overinto my garden like a thief, and steal my rampion! It shall be the worse foryou!”
　　“ Oh,”answered he,“ be merciful rather thanjust. I have only done it through necessity; for my wife saw your rampion outof the window, and became possessed with so great a longing that she wouldhave died if she could not have had some to eat.”Thenthe witch said:
　　“If what you tell me istrue, you may have as much rampion as you like, on one condition-the childthatwill come into the world must be given to me. I will be kind to the child,and care for it like a mother.”
　　In his distress of mind the man promised everything; andwhen the time came when the child was born, the witch appeared and, giving thechild the name of Rapunzel(which is the same as rampion), she took it awaywith her.
　　Rapunzel was the most beautiful child in the world. Whenshe was twelve years old the witch shut her up in a tower in the midst of awood, and it had neither steps nor door, only a small window above. When thewitch wished to be let in, she would stand below and would cry:
　　“Rapunzel, Rapunzel! Letdown your hair!”
　　Rapunzel had beautiful long hair that shone like gold. Whenshe heard the voice of the witch she would undo the fastening of the upperwindow, unbind the plaits of her hair, and let it down twenty ells below, andthe witch would climb up by it. After they had lived thus a few years ithappened that as the King's son was riding through the wood, he came to thetower; and as he drew near he heard a voice singing so sweetly that he stoodstill and listened. It was Rapunzel in her loneliness trying to pass away thetime with sweet songs. The King's son wished to go in to her, and sought tofind a door in the tower, but there was none. So he rode home, but the songhad entered into his heart, and every day he went into the wood and listenedto it. Once, as he was standing there under a tree, he saw the witch come up,and listened while she called out:
　　“O Rapunzel, Rapunzel!Letdown your hair.”
　　Then he saw how Rapunzel let down her long tresses, and howthe witch climbed up by it and went in to her, and he said to himself:
　　“Since that is the ladder, Iwill climb it, and seek my fortune.” Andthe next day, as soon as it began to grow dusk, he went to the tower andcried:
　　“O Rapunzel, Rapunzel! Letdown your hair.” And she let down herhair, and the King's son climbed up by it.
　　Rapunzel was greatly terrified when she saw that a man hadcome in to her, for she had never seen one before; but the King's son beganspeaking so kindly to her, and told how her singing had entered into hisheart, so that he could have no peace until he had seen her herself. ThenRapunzel forgot her terror, and when he asked her to take him for her husband,and she saw that he was young and beautiful, she thought to herself:
　　“I certainly like him muchbetter than the old mother Gothel,” andshe put her hand into his hand, saying:
　　“I would willingly go withyou, but I do not know how I shall get out. When you come, bring each time asilken rope, and I will make a ladder, and when it is quite ready I will getdown by it out of the tower, and you shall take me away on your horse.”Theyagreed that be should come to her every evening, as the old woman came in thedaytime. So the witch knew nothing of all this until once Rapunzel said to herunwittingly:
　　“You are much heavier todraw up, Mother Gothel, than the King's son, who has just left me!”“O wicked child,”cried the witch,“What is this I hear! Ithought I had hidden you from all the world, and you have betrayed me!”
　　In her anger she seized Rapunzel by her beautiful hair,struck her several times with her left hand, and then grasping a pair ofshears in her right—snip, snip－thebeautiful locks lay on the ground. And she was so hard-hearted that she tookRapunzel and put her in a waste and desert place, where she lived in great woeand misery.
　　The same day on which she took Rapunzel away she went backto the tower in the evening and made fast the severed locks of hair to thewindow hasp, and the King's son came and cried:
　　“Rapunzel, Rapunzel! Letdown your hair”
　　Then she let the hair down, and the King's son climbed up,but instead of his dearest Rapunzel he found the witch looking at him withwicked, glistening eyes.
　　“ Aha!”cried she, mocking him,“ you cameforyour darling, but the sweet bird sits no longer in the nest, and sings nomore; the cat has got her, and will scratch out your eyes as well! Rapunzel islost to you; you will see her no more.”
　　The King's son was beside himself with grief, and in hisagony he sprang from the tower: he escaped with life, but the thorns on whichhe fell put out his eyes. Then he wandered blind through the wood, eatingnothing but roots and berries, and doing nothing but lament and weep for theloss of his dearest wife.
　　So he wandered several years in misery until at last hecame to the desert place where Rapunzel lived with her twin-children that shehad borne, a boy and a girl. At first he heard a voice that he thought heknew, and when he reached the place from which it seemed to come Rapunzel knewhim, and fell on his neck and wept. And when her tears touched his eyes theybecame clear again, and he could see with them as well as ever.
　　Then he took her to his kingdom, where he was received withgreat joy, and there they lived long and happily.
　　　　拉庞翠儿
　　从前有一对夫妻. 他们很久就希望有个孩子，但是总不能如愿.他们的后屋有一扇小窗，从这小窗子看到下面有一个长满了奇花异草的漂亮的花园，但是周围有高墙，没有人敢冒险进入这个花园，因为这所花园属于一个法力无边的巫婆，整个世界也都怕她.有一天，那个妻子正站在窗前，欣赏着下面花园的景色时，突然发现花园中有一个长满了漂亮的风铃草的花床.那些风铃草长得如此鲜嫩，如此碧绿诱人，使她开始想要得到一些，而且最后她强烈地渴望要得到它.
　　这种情况持续了好几天，她知道自己无法得到对面花园中的风铃草，她日见消瘦，脸色苍白，真是其情可悯.她的丈夫为此而感到不安，于是问道：
　　“亲爱的妻子，到底发生了什么事情？”
　　妻子答道：“唉，如果我吃不到我们屋后花园中的风铃草，我会死去的.”那丈夫很爱自己的妻子，他暗自思量：
　　“无论花什么代价，我也要弄到一些风铃草，而不能失去我的妻子.”
　　于是，在昏暗的傍晚时分，他翻墙爬进了巫婆的花园，匆匆忙忙地摘了一把风铃草，带给他的妻子.她把那风铃草做成沙拉，心满意足地把它吃了.由于风铃草味道鲜美之极，第二天她比以前更想要吃.如果要使她满意，她丈夫必须每次翻墙入园采摘风铃草.于是，在傍晚时分，他又去了. 当他要爬出围墙时，他突然发现那巫婆正站在他面前，当她带着愤怒的目光对他吼叫时，他害怕极了.
　　“你竟敢像贼一样溜进我的花园来偷摘我的风铃草，你要倒霉了!”
　　“啊!”他答道，“请你法外施恩吧!我这样做是不得已.我太太从窗口看到了你的风铃草.她简直被它迷住了，如果她吃不到的话，她会死的.
　　”
　　于是，那巫婆就说：
　　“如果你说的是真话，那么你要多少就可摘多少.但是有一个条件，你妻子吃了这风铃草之后，生下的孩子一定要给我，我会像母亲一样慈祥地照看那孩子.”
　　怀着痛苦的心情，那男子完全答应了.后来，当他的妻子生产时，女巫出现了，她为孩子取名拉庞翠儿(意即“风铃草”)，并把孩子带走了.
　　拉庞翠儿是世界上最美丽的孩子.当她十二岁时，女巫就把她关在森林中间的一座塔楼之上.那座塔楼既无楼梯又无门，只有顶层的一扇小窗.当女巫想要上塔楼时，她就在下面叫道：
　　“拉庞翠儿!拉庞翠儿!把你的头发放下来!”
　　拉庞翠儿长着一头金色的美丽长发.她一听到女巫的喊声，就会把窗子打开，松开辫子，把它垂下20厄而，(厄而——为英国古代的长度单位，相当于现在的45寸——译者注.)于是女巫就会顺着她的长发爬上塔楼.
　　他们就这样生活了几年之后，碰巧有位王子骑马走进那森林，他来到那座塔楼，当他走近时，他听到美丽动听的歌声，他驻足倾听.原来那是拉庞翠儿在寂寞中用歌唱来消磨时光.王子想走进塔楼找她，他设法找门，但却根本没有门，他无奈骑马回家，但那美妙的歌声已深入他心中，他每天都来到森林里听拉庞翠儿的歌声.有一次，当他正站在一棵树下时，他看到女巫来了，并且注意听到她喊道：
　　“拉庞翠儿，拉庞翠儿，快放下你的长发!”
　　于是，他看到拉庞翠儿放下了她的长发，以及女巫如何利用头发爬上塔楼去到她那里.他自言自语道：
　　既然那就是“楼梯”，那么我也要爬上去，试一试我的运气.第二天，一到傍晚，他就来到塔下叫道：“拉庞翠儿，拉庞翠儿，放下你的头发!”
　　接着拉庞翠儿就垂下了她的头发，而王子也顺着头发，爬进了塔楼.
　　看到爬进塔中的是个男子，拉庞翠儿大吃一惊，因为她从来没有看见过男子，但是王子开始很和善地向她倾诉他对于她的歌声是如何地难以忘怀，因此他觉得一定要和她见面，否则心情就不得安宁.这时拉庞翠儿忘了恐惧. 她也看到王子既年轻，又英俊，当王子向她求婚时，她暗自思量：
　　“比起老妈妈戈什儿来，我当然喜欢他得多罗!”
　　于是，她拉着王子的手说：
　　“我很愿意跟你走，但是我不知道如何才能离开这里.以后每次你来时，请带一段丝质的绳子，我会把它们编成一架绳梯，当我把绳梯编好后，我就顺着绳梯下来走出塔楼，然后你用你的马带我离开.”由于那巫婆总是白天来的，他们约好王子晚上来，所以那巫婆对他们的往来一无所知，直到有一天拉庞翠儿无意中说出：
　　“戈什儿妈妈，拉你上来比刚刚离开的王子要重得多!”
　　女巫一听，大叫道：“你这个坏孩子，你讲什么话啊!我以为已把你藏得远离人世，而你却背叛了我.”
　　一怒之下，她一把抓住了拉庞翠儿美丽的头发，用左手狠狠地打了她几下，然后用右手抓起一把大剪刀，咔嚓，咔嚓几下就把她的金发剪落地上.接着，那巫婆是如此的铁石心肠竟把拉庞翠儿放逐到一处荒无人烟的沙漠，让她生活在悲哀苦难中.
　　在她放逐拉庞翠儿的同一天晚上，女巫回到了塔楼，将切断的发束系在窗框上，这时王子来到窗下叫喊道：
　　“拉庞翠儿，拉庞翠儿!把头发放下!”
　　于是，女巫把头发放下，让王子爬了上来.但是，他看到的不是亲爱的拉庞翠儿，而是那个眼神恶狠瞪着他的女巫.
　　“啊哈!”她戏弄地大声说道，“你来看你可爱的人儿，但是小鸟不再呆在鸟巢里了，她也不再唱歌了.猫把她抓走了. 它还要把你的眼珠也抓出来哩!你已经失去了拉庞翠儿，你再也看不到她了.”
　　王子听后悲痛欲绝，在极度痛苦中，他纵身跳下了塔搂.虽然他侥幸没有送命，但是他跌落在荆棘丛中，眼睛被刺瞎了，从此，他在森林中盲然地徘徊流浪，终日为失去亲爱的妻子而哭泣悲伤，只靠食用植物的根和浆果维生.
　　就这样王子悲惨地流浪了好几年，最后终于来到了拉庞翠儿被放逐的沙漠.在那里，拉庞翠儿正和她所生的一对双胞胎——一男一女一起苦度时光.
　　起初，他听到一种自己认为很熟悉的声音.后来当他一路摸索到似乎是声音所来之处时，拉庞翠儿认出了他，就抱着他的头大哭起来.当她的眼泪流过王子的眼睛时，王子的眼睛又再变得像以往一样重见光明了.
　　于是，王子就将她带回他自己的王国，全国也欢欣鼓舞地迎接她，从此他们就长久幸福地生活在一起了.
　　

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　　Snow-White and Rose-Red
　　Once there was a poor widow who lived alone in her hut withher two little children, who were called Snow-White and Rose-Red, because theywere like the flowers which bloomed on two rose-bushes which grew before thecottage. But they were as pious, good, industrious, and amiable children asany that were in the world, only Snow-White was more quiet and gentle thanRose-Red. For Rose-Red would run and jump about the meadows, seeking flowersand catching butterflies, while Snow-White sat at home helping her mother tokeep house, or reading to her if there were nothing else to do. The twochildren loved one another dearly, and always walked hand in hand when theywent out together; and when they talked of it they agreed that they wouldnever separate from each other, and that whatever one had the other shouldshare. Often they ran deep into the forest and gathered wild berries; but nobeast ever harmed them. For the hare would eat cauliflowers out of theirhands, the fawn would graze at their side, the goats would frisk about them inplay, and the birds remained perched on the boughs singing as if nobody werenear. No accident ever befell them; and if they stayed late in the forest, andnight came upon them, they used to lie down on the moss and sleep tillmorning; and because their mother knew they would do so, she felt no concernabout them. One time when they had thus passed the night in the forest, andthe dawn of morning awoke them, they saw a beautiful child dressed in shiningwhite sitting near their couch. She got up and looked at them kindly, butwithout saying anything went into the forest. The children saw they had sleptclose to the edge of a pit, into which they would have certainly fallen hadthey walked farther in the dark. Their mother told them the figure wasdoubtless the good angel who watches over children.
　　Snow-White and Rose-Red kept their mother's cottage soclean that it was a pleasure to enter it. Every morning in the summer-timeRose-Red would first put the house in order, and then gather a nose gay forher mother, in which she always placed a bud from each rose tree. Everywinter's morning Snow-White would light the fire and put the kettle on toboil, and although the kettle was made of copper it yet shone like gold,because it was scoured so well. In the evening, when the flakes of snow werefalling, the mother would say;“Go, SnowWhite, and bolt the door”;and then theyused to sit down on the hearth, and the mother would put on her spectacles andread out of a great book while her children sat spinning. By their side, too,lay a little lamb, and on a perch behind them a little white dove reposed withher head under her wing.
　　One evening, when they were thus sitting comfortablytogether, there came a knock at the door as if somebody wished to come in.“Makehaste, Rose-Red,” cried her mother;“makehaste and open the door; perhaps there is some traveler outside who needsshelter.”So Rose-Red went and drew thebolt and opened the door, expecting to see some poor man outside, but instead,a great fat Bear poked his black head in. Rose-Red shrieked out and ran back,the little lamb bleated, the dove fluttered on her perch, and Snow-White hidherself behind her mother's bed. The bear, however, began to speak, and said.“Benot afraid, I will do you no harm; but I am half frozen, and wish to come inand warm myself.”
　　“Poor Bear!”criedthe mother.“Come in and lie down beforethe fire; but take care you do not burn your skin”;and then she continued:“Come here,Rose-Red and Snow-White, the Bear will not harm you, he means honorably.”So they both came back, and by degrees the lamb, too, and thedove overcametheir fears and welcomed the rough visitor.
　　“You children,”saidthe Bear, before he entered, “come andknock the snow off my coat.” And theyfetched their brooms and swept him clean. Then he stretched himself before thefire and grumbled out his satisfaction; and in a little while the childrenbecame familiar enough to play tricks with the unwildly animal. They pulledhis long, shaggy skin, set their feet upon his back and rolled him to and fro,and even ventured to beat him with a hazel stick, laughing when he grumbled.The bear bore all their tricks good-temperedly, and if they hit him too hardhe cried out:
　　“Leave me my life, youchildren,
　　Snow-White and Rose-Red,
　　Or you'll never wed.”
　　When bedtime came and others were gone, the mother said tothe Bear:“You may sleep here on thehearth if you like, and you will be safely protected from the cold and badweather.”
　　As soon as day broke the two children let the Bear outagain, and he trotted away over the snow, and ever afterwards he came everyevening at a certain hour. He would lie down on the hearth and allow thechildren to play with him as much as they liked, till by degrees they becameso accustomed to him that the door was left unbolted till their black friendarrived.
　　But as soon as spring returned, and everything out of doorswas green gagin, the Bear one morning told Snow-White that he must leave her,and could not return during the whole summer.“Whereare you going, then, dear Bear?” askedSnow-White. “ I am obliged to go intothe forest and guard my treasures from the evil Dwarfs; for in winter, whenground is hard , they are obliged to keep in their holes, and cannot workthrough; but now, since the sun has thawed the earth and warmed it, theDwarfspierce through, and steal all they can find; and what has once passedinto their hands, and gets concealed by them in their caves, is not easilybrought to light.” Snow-White, however,was very sad at the departure of the Bear, and opened the door so hesitatinglythat when he pressed through it he left behind on the latch a piece of hishairy coat; and through the hole which was made in his coat SnowWhite fanciedshe saw the glittering of gold; but she was not quite certain of it. The Bear,however, ran hastily away, and was soon hidden behind the trees.
　　Some time afterwards the mother sent the children into thewood to gather sticks; and while doing so, they came to a tree which was lyingacross the path, on the trunk of which something kept bobbing up and down fromthe grass, and they could not imagine what it was. When they came nearer theysaw a Dwarf , with an old wrinkled face and a Snow-White beard a yard long.The end of this beard was fixed on a split of the tree, and the little mankept jumping about like a dog tied by a chain, for he did not know how to freehimself. He glared at the maidens with his red fiery eyes, and exclaimed, “Whydo you stand there? Are you going to pass without offering me any assistance? ”“What have you done, little man?”asked Rose-Red. “You stupid , gapinggoose ! ” exclaimed he. “Iwanted to have the tree split, in order to get a little wood for my kitchen,for the little wood which we use is soon burned up with great fagots, not likewhat you rough, greedy people devour! I had driven the wedge in properly, andeverything was going on well, when the smooth wood flew upward, and the treeclosed so suddenly together that I could not draw my beautiful beard out, andhere it sticks and I cannot get away, There, don't laugh, you milk-facedthings! Are you dumbfounded?”
　　The children took all the pains they could to pull theDwarf's beard out; but without success. “Iwill run and fetch some help, ”criedRose-Red at length. “Crack-brainedsheepshead that you are!” snarled theDwarf. “What are you going to call otherpeople for? You are too many now for me; can you think of nothing else?”
　　“Don't be impatient,”replied Snow-White; “I have thought ofsomething ”; and pulling her scissorsout of her pocket she cut off the end of the beard. As soon as the Dwarf foundhimself at liberty, he snatched up his sack, which lay between the roots ofthe tree, filled with gold, and throwing it over his shoulder marched off ,grumbling and groaning and crying:“Stupid people! to cut off a piece of my beautiful beard. Plague take you ! ”and away he went without once looking at the children.
　　Some time afterwards Snow-White and Rose-Red went fishing,and as they neared the pond they saw something like a great locust hoppingabout on the bank, as if going to jump into the water.They ran up andrecognized the Dwarf. “What are youafter?” asked Rose-Red. “Youwill fall into the water. ” “I am not quite such a simpleton as that , ”replied the Dwarf ; “ but do you not seethis fish will pull me in?” The littleman had been sitting there angling, and unfortunately the wind had entangledhis beard with the fishing line; and so a great fish bit at the bait, thestrength of the weak little fellow was not able to draw it out, and the fishhad the best of struggle. The Dwarf held on by the reeds and rushes which grewnear; but to no purpose, for the fish pulled him where it liked, and he mustsoon have been drawn into the pond. Luckily just then the two maidens arrived, and tried to release the beard of the Dwarf from the fishing line; but bothwere too closely entangled for it to be done. So the maiden pulled out herscissors again and cut off another piece of the beard. When the Dwarf saw thisdone he was in a great rage, and exclaimed : “You donkey ! That is the way to disfigure my face. Was it not enough to cutitonce, but you must now take away the best part of my fine beard? I dare notshow myself again now to my own people. I wish you had run the soles off yourboots before you had come here ! ” Sosaying, he took up a bag of pearls which lay among the rushes , and withoutspeaking another word, slipped off and disappeared behind a stone.
　　Not many days after this adventure, it chanced that themother sent the two maidens to the next town to buy thread, needles and pins,laces and ribbons. Their road passed over a common , on which here and theregreat pieces of rock were lying about. Just over their heads they saw a greatbird flying round and round, and every now and then dropping lower and lower,till at last it flew down behind a rock. Immediately afterwards they heard apiercing shriek, and running up they saw with affright that the eagle hadcaught their old acquaintance, the Dwarf, and was trying to carry him off. Thecompassionate children thereupon laid hold of the little man, and held himfast till the bird gave up the struggle and flew off. As soon then as theDwarf had recovered from his fright, he exclaimed in his sqeaking voice: “Couldyou not hold me more gently? You have seized my fine brown coat in such amanner that it is ail torn and full of holes, meddling and interfering rubbishthat you are!”With these words he shoul-dered a bag filled with precious stones, and slipped away to his cave amongthe rocks.
　　The maidens were now accustomed to his ingratitude, and sothey walked on to the town and transacted their business there. Coming home,theyreturned over the same common, and unawares walked up to a certain cleanspot on which the Dwarf had shaken out his bag of precious stones, thinkingnobody was near. The sun was shining, and the bright stones gilttered in itsbeams and displayed such a variety of colors that the two maidens stopped toadmire them.
　　“What are you standing theregaping for?”asked the Dwarf, while hisface grew as red as copper with rage; he was continuing to abuse the poormaidens, when a loud roaring noise was heard, and presently a great black Bearcame rolling out of the forest. The Dwarf jumped up terrified, but he couldnot gain his retreat before the Bear overtook him. Thereupon, he cried out: “Spareme, my dear Lord Bear ! I will give you all my treasures. See these beautifulprecious stones which lie here; only give me my life ; for what have you tofear from a little weak fellow like me? You could not touch me with your bigteeth. There are two wicked girls, take them; they would make nice meals, asfat as young quails; eat them for heaven's sake. ”
　　The Bear, however, without troubling himself to speak ,gave the bad-hearted Dwarf a single blow with his paw, and he never stirredafter.
　　The maidens were then going to run away, but the Bearcalled after them: “Snow-White andRoseRed , fear not ! Wait a bit and I will accompany you. ”They recognized his voice and stopped; and when the Bear came, his rough coatsuddenly fell off, and he stood up a tall man, dressed entirely in gold. “Iam a king's son, ”he said , “AndI was condemned by the wicked Dwarf , who stole all my treasures, to wanderabout in this forest, in the form of a bear, till his death released me. Nowhe has received his well deserved punishment. ”
　　Then they went home, and Snow-White was married to theprince, and Rose-Red to his brother, with whom they shared the immensetreasure which the Dwarf had collected. The old mother also lived for manyyears happily with her two children, and the rose trees which had stood beforethe cottage were planted now before the palace, and produced every yearbeautiful red and white rosses.
　　　　红玫瑰与白玫瑰
　　从前有个贫穷的寡妇，她和两个女儿一起住在一间小茅屋里.那两个女儿就像她们家门前两株玫瑰花树上开的花一样，所以她们一个叫白玫瑰，另一个叫红玫瑰.但她们也像世界上其他的孩子一样，孝顺，善良，勤劳而又和善，只是白玫瑰比红玫瑰更娴静，更温柔.因为红玫瑰常常在草原上又跑又跳，采花捕蝶，而白玫瑰总是在家帮助妈妈做家务，或者，如果没有其它事情做时，她就读书给妈妈听.两个孩子极为相亲相爱，一起外出时，总是手牵着手，当她们谈到未来时，她们约定将来彼此永不分开，而且大家分享彼此的所有.她们常常深入森林采摘野生浆果，但是从来没有野兽会来伤害她们，因为野兔会从她们的手中吃花椰菜，小鹿会在她们身边吃草，山羊会在她们前后欢乐地跳跃，而在她们附近的树枝上，小鸟们会像旁若无人似地欢唱.她们从来没有遇到过任何意外事故.如果她们在森林里玩得太晚了，当夜幕低垂时，她们就会躺在青苔上，一觉睡到天亮.她们的母亲知道她们会在森林里安睡，所以对她们一点也不感到担忧.
　　有一次，红玫瑰和白玫瑰就像这样在森林中过了一夜，当她们在黎明醒来时，发现靠近她们睡的地方，坐着一个身穿闪闪发亮白衣裳的美丽小孩.接着她站了起来，和霭地看看她们就一言不发地走进了森林，事后，她们发现，她们睡觉的地方紧靠着一个大坑，如果那天晚上她们在黑暗中只要再向前跨出一步，就一定会跌进坑里.她们的妈妈告诉她们，那小人无疑是保护小孩的善良的天使.
　　白玫瑰和红玫瑰每天都把妈妈的小屋打扫得非常干净，使人一走进小屋，就感到愉快.夏季里，每天早晨红玫瑰所做的第一件事就是打扫房间，然后她会给妈妈采集一束花，在花束中间，总有从门前的那两株玫瑰树上分别摘下来一红一白的两朵玫瑰花苞.冬天时，每日清晨白玫瑰就会把火生起来，然后放上水壶烧水.虽然水壶是铜制的，但是它却闪耀如金，这是因为水壶总是擦得很亮.到了晚上，当雪片纷飞时，母亲就会说，“白玫瑰，去把门闩上.”然后，她们全家坐在壁炉前，妈妈会戴起眼镜，念一册大书中的故事，这时小姑娘们就在一边坐着纺纱.在她们的身旁还躺着一头小羊羔，并且在她们后面的栖木上，一只小白鸽把头藏在翅膀下，安然入睡了.
　　一天晚上，正当她们像这样舒适地坐在一起时，忽然传来了敲门声，好像有人想要进来.“赶快，红玫瑰. ”妈妈大声说道，“快开门，门外可能有个旅客想找地方过夜.”于是，红玫瑰就去取下门闩，把门打开.她原来指望门外是个可怜人，但是把黑黑的头伸进来的，却是一头又大又胖的大黑熊.
　　红玫瑰惊叫起来，赶紧逃回屋里.小羊羔也咩咩地叫，小白鸽在栖木上吓得直拍翅膀，白玫瑰则把自己藏在妈妈的床后.这时大熊却口吐人言，说道：“别怕，我不会伤害你们的.但是我几乎冻僵了，只是希望进来暖暖身子.”
　　“可怜的熊呀，”妈妈叫道，“快进来躺在炉火前，不过可要小心，别把自己的毛皮烤焦了.”然后，她继续说道，“红玫瑰，白玫瑰，快到这边来，大熊不会伤害你们的，他很规矩.”就这样，红玫瑰和白玫瑰都回到了火炉旁.渐渐地，小羊羔和白鸽也克服了害怕心理，欢迎那位粗鲁的不速之客.
　　在他要进门之前，大熊说，“孩子们，快来把我外衣上的雪拍掉.”于是她们拿起扫帚，把大熊身上的雪扫干净.随后，大熊在火炉前伸了伸腿，一边哼声表示很满意，没多久，孩子们就跟大熊混熟了，并且熟得和这头温顺的野兽开起玩笑来.她们拉拉他那长长毛茸茸的毛皮，踩在他的背上，把他翻来翻去，甚至胆敢用榛木棍来打他.当大熊哼叫抱怨时，她们就大笑.
　　大熊脾气很好地忍受了她们的玩笑.如果她们打得太重了一些，大熊就喊道：
　　“孩子们，红玫瑰，白玫瑰，快饶命，
　　否则你们会永远嫁不出去.”
　　在睡觉时刻到了，大家都去睡觉后，妈妈就对大熊说，“如果你愿意的话，你可以睡在火炉前，这样你就安稳地不会受到寒冷和恶劣天气的苦了.”
　　天一亮，两个小孩放大熊出了门，大熊也就从雪地上很快地跑开了，从此以后，大熊每天晚上定时归来，他总是躺在壁炉前，让孩子们尽情地和他玩耍，渐渐地，她们变得很习惯于他了，所以每天总要等到她们的黑朋友回来后，才把大门闩上.
　　当春天一来临，门外大地又绿时，一天早晨，大熊告诉白玫瑰说，他必须告辞了.而且整个夏天都不能回来，“亲爱的大熊，那么你会去哪儿呢？”白玫瑰问道.“我必须去森林中看守我的金银财宝，防备那可恶的小矮人来偷.”因为在冬天，地面是硬梆梆的，小矮人只得呆在洞里，弄不穿地面搞鬼.现在太阳已将泥土解冻，把泥土晒得暖暖的，小矮人就能钻穿地面，凡找得到的东西，他们都会偷，而且无论什么东西，一到他们手中被他们藏进他们的山洞之后，再要找回来就很困难了.”看到大熊要离去，白玫瑰感到非常伤心，很勉强地把门打开.当大熊挤出大门时，在门闩上留下了他那毛外衣的一小片.通过那外衣上被钩破的小洞，白玫瑰似乎看见里面有金子在闪亮，但她不能肯定，是不是.大熊一出门就急急忙忙地跑开了，很快消失在树林中.
　　过了些时，母亲叫孩子们去森林里拾柴.在拾柴时，她们发现林中小径上横着一棵倒下的大树，大树的树干上似乎有什么东西在跳上跳下.但她们想像不出那是什么东西. 当他们走近后才发现，那是一个满脸绉纹的小矮人，但是他那雪白的胡须却有一码长.他的胡子的一端被树缝夹住了，使他只能像一条被锁链锁住的狗一样跳上跳下，不知如何才能使自己得以脱身.他用他大红暴戾的眼睛瞪了瞪小姑娘，并且吼道，“你们站在那儿干什么？难道你们不打算帮我一把想一走了之了吗？“小人儿，发生了什么事情？红玫瑰问道.“你这只张着嘴的笨鹅，”他喊道.“我原是要劈开这棵树，捡拾点厨房用的柴，因为我们所用的小柴是一大捆一大捆地烧，很快就烧完了.那一捆捆的柴，可不像你们粗野贪婪的人所吞食的东西哟!我本来已经好好地把楔敲进了树干，一切进行得很顺利，就在那时滑溜的木头向上跳了起来，裂缝顿时合拢了，以致我漂亮的胡子来不及躲开，就这样夹住了.我也在这里动弹不得. 喂，别笑呀，你们这两个白脸蛋的东西，你们还发甚么呆呀？
　　两个姑娘拼命用力，想把小老头的胡子从夹缝里拔出来，但是没有成功，最后，红玫瑰说，“我跑回去找些帮手吧!”“你这个昏了头的傻瓜，”小矮人骂道，“对我来说，你们两人已太多了，你为什么还要叫别人？难道你们就想不出别的办法了吗？”
　　“别不耐烦，”白玫瑰回答说，“我想出了个办法.”说着，她从她口袋里拿出一把剪刀，一下子就把胡子末端剪断了.小矮人一获得自由就抓起放在树根旁装满了黄金的麻袋，把它一摔地背上了后背，一边走，一边喃喃地抱怨，“笨蛋，把我漂亮的胡子也剪断了!但愿你发瘟!”他连看也不看救了他的小姑娘们就扬长而去.
　　又过了些时，白玫瑰和红玫瑰去池边钓鱼.当她们走近池塘时，看见有样东西，很像只大蝗虫，在池边跳来跳去，好像要跳入池中似的.她们跑上前才认出，又是那个小矮人.“你要干什么？”红玫瑰问道，“你这样会掉进池子里去的.”“我才不那么笨蛋. ”小矮人答道，“难道你没有看见，那条鱼正想把我拉进水里吗？原来，小矮人在钓鱼.不幸的是，风把他的胡子和钓鱼的线绞地一起了.一条大鱼上钓后，小矮人的力量不够，不能把鱼拖出水面，而鱼却占了上风.小矮人抓住长在附近的芦苇和灯蕊草，但仍然没有用，大鱼想把他拉向哪里就拉到哪里，如果两个姑娘没有及时来到，小矮人很快就会被拖入池中.幸好是，两个小姑娘赶来了. 她们想把小矮人的胡子跟钓鱼线分开，但是它们缠绕得太紧了，没法解开.于是，小姑娘再一次拿出了剪刀，又剪下了小矮人的一撮胡子.小矮人一看到胡子又被剪了，勃然大怒，喊道，“你这个笨驴!你们就这样把我的脸弄得不成形了.你们剪了一次还不够吗？难道你们非把我最漂亮的一束胡子剪去才甘心？现在我已经不敢在我的同类前露脸了.我多么希望你们在到这里之前已经把鞋底跑穿了!”他一边叫嚷，一边就把在灯蕊草中间的一袋珍珠拾了起来，什么别的话也没说就溜了，接着就在岩石后面消失了.这次惊险之后没过几天，碰巧母亲又派她们到邻近的小镇子上去买些针线，别针，花边缎带等.到那小镇的路上要经过一片公用地.公用地上到处可看到一些大岩石.在她们的头上，他们看到有只好大的鸟在盘旋，而且不时地俯冲，越飞越低，最后那鸟往下飞到一块岩石后面.紧接着，她们听到了一声尖锐的叫声.
　　她们惊恐万状地跑近一看，原来老鹰抓住了她们的老相识——小矮人，而且正要腾空而去.充满同情心的小姑娘，马上就抓住了小矮人，紧紧地抱住了他，一直到老鹰扭不过而放弃飞走为止.小矮人刚从惊恐中恢复过来，就尖声尖气地叫喊道，“难道你们就不能轻一点抓我吗？你们这样抓住我那件讲究的棕色大衣，把它撕得千疮百孔.你们真是一对多管闲事的废物!说完这席话，他扛起了一袋装满宝石的口袋，溜进了岩石中的洞穴.
　　现在，姑娘们对小矮人不知感激的表现已习以为常.所以，她们还是继续往城里去买东西.在回家的路上，她们又走过了同一块公用地.不知不觉中，她们来到了一处比较洁净的地方，在那里，小矮人倒出了自己的一袋宝石，当时它还以为附近没有人.阳光普照着，在阳光下，宝石发出各种光彩，使得两位姑娘也不禁驻足观赏起来.
　　“你们瞪大了眼睛站在那里呆看什么？小矮人问道，他的脸色因发怒而涨得像赤铜般的通红.他继续斥责着那两个可怜的姑娘，这时她们听到了一声响亮吼叫，不久，一头大黑熊像滚球似地冲出了森林.小矮人吓得跳了起来，但是，他已无退路，大熊追上了他，因此，他大喊道，“饶了我吧，熊大爷!我愿意把我所有的财宝都给你，你看这儿的这些漂亮的宝石.只要你饶命. 像我这样一个软弱的小家伙，你又有什么好害怕的？你不要用你的大牙齿来咬我，那里有两个坏孩子，把她们吃了可真是一顿美餐，她们像嫩鹌鹑一样的肥.看在老天的份上，把她们吃了吧!”
　　但是那头熊连说也懒得说，就用他的前掌给了那坏心肠的小矮人一巴掌.于是小矮人永远再也动弹不了.
　　那时，姑娘们正想要逃跑，但是大熊在后面叫住了她们，“白玫瑰，红玫瑰，别害怕.等一下，我会来陪伴你们. ”她们听出了他的声音，停住脚步.大熊走到跟前，突然间他的粗毛皮外衣脱落下来了，他竟然是一位穿着金衣身材高大的年青人.“我是位王子，”他说，“我受到那个偷我财宝坏矮人的诅咒，把我变成一头熊，在森林里到处流浪，一直到他死后我才能恢复人形，现在他已恶贯满盈，罪有应得.”
　　于是，他们就一起回家.白玫瑰和王子结了婚，而红玫瑰则嫁给了王子的弟弟.他们共同享受小矮人收集的巨额财富，她们的老母亲也和两个女儿一起幸福地生活了许多年.原先生长在她们茅屋前的两株玫瑰树，现在已经移植到了王宫前，每年都长满了美丽的红玫瑰和白玫瑰.
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