格林童话选 英文版 Grimms' Fairy Tales
格林兄弟 Brüder Grimm
ASHPUTTEL
The wife of a rich man fell sick; and when she felt that her end drewnigh, she called her only daughter to her bed-side, and said, 'Alwaysbe a good girl, and I will look down from heaven and watch over you.'Soon afterwards she shut her eyes and died, and was buried in thegarden; and the little girl went every day to her grave and wept, andwas always good and kind to all about her. And the snow fell andspread a beautiful white covering over the grave; but by the time thespring came, and the sun had melted it away again, her father hadmarried another wife. This new wife had two daughters of her own, thatshe brought home with her; they were fair in face but foul at heart,and it was now a sorry time for the poor little girl. 'What does thegood-for-nothing want in the parlour?' said they; 'they who would eatbread should first earn it; away with the kitchen-maid!' Then theytook away her fine clothes, and gave her an old grey frock to put on,and laughed at her, and turned her into the kitchen.
There she was forced to do hard work; to rise early before daylight,to bring the water, to make the fire, to cook and to wash. Besidesthat, the sisters plagued her in all sorts of ways, and laughed ather. In the evening when she was tired, she had no bed to lie down on,but was made to lie by the hearth among the ashes; and as this, ofcourse, made her always dusty and dirty, they called her Ashputtel.
It happened once that the father was going to the fair, and asked hiswife's daughters what he should bring them. 'Fine clothes,' said thefirst; 'Pearls and diamonds,' cried the second. 'Now, child,' said heto his own daughter, 'what will you have?' 'The first twig, dearfather, that brushes against your hat when you turn your face to comehomewards,' said she. Then he bought for the first two the fineclothes and pearls and diamonds they had asked for: and on his wayhome, as he rode through a green copse, a hazel twig brushed againsthim, and almost pushed off his hat: so he broke it off and brought itaway; and when he got home he gave it to his daughter. Then she tookit, and went to her mother's grave and planted it there; and cried somuch that it was watered with her tears; and there it grew and becamea fine tree. Three times every day she went to it and cried; and soona little bird came and built its nest upon the tree, and talked withher, and watched over her, and brought her whatever she wished for.
Now it happened that the king of that land held a feast, which was tolast three days; and out of those who came to it his son was to choosea bride for himself. Ashputtel's two sisters were asked to come; sothey called her up, and said, 'Now, comb our hair, brush our shoes,and tie our sashes for us, for we are going to dance at the king'sfeast.' Then she did as she was told; but when all was done she couldnot help crying, for she thought to herself, she should so have likedto have gone with them to the ball; and at last she begged her mothervery hard to let her go. 'You, Ashputtel!' said she; 'you who havenothing to wear, no clothes at all, and who cannot even dance--youwant to go to the ball? And when she kept on begging, she said atlast, to get rid of her, 'I will throw this dishful of peas into theash-heap, and if in two hours' time you have picked them all out, youshall go to the feast too.'
Then she threw the peas down among the ashes, but the little maidenran out at the back door into the garden, and cried out:
'Hither, hither, through the sky,Turtle-doves and linnets, fly!Blackbird, thrush, and chaffinch gay,Hither, hither, haste away!One and all come help me, quick!Haste ye, haste ye!--pick, pick, pick!'
Then first came two white doves, flying in at the kitchen window; nextcame two turtle-doves; and after them came all the little birds underheaven, chirping and fluttering in: and they flew down into the ashes.And the little doves stooped their heads down and set to work, pick,pick, pick; and then the others began to pick, pick, pick: and amongthem all they soon picked out all the good grain, and put it into adish but left the ashes. Long before the end of the hour the work wasquite done, and all flew out again at the windows.
Then Ashputtel brought the dish to her mother, overjoyed at thethought that now she should go to the ball. But the mother said, 'No,no! you slut, you have no clothes, and cannot dance; you shall notgo.' And when Ashputtel begged very hard to go, she said, 'If you canin one hour's time pick two of those dishes of peas out of the ashes,you shall go too.' And thus she thought she should at least get rid ofher. So she shook two dishes of peas into the ashes.
But the little maiden went out into the garden at the back of thehouse, and cried out as before:
'Hither, hither, through the sky,Turtle-doves and linnets, fly!Blackbird, thrush, and chaffinch gay,Hither, hither, haste away!One and all come help me, quick!Haste ye, haste ye!--pick, pick, pick!'
Then first came two white doves in at the kitchen window; next cametwo turtle-doves; and after them came all the little birds underheaven, chirping and hopping about. And they flew down into the ashes;and the little doves put their heads down and set to work, pick, pick,pick; and then the others began pick, pick, pick; and they put all thegood grain into the dishes, and left all the ashes. Before half anhour's time all was done, and out they flew again. And then Ashputteltook the dishes to her mother, rejoicing to think that she should nowgo to the ball. But her mother said, 'It is all of no use, you cannotgo; you have no clothes, and cannot dance, and you would only put usto shame': and off she went with her two daughters to the ball.
Now when all were gone, and nobody left at home, Ashputtel wentsorrowfully and sat down under the hazel-tree, and cried out:
'Shake, shake, hazel-tree,Gold and silver over me!'
Then her friend the bird flew out of the tree, and brought a gold andsilver dress for her, and slippers of spangled silk; and she put themon, and followed her sisters to the feast. But they did not know her,and thought it must be some strange princess, she looked so fine andbeautiful in her rich clothes; and they never once thought ofAshputtel, taking it for granted that she was safe at home in thedirt.
The king's son soon came up to her, and took her by the hand anddanced with her, and no one else: and he never left her hand; but whenanyone else came to ask her to dance, he said, 'This lady is dancingwith me.'
Thus they danced till a late hour of the night; and then she wanted togo home: and the king's son said, 'I shall go and take care of you toyour home'; for he wanted to see where the beautiful maiden lived. Butshe slipped away from him, unawares, and ran off towards home; and asthe prince followed her, she jumped up into the pigeon-house and shutthe door. Then he waited till her father came home, and told him thatthe unknown maiden, who had been at the feast, had hid herself in thepigeon-house. But when they had broken open the door they found no onewithin; and as they came back into the house, Ashputtel was lying, asshe always did, in her dirty frock by the ashes, and her dim littlelamp was burning in the chimney. For she had run as quickly as shecould through the pigeon-house and on to the hazel-tree, and had theretaken off her beautiful clothes, and put them beneath the tree, thatthe bird might carry them away, and had lain down again amid the ashesin her little grey frock.
The next day when the feast was again held, and her father, mother,and sisters were gone, Ashputtel went to the hazel-tree, and said:
'Shake, shake, hazel-tree,Gold and silver over me!'
And the bird came and brought a still finer dress than the one she hadworn the day before. And when she came in it to the ball, everyonewondered at her beauty: but the king's son, who was waiting for her,took her by the hand, and danced with her; and when anyone asked herto dance, he said as before, 'This lady is dancing with me.'
When night came she wanted to go home; and the king's son followedhere as before, that he might see into what house she went: but shesprang away from him all at once into the garden behind her father'shouse. In this garden stood a fine large pear-tree full of ripe fruit;and Ashputtel, not knowing where to hide herself, jumped up into itwithout being seen. Then the king's son lost sight of her, and couldnot find out where she was gone, but waited till her father came home,and said to him, 'The unknown lady who danced with me has slippedaway, and I think she must have sprung into the pear-tree.' The fatherthought to himself, 'Can it be Ashputtel?' So he had an axe brought;and they cut down the tree, but found no one upon it. And when theycame back into the kitchen, there lay Ashputtel among the ashes; forshe had slipped down on the other side of the tree, and carried herbeautiful clothes back to the bird at the hazel-tree, and then put onher little grey frock.
The third day, when her father and mother and sisters were gone, shewent again into the garden, and said:
'Shake, shake, hazel-tree,Gold and silver over me!'
Then her kind friend the bird brought a dress still finer than theformer one, and slippers which were all of gold: so that when she cameto the feast no one knew what to say, for wonder at her beauty: andthe king's son danced with nobody but her; and when anyone else askedher to dance, he said, 'This lady is /my/ partner, sir.'
When night came she wanted to go home; and the king's son would gowith her, and said to himself, 'I will not lose her this time'; but,however, she again slipped away from him, though in such a hurry thatshe dropped her left golden slipper upon the stairs.
The prince took the shoe, and went the next day to the king hisfather, and said, 'I will take for my wife the lady that this goldenslipper fits.' Then both the sisters were overjoyed to hear it; forthey had beautiful feet, and had no doubt that they could wear thegolden slipper. The eldest went first into the room where the slipperwas, and wanted to try it on, and the mother stood by. But her greattoe could not go into it, and the shoe was altogether much too smallfor her. Then the mother gave her a knife, and said, 'Never mind, cutit off; when you are queen you will not care about toes; you will notwant to walk.' So the silly girl cut off her great toe, and thussqueezed on the shoe, and went to the king's son. Then he took her forhis bride, and set her beside him on his horse, and rode away with herhomewards.
But on their way home they had to pass by the hazel-tree thatAshputtel had planted; and on the branch sat a little dove singing:
'Back again! back again! look to the shoe!The shoe is too small, and not made for you!Prince! prince! look again for thy bride,For she's not the true one that sits by thy side.'
Then the prince got down and looked at her foot; and he saw, by theblood that streamed from it, what a trick she had played him. So heturned his horse round, and brought the false bride back to her home,and said, 'This is not the right bride; let the other sister try andput on the slipper.' Then she went into the room and got her foot intothe shoe, all but the heel, which was too large. But her mothersqueezed it in till the blood came, and took her to the king's son:and he set her as his bride by his side on his horse, and rode awaywith her.
But when they came to the hazel-tree the little dove sat there still,and sang:
'Back again! back again! look to the shoe!The shoe is too small, and not made for you!Prince! prince! look again for thy bride,For she's not the true one that sits by thy side.'
Then he looked down, and saw that the blood streamed so much from theshoe, that her white stockings were quite red. So he turned his horseand brought her also back again. 'This is not the true bride,' said heto the father; 'have you no other daughters?' 'No,' said he; 'there isonly a little dirty Ashputtel here, the child of my first wife; I amsure she cannot be the bride.' The prince told him to send her. Butthe mother said, 'No, no, she is much too dirty; she will not dare toshow herself.' However, the prince would have her come; and she firstwashed her face and hands, and then went in and curtsied to him, andhe reached her the golden slipper. Then she took her clumsy shoe offher left foot, and put on the golden slipper; and it fitted her as ifit had been made for her. And when he drew near and looked at her facehe knew her, and said, 'This is the right bride.' But the mother andboth the sisters were frightened, and turned pale with anger as hetook Ashputtel on his horse, and rode away with her. And when theycame to the hazel-tree, the white dove sang:
'Home! home! look at the shoe!Princess! the shoe was made for you!Prince! prince! take home thy bride,For she is the true one that sits by thy side!'
And when the dove had done its song, it came flying, and perched uponher right shoulder, and so went home with her.