跳高者

The Flea, the Grasshopper, and the Skipjack once wanted to see which of them could jump highest; and they invited the whole world, and whoever else would come, to see the grand sight. And there the three famous jumpers were met together in the room。

有一次，跳蚤、蚱蜢和跳鵝(注：這是丹麥一種舊式的玩具，它是用一根鵝的胸骨做成的;加上一根木栓和一根線，再擦上一點(diǎn)蠟油，就可以使它跳躍。)想要知道它們之中誰(shuí)跳得最高。它們把所有的人和任何愿意來(lái)的人都請(qǐng)來(lái)參觀這個(gè)偉大的場(chǎng)面。它們這三位著名的跳高者就在一個(gè)房間里集合起來(lái)。

"Yes, I'll give my daughter to him who jumps highest," said the King, "for it would be mean to let these people jump for nothing."

"對(duì)啦，誰(shuí)跳得最高，我就把我的女兒嫁給誰(shuí)!"國(guó)王說(shuō)，"因?yàn)?，假如讓這些朋友白白地跳一陣子，那就未免太不像話了!"

The Flea stepped out first. He had very pretty manners, and bowed in all directions, for he had young ladies' blood in his veins, and was accustomed to consort only with human beings; and that was of great consequence。

跳蚤第一個(gè)出場(chǎng)。它的態(tài)度非常可愛(ài)：它向四周的人敬禮，因?yàn)樗眢w中流著年輕小姐的血液，習(xí)慣于跟人類混在一起，而這一點(diǎn)是非常重要的。

Then came the Grasshopper: he was certainly much heavier, but he had a good figure, and wore the green uniform that was born with him. This person, moreover, maintained that he belonged to a very old family in the land of Egypt, and that he was highly esteemed

there. He had just come from the field, he said, and had been put into a card house three stories high, and all made of picture cards with the figures turned inwards. There were doors and windows in the house, cut in the body of the Queen of Hearts。

接著蚱蜢就出場(chǎng)了，它的確很粗笨，但它的身體很好看。它穿著它那套天生的綠制服。此外，它的整個(gè)外表說(shuō)明它是出身于埃及的一個(gè)古老的家庭，因此它在這兒非常受到人們的尊敬。人們把它從田野里弄過(guò)來(lái)，放在一個(gè)用紙牌做的三層樓的房子里——這些紙牌有畫(huà)的一面都朝里。這房子有門也有窗，而且它們是從"美人"身中剪出來(lái)的。

"I sing so," he said, "that sixteen native crickets who have chirped

from their youth up, and have never yet had a card house of their own, would become thinner than they are with envy if they were to hear me."

"我唱得非常好，"它說(shuō)，"甚至16個(gè)本地產(chǎn)的蟋蟀從小時(shí)候開(kāi)始唱起，到現(xiàn)在還沒(méi)有獲得一間紙屋哩。它們聽(tīng)到我的情形就嫉妒得要命，把身體弄得比以前還要瘦了。"

Both of them, the Flea and the Grasshopper, took care to announce who they were, and that they considered themselves entitled to marry a Princess。

跳蚤和蚱蜢這兩位毫不含糊地說(shuō)明了它們是怎樣的人物。它們認(rèn)為它們有資格和一位公主結(jié)婚。

The Skipjack said nothing, but it was said of him that he thought all the more; and directly the Yard Dog had smelt at him he was ready to assert that the Skipjack was of good family, and formed from the breastbone of an undoubted goose. The old councillor, who had received three medals for holding his tongue, declared that the Skipjack possessed the gift of prophecy; one could tell by his bones whether there would be a severe winter or a mild one; and that's more than one can always tell from the breastbone of the man who writes the almanac。

跳鵝一句話也不說(shuō)。不過(guò)據(jù)說(shuō)它自己更覺(jué)得了不起。宮里的狗兒把它嗅了一下，很有把握地說(shuō)，跳鵝是來(lái)自一個(gè)上等的家庭。那位因?yàn)閺膩?lái)不講話而獲得了三個(gè)勛章的老顧問(wèn)官說(shuō)，他知道跳鵝有預(yù)見(jiàn)的天才：人們只須看看它的背脊骨就能預(yù)知冬天是溫和還是寒冷。這一點(diǎn)人們是沒(méi)有辦法從寫(xiě)歷書(shū)的人的背脊骨上看出來(lái)的。

"I shall not say anything more," said the old King. "I only go on quietly, and always think the best."

"好，我什么也不再講了!"老國(guó)王說(shuō)，"我只須在旁看看，我自己心中有數(shù)!"

Now they were to take their jump. The Flea sprang so high that no one could see him; and then they asserted that he had not jumped at all. That was very mean. The Grasshopper only sprang half as high, but he sprang straight into the King's face, and the King declared that was horribly rude. The Skipjack stood a long time considering; at last people thought that he could not jump at all。

現(xiàn)在它們要跳了。跳蚤跳得非常高，誰(shuí)也看不見(jiàn)它，因此大家就說(shuō)它完全沒(méi)有跳。這種說(shuō)法太不講道理。蚱蜢跳得沒(méi)有跳蚤一半高。不過(guò)它是向國(guó)王的臉上跳過(guò)來(lái)，因此國(guó)王就說(shuō)，這簡(jiǎn)直是可惡之至。跳鵝站著沉思了好一會(huì)兒;最后大家就認(rèn)為它完全不能跳。

"I only hope he's not become unwell," said the Yard Dog, and then he smelt at him again."

我希望它沒(méi)有生病!"宮里的狗兒說(shuō)，然后它又在跳鵝身上嗅了一下。

"Tap!" he sprang with a little crooked jump just into the lap of the Princess, who sat on a low golden stool. Then the King said, "The highest leap was taken by him who jumped up to my daughter; for therein lies the point; but it requires head to achieve that, and the Skipjack has shown that he has a head."

"噓!"它笨拙地一跳，就跳到公主的膝上去了。她坐在一個(gè)矮矮的金凳子上。國(guó)王說(shuō)："誰(shuí)跳到我的女兒身上去，誰(shuí)就要算是跳得最高的了，因?yàn)檫@就是跳高的目的。不過(guò)能想到這一點(diǎn)，倒是需要有點(diǎn)頭腦呢——跳鵝已經(jīng)顯示出它有頭腦。它的腿長(zhǎng)到額上去了!"

And so he had the Princess。

所以它就得到了公主。

"I jumped highest, after all," said the Flea. "But it's all the same. Let her have the goose-bone with its lump of wax and bit of stick. I jumped to the highest; but in this world a body is required if one wishes to be seen."

"不過(guò)我跳得最高!"跳蚤說(shuō)。"但是這一點(diǎn)用處也沒(méi)有!不過(guò)盡管她得到一架帶木栓和蠟油的鵝骨，我仍然要算跳得最高。但是在這個(gè)世界里，一個(gè)人如果想要使人看見(jiàn)的話，必須有身材才成。"

And the Flea went into foreign military service, where it is said he was killed。

跳蚤于是便投效一個(gè)外國(guó)兵團(tuán)。據(jù)說(shuō)它在當(dāng)兵時(shí)犧牲了。

The Grasshopper seated himself out in the ditch, and thought and considered how things happened in the world. And he too said, "Body is required! Body is required!" And then he sang his own melancholy song, and from that we have gathered this story, which they say is not true, though it's in print。

那只蚱蜢坐在田溝里，把這世界上的事情仔細(xì)思索了一番，不禁也說(shuō)："身材是需要的!身材是需要的!"于是它便唱起了它自己的哀歌。我們從它的歌中得到了這個(gè)故事——這個(gè)故事可能不是真的，雖然它已經(jīng)被印出來(lái)了。