漢賽爾與格萊特Hansel and Gretel

時(shí)間：2024-05-08 05:08:50 童話我要投稿

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　　引導(dǎo)語：關(guān)于格林兄弟的《漢賽爾與格萊特》童話故事，同學(xué)們學(xué)習(xí)過?這篇童話故事講述了主人公是一對(duì)兄妹，為樵夫的前妻所生，在后母的逼迫下，被父親拋棄。歡迎大家閱讀下文的中英文版本學(xué)習(xí)。

漢賽爾與格萊特Hansel and Gretel

　　漢賽爾與格萊特中文版：

　　在大森林的邊上，住著一個(gè)貧窮的樵夫，他妻子和兩個(gè)孩子與他相依為命。他的兒子名叫漢賽爾，女兒名叫格萊特。他們家里原本就缺吃少喝，而這一年正好遇上國內(nèi)物價(jià)飛漲，樵夫一家更是吃了上頓沒下頓，連每天的面包也無法保證。這天夜里，愁得輾轉(zhuǎn)難眠的樵夫躺在床上大傷腦筋，他又是嘆氣，又是呻吟。終于他對(duì)妻子說："咱們?cè)趺崔k哪!自己都沒有一點(diǎn)吃的，又拿什么去養(yǎng)咱們那可憐的孩子啊?"

　　"聽我說，孩子他爹，"他老婆回答道："明天大清早咱們就把孩子們帶到遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)的密林中去，在那兒給他們生一堆火，再給他們每人一小塊面包，然后咱們就假裝去干咱們的活，把他們單獨(dú)留在那兒。他們不認(rèn)識(shí)路，回不了家，咱們就不用再養(yǎng)他們啦。"

　　"不行啊，老婆，"樵夫說："我不能這么干啊。我怎么忍心把我的孩子丟在叢林里喂野獸呢!""哎，你這個(gè)笨蛋，"他老婆說，"不這樣的話，咱們四個(gè)全都得餓死!"接著她又嘰哩呱啦、沒完沒了地勸他，最后，他也就只好默許了。

　　那時(shí)兩個(gè)孩子正餓得無法入睡，正好聽見了繼母與父親的全部對(duì)話。聽見繼母對(duì)父親的建議，格萊特傷心地哭了起來，對(duì)漢賽爾說："這下咱倆可全完了。"

　　"別吱聲，格萊特，"漢賽爾安慰她說，"放心吧，我會(huì)有辦法的。"等兩個(gè)大人睡熟后，他便穿上小外衣，打開后門偷偷溜到了房外。這時(shí)月色正明，皎潔的月光照得房前空地上的那些白色小石子閃閃發(fā)光，就像是一塊塊銀幣。漢賽爾蹲下身，盡力在外衣口袋里塞滿白石子。然后他回屋對(duì)格萊特說："放心吧，小妹，只管好好睡覺就是了，上帝會(huì)與我們同在的。"說完，他回到了他的小床上睡覺。天剛破曉，太陽還未躍出地平線，那個(gè)女人就叫醒了兩個(gè)孩子，"快起來，快起來，你們這兩個(gè)懶蟲!"她嚷道，"我們要進(jìn)山砍柴去了。"說著，她給一個(gè)孩子一小塊面包，并告誡他們說："這是你們的午飯，可別提前吃掉了，因?yàn)槟銈冊(cè)僖脖孪氲玫饺魏螙|西了。"格萊特接過面包藏在她的圍裙底下，因?yàn)闈h賽爾的口袋里這時(shí)塞滿了白石子。隨后，他們?nèi)揖统诌M(jìn)發(fā)了。漢賽爾總是走一會(huì)兒便停下來回頭看看自己的家，走一會(huì)兒便停下來回頭看自己的家。他的父親見了便說："漢賽爾，你老是回頭瞅什么?專心走你的路。"

　　"哦，爸爸，"漢賽爾回答說："我在看我的白貓呢，他高高地蹲在屋頂上，想跟我說再見呢!""那不是你的小貓，小笨蛋，"繼母講，"那是早晨的陽光照在煙囪上。"其實(shí)漢賽爾并不是真的在看小貓，他是悄悄地把亮亮的白石子從口袋里掏出來，一粒一粒地丟在走過的路上。到了森林的深處，他們的父親對(duì)他們說："嗨，孩子們，去拾些柴火來，我給你們生一堆火。"漢賽爾和格萊特拾來許多枯枝，把它們堆得像小山一樣高。當(dāng)枯枝點(diǎn)著了，火焰升得老高后，繼母就對(duì)他們說："你們兩個(gè)躺到火堆邊上去吧，好好呆著，我和你爸爸到林子里砍柴。等一干完活，我們就來接你們回家。"

　　于是漢賽爾和格萊特坐在火堆旁邊，等他們的父母干完活再來接他們。到了中午時(shí)分，他們就吃掉了自己的那一小塊面包。因?yàn)橐恢蹦苈犚姼涌硺涞泥亍⑧芈暎麄兿嘈抛约旱母赣H就在近旁。其實(shí)他們聽見的根本就不是斧子發(fā)出的聲音，那是一根綁在一棵小樹上的枯枝，在風(fēng)的吹動(dòng)下撞在樹干上發(fā)出來的聲音。兄妹倆坐了好久好久，疲倦得上眼皮和下眼皮都打起架來了。沒多久，他們倆就呼呼睡著了。

　　等他們從夢中醒來時(shí)，已是漆黑的夜晚。格萊特害怕得哭了起來，說："這下咱們找不到出森林的路了!""別著急，"漢賽爾安慰她說，"等一會(huì)兒月亮出來了，咱們很快就會(huì)找到出森林的路。不久，當(dāng)一輪滿月升起來時(shí)，漢賽爾就拉著他妹妹的手，循著那些月光下像銀幣一樣在地上閃閃發(fā)光的白石子指引的路往前走。他們走了整整的一夜，在天剛破曉的時(shí)候回到了他們父親的家門口。他們敲敲門，來開門的是他們的繼母。她打開門一見是漢賽爾和格萊特，就說："你們?cè)趺丛谏掷锼诉@么久，我們還以為你們不想回家了吶!"看到孩子，父親喜出望外，因?yàn)槔淇岬貟仐墐蓚€(gè)孩子，他心中十分難受。

　　他們一家又在一起艱難地生活了。但時(shí)隔不久，又發(fā)生了全國性的饑荒。一天夜里，兩個(gè)孩子又聽見繼母對(duì)他們的父親說："哎呀!能吃的都吃光了，就剩這半個(gè)面包，你看以后可怎么辦啊?咱們還是得減輕負(fù)擔(dān)，必須把兩個(gè)孩子給扔了!這次咱們可以把他們帶進(jìn)更深、更遠(yuǎn)的森林中去，叫他們?cè)僖舱也坏铰坊貋怼Ｖ挥羞@樣才能挽救我們自己。"聽見妻子又說要拋棄孩子，樵夫心里十分難過。他心想，大家同甘共苦，共同分享最后一塊面包不是更好嗎?但是像天下所有的男人一樣，對(duì)一個(gè)女人說個(gè)"不"字那是太難太難了，樵夫也毫不例外。就像是"誰套上了籠頭，誰就必須得拉車"的道理一樣，樵夫既然對(duì)妻子作過第一次讓步，當(dāng)然就必然有第二次讓步了，他也就不再反對(duì)妻子的建議了。

　　然而，孩子們聽到了他們的全部談話。等父母都睡著后，漢賽爾又從床上爬了起來，想溜出門去，像上次那樣，到外邊去撿些小石子，但是這次他發(fā)現(xiàn)門讓繼母給鎖死了。但他心里又有了新的主意，他又安慰他的小妹妹說："別哭，格萊特，不用擔(dān)心，好好睡覺。上帝會(huì)幫助咱們的。"一大清早，繼母就把孩子們從床上揪了下來。她給了他們每人一塊面包，可是比上次那塊要小多了。在去森林的途中，漢賽爾在口袋里捏碎了他的面包，并不時(shí)地停下腳步，把碎面包屑撒在路上。"漢賽爾，你磨磨蹭蹭地在后面看什么?"他的父親見他老是落在后面就問他。

　　"我在看我的小鴿子，它正站在屋頂上咕咕咕地跟我說再見呢。"漢賽爾回答說。"你這個(gè)白癡，"他繼母叫道，"那不是你的鴿子，那是早晨的陽光照在煙囪上面。"但是漢賽爾還是在路上一點(diǎn)一點(diǎn)地撒下了他的面包屑。繼母領(lǐng)著他們走了很久很久，來到了一個(gè)他們從未到過的森林中。像上次一樣，又生起了一大堆火，繼母又對(duì)他們說："好好呆在這兒，孩子們，要是困了就睡一覺，我們要到遠(yuǎn)點(diǎn)的地方去砍柴，干完活我們就來接你們。"

　　到了中午，格萊特把她的面包與漢賽爾分來吃了，因?yàn)闈h賽爾的面包已經(jīng)撒在路上了。然后，他們倆又睡著了。一直到了半夜，仍然沒有人來接這兩個(gè)可憐的孩子，他們醒來已是一片漆黑。漢賽爾安慰他的妹妹說："等月亮一出來，我們就看得見我撒在地上的面包屑了，它一定會(huì)指給我們回家的路。"

　　但是當(dāng)月亮升起來時(shí)，他們?cè)诘厣蠀s怎么也找不到一點(diǎn)面包屑了，原來它們都被那些在樹林里、田野上飛來飛去的鳥兒一點(diǎn)點(diǎn)地啄食了。雖然漢賽爾也有些著急了，但他還是安慰妹妹說："我們一定能找到路的，格萊特。"但他們沒有能夠找到路，雖然他們走了一天一夜，可就是出不了森林。他們已經(jīng)餓得頭昏眼花，因?yàn)槌藦牡厣险业降膸最w草霉，他們沒吃什么東西。這時(shí)他們累得連腳都邁不動(dòng)了，倒在一顆樹下就睡著了。

　　這已是他們離開父親家的第三天早晨了，他們深陷叢林，已經(jīng)迷路了。如果再不能得到幫助，他們必死無疑。就在這時(shí)，他們看到了一只通體雪白的、極其美麗的鳥兒站在一根樹枝上引吭高歌，它唱得動(dòng)聽極了，他們兄妹倆不由自主地停了下來，聽它唱。它唱完了歌，就張開翅膀，飛到了他們的面前，好像示意他們跟它走。他們于是就跟著它往前走，一直走到了一幢小屋的前面，小鳥停到小屋的房頂上。他倆這時(shí)才發(fā)現(xiàn)小屋居然是用香噴噴的面包做的，房頂上是厚厚的蛋糕，窗戶卻是明亮的糖塊。"讓我們放開肚皮吧，"漢賽爾說："這下我們?cè)撁烂赖爻陨弦活D了。我要吃一小塊房頂，格萊特，你可以吃窗戶，它的味道肯定美極了、甜極了。"說著，漢賽爾爬上去掰了一小塊房頂下來，嘗著味道。格萊特卻站在窗前，用嘴去啃那個(gè)甜窗戶。這時(shí)，突然從屋子里傳出一個(gè)聲音：

　　"啃啊!啃啊!啃啊啃!

　　誰在啃我的小房子?"

　　孩子們回答道：

　　"是風(fēng)啊，是風(fēng)，

　　他們邊吃邊回答，一點(diǎn)也不受干擾。漢賽爾覺得房頂?shù)奈兜捞貏e美，便又拆下一大塊來;格萊特也干脆摳下一扇小圓窗，坐在地上慢慢享用。

　　突然，房子的門打開了，一個(gè)老婆婆拄著拐杖顫顫巍巍的走了出來。漢賽爾和格萊特嚇得雙腿打顫，拿在手里的食物也掉到了地上。

　　那個(gè)老婆婆晃著她顫顫巍巍的頭說："好孩子，是誰帶你們到這兒來的?來，跟我進(jìn)屋去吧，這兒沒人會(huì)傷害你們!"她說著就拉著兄妹倆的手，把他們領(lǐng)進(jìn)了她的小屋，并給他們準(zhǔn)備了一頓豐盛的晚餐，有牛奶、糖餅、蘋果，還有堅(jiān)果。等孩子們吃完了，她又給孩子們鋪了兩張白色的小床，漢賽爾和格萊特往床上一躺，馬上覺得是進(jìn)了天堂。其實(shí)這個(gè)老婆婆是笑里藏刀，她的友善只是偽裝給他們看的，她事實(shí)上是一個(gè)專門引誘孩子上當(dāng)?shù)男皭旱奈灼牛谴庇妹朗辰ㄔ斓姆孔泳褪菫榱俗尯⒆觽兟淙胨娜μ住Ｒ坏┠膫€(gè)孩子落入她的魔掌，她就殺死他，把他煮來吃掉。這個(gè)巫婆的紅眼睛視力不好，看不遠(yuǎn)，但是她的嗅覺卻像野獸一樣靈敏，老遠(yuǎn)老遠(yuǎn)她就能嗅到人的味道。漢賽爾和格萊特剛剛走近她的房子她就知道了，高興得一陣狂笑，然后就冷笑著打定了主意："我要牢牢地抓住他們，決不讓他們跑掉。"

　　第二天一早，還不等孩子們醒來，她就起床了。看著兩個(gè)小家伙那紅撲撲、圓滾滾的臉蛋，她忍不住口水直流："好一頓美餐吶!"說著便抓住漢賽爾的小胳膊，把他扛進(jìn)了一間小馬廄，并用柵欄把他鎖了起來。漢賽爾在里面大喊大叫，可是毫無用處。然后，老巫婆走過去把格萊特?fù)u醒，沖著她吼道："起來，懶丫頭!快去打水來替你哥哥煮點(diǎn)好吃的。他關(guān)在外面的馬廄里，我要把他養(yǎng)得白白胖胖的，然后吃掉他。"格萊特聽了傷心得大哭起來，可她還是不得不按照那個(gè)老巫婆的吩咐去干活。于是，漢賽爾每天都能吃到許多好吃的，而可憐的格萊特每天卻只有螃蟹殼吃。每天早晨，老巫婆都要顫顫巍巍的走到小馬廄去喊漢賽爾："漢賽爾，把你的手指頭伸出來，讓我摸摸你長胖了沒有!"可是漢賽爾每次都是伸給她一根啃過的小骨頭，老眼昏花的老巫婆，根本就看不清楚，她還真以為是漢賽爾的手指頭呢!她心里感到非常納悶，怎么漢賽爾還沒有長胖一點(diǎn)呢?

　　又過了四個(gè)星期，漢賽爾還是很瘦的樣子。老巫婆失去了耐心，便揚(yáng)言她不想再等了。"過來，格萊特，"她對(duì)小女孩吼道，"快點(diǎn)去打水來!管他是胖還是瘦，明天我一定要?dú)⑺罎h賽爾，把他煮來吃了。"可憐的小妹妹被逼著去打水來準(zhǔn)備煮她的哥哥，一路上她傷心萬分，眼淚順著臉頰一串一串地往下掉!"親愛的上帝，請(qǐng)幫幫我們吧!"她呼喊道，"還不如當(dāng)初在森林里就被野獸吃掉，那我們總還是死在一起的呵!"趁老巫婆離開一會(huì)兒，可憐的格萊特瞅準(zhǔn)機(jī)會(huì)跑到漢賽爾身邊，把她所聽到的一切都告訴他："我們要趕快逃跑，因?yàn)檫@個(gè)老太婆是個(gè)邪惡的巫婆，她要?dú)⑺牢覀兞ā?可是漢賽爾說："我知道怎么逃出去，因?yàn)槲乙呀?jīng)把插銷給搞開了。不過，你得首先去把她的魔杖和掛在她房間里的那根笛子偷來，這樣萬一她追來，我們就不怕她了。"等格萊特好不容易把魔杖和笛子都偷來之后，兩個(gè)孩子便逃跑了。這時(shí)，老巫婆走過來看她的美餐是否弄好了，發(fā)現(xiàn)兩個(gè)孩子卻不見了。雖說她的眼睛不好，可她還是從窗口看到了那兩個(gè)正在逃跑的孩子。

　　她勃然大怒，趕緊穿上她那雙一步就能走上幾碼遠(yuǎn)的靴子，不多一會(huì)就要趕上那兩個(gè)孩子了。格萊特眼看老巫婆就要追上他們了，便用她偷來的那根魔杖把漢賽爾變成了一個(gè)湖泊，而把她自己變成了一只在湖泊中游來游去的小天鵝。老巫婆來到湖邊，往湖里扔了些面包屑想騙那只小天鵝上當(dāng)。可是小天鵝就是不過來，最后老巫婆只好空著手回去了。見到老巫婆走了，格萊特便用那根魔杖又把自己和漢賽爾變回了原來的模樣。然后，他們又繼續(xù)趕路，一直走到天黑。很快，老巫婆又追了上來。這時(shí)，小姑娘把自己變成了山楂樹籬笆中的一朵玫瑰，于是漢賽爾便在這只玫瑰的旁邊坐了下來變成一位笛手。"吹笛子的好心人，"老巫婆說，"我可以摘下那朵漂亮的玫瑰花嗎?""哦，可以。"漢賽爾說。

　　于是，非常清楚那朵玫瑰是什么的老巫婆快步走向樹籬想飛快地摘下它。就在這時(shí)，漢賽爾拿出他的笛子，吹了起來。這是一根魔笛，誰聽了這笛聲都會(huì)不由自主地跳起舞來。所以那老巫婆不得不隨著笛聲一直不停地旋轉(zhuǎn)起來，再也摘不到那朵玫瑰了。漢賽爾就這樣不停地吹著，直吹到那些荊棘把巫婆的衣服掛破，并深深地刺到她的肉里，直刺得她哇哇亂叫。最后，老巫婆被那些荊棘給牢牢地纏住了。

　　這時(shí)，格萊特又恢復(fù)了自己的原形，和漢賽爾一塊兒往家走去。走了長長的一段路程之后，格萊特累壞了。于是他們便在靠近森林的草地上找到了一棵空心樹，就在樹洞里躺了下來。就在他們睡著的時(shí)候，那個(gè)好不容易從荊棘叢中脫身出來的老巫婆又追了上來。她一看到自己的魔杖，就得意地一把抓住它。然后，立刻把可憐的漢賽爾變成了一頭小鹿。

　　格萊特醒來之后，看到所發(fā)生的一切，傷心地?fù)涞侥穷^可憐的小動(dòng)物身上哭了起來。這時(shí)，淚水也從小鹿的眼睛里不停地往下流。格萊特說："放心吧，親愛的小鹿，我絕不會(huì)離開你。"說著，她就取下她那長長的金色項(xiàng)鏈戴到他的脖子上，然后又扯下一些燈芯草把它編成一條草繩，套住小鹿的脖子，無論她走到哪兒，她都把這頭可憐的小鹿帶在身邊。

　　終于，有一天他們來到了一個(gè)小屋前。格萊特看到這間小屋沒有人住，便說："我們就在這兒住下吧。"她采來了很多樹葉和青苔替小鹿鋪了一張柔軟的小床。每天早上，她便出去采摘一些堅(jiān)果和漿果來充饑，又替她的哥哥采來很多樹葉和青草。她把樹葉和青草放在自己的手中喂小鹿，而那頭小鹿就在她的身旁歡快地蹦來蹦去。到了晚上，格萊特累了，就會(huì)把頭枕在小鹿的身上睡覺。要是可憐的漢賽爾能夠恢復(fù)原形，那他們的生活該有多幸福啊!他們就這樣在森林里生活了許多年，這時(shí)，格萊特已經(jīng)長成了一個(gè)少女。有一天，剛好國王到這兒來打獵。當(dāng)小鹿聽到在森林中回蕩的號(hào)角聲、獵狗汪汪的叫聲以及獵人們的大喊聲時(shí)，忍不住想去看看是怎么回事。"哦，妹妹，"他說，"讓我到森林里去看看吧，我再也不能待在這兒了。"他不斷地懇求著，最后她只好同意讓他去了。

　　"可是，"她說，"一定要在天黑之前回來。我會(huì)把門關(guān)好不讓那些獵人們進(jìn)來。如果你敲門并說：妹妹，讓我進(jìn)來。我就知道是你回來了。如果你不說話，我就把門緊緊地關(guān)住。"于是小鹿便一蹦一跳地跑了出去。當(dāng)國王和他的獵人們看到這頭美麗的小鹿之后，便來追趕他，可是他們?cè)趺匆泊恢驗(yàn)楫?dāng)他們每次認(rèn)為自己快要抓住他時(shí)，他都會(huì)跳到樹叢中藏起來。天黑了下來，小鹿便跑回了小屋，他敲了敲門說："妹妹，讓我進(jìn)來吧!"于是格萊特便打開了門，他跳了進(jìn)來，在他那溫軟的床上美美地睡了一覺。

　　第二天早上，圍獵又開始了。小鹿一聽到獵人們的號(hào)角聲，他便說："妹妹，替我把門打開吧。我一定要出去。"國王和他的獵人們見到這頭小鹿，馬上又開始了圍捕。他們追了他一整天，最后終于把他給圍住了，其中一個(gè)獵人還射中了他的一條腳。他一瘸一拐地好不容易才逃回到了家中。那個(gè)射傷了他的獵人跟蹤著他，聽到了這頭小鹿說："妹妹，讓我進(jìn)來吧。"還看到了那扇門開了，小鹿進(jìn)去后很快又關(guān)上了。于是這個(gè)獵人就回去向國王稟報(bào)了他的所見所聞。國王說："那明天我們?cè)賴兑淮伟伞?

　　當(dāng)格萊特看到她那親愛的小鹿受傷了，感到非常害怕。不過，她還是替他把傷口清洗得干干凈凈，敷上了一些草藥。第二天早上，那傷口竟已經(jīng)復(fù)原了。當(dāng)號(hào)角再次吹響的時(shí)候，那小東西又說："我不能待在這兒，我必須出去看看。我會(huì)多加小心，不會(huì)讓他們抓住我的。"

　　可是格萊特說："我肯定他們這一次會(huì)殺死你的，我不讓你去。""如果你把我關(guān)在這兒的話，那我會(huì)遺憾而死。"他說。格萊特不得不讓他出去，她心情沉重地打開門，小鹿便又歡快地向林中奔去。

　　國王一看到小鹿，便大聲下令："你們今天一定要追到他，可你們誰也不許傷害他。"然而，太陽落山的時(shí)候，他們還是沒能抓住他。于是國王對(duì)那個(gè)曾經(jīng)跟蹤過小鹿的獵人說："那么現(xiàn)在領(lǐng)我去那個(gè)小屋吧。"

　　于是他們來到了小屋前，國王敲了敲門，并且說："妹妹，讓我進(jìn)來吧。"門兒打開之后，國王走了進(jìn)去，只見房子里站著一個(gè)他生平見過的最美麗的少女。

　　當(dāng)格萊特看到來者并非是她的小鹿而是一位戴著皇冠的國王時(shí)，感到非常害怕。可是國王非常友善地拉著她的手，并說："你愿意和我一起到我的城堡去，做我的妻子嗎?"

　　"是的，"格萊特說，"我可以和你一起去你的城堡，可是我不能成為你的妻子，因?yàn)槲业男÷贡仨毢臀以谝黄穑也荒芎退珠_。"

　　"那好吧，"國王說，"他可以和你一起去，永遠(yuǎn)都不離開你，并且他想要什么就會(huì)有什么。"

　　正在這時(shí)，小鹿跳了進(jìn)來。于是格萊特把草繩套在他的脖子上，他們便一起離開了小屋。

　　國王把小格萊特抱上他的高頭大馬之后，就朝著他的王宮跑去。那頭小鹿也歡快地跟在他們后面。一路上，格萊特告訴了國王有關(guān)她的一切，國王認(rèn)識(shí)那個(gè)老巫婆，便派人去把她叫來，命令她恢復(fù)小鹿的人形。當(dāng)格萊特看到他親愛的哥哥又恢復(fù)了原形，她非常感激國王，便欣然同意嫁給他。他們就這樣幸福地生活著，漢賽爾也成了國王的王宮大臣。

　　漢賽爾與格萊特英文版：

　　Near a great forest there lived a poor woodcutter and his wife, and his two children; the boys name was Hansel and the girls Grethel. They had very little to bite or to sup, and once, when there was great dearth in the land, the man could not even gain the daily bread. As he lay in bed one night thinking of this, and turning and tossing, he sighed heavily, and said to his wife, "What will become of us? we cannot even feed our children; there is nothing left for ourselves."

　　"I will tell you what, husband," answered the wife; "we will take the children early in the morning into the forest, where it is thickest; we will make them a fire, and we will give each of them a piece of bread, then we will go to our work and leave them alone; they will never find the way home again, and we shall be quit of them."

　　"No, wife," said the man, "I cannot do that; I cannot find in my heart to take my children into the forest and to leave them there alone; the wild animals would soon come and devour them." - "O you fool," said she, "then we will all four starve; you had better get the coffins ready," and she left him no peace until he consented. "But I really pity the poor children," said the man.

　　The two children had not been able to sleep for hunger, and had heard what their step-mother had said to their father. Grethel wept bitterly, and said to Hansel, "It is all over with us."

　　"Do be quiet, Grethel," said Hansel, "and do not fret; 1 will manage something." And when the parents had gone to sleep he got up, put on his little coat, opened the back door, and slipped out. The moon was shining brightly, and the white flints that lay in front of the house glistened like pieces of silver. Hansel stooped and filled the little pocket of his coat as full as it would hold. Then he went back again, and said to Grethel, "Be easy, dear little sister, and go to sleep quietly; God will not forsake us," and laid himself down again in his bed. When the day was breaking, and before the sun had risen, the wife came and awakened the two children, saying, "Get up, you lazy bones; we are going into the forest to cut wood." Then she gave each of them a piece of bread, and said, "That is for dinner, and you must not eat it before then, for you will get no more." Grethel carried the bread under her apron, for Hansel had his pockets full of the flints. Then they set off all together on their way to the forest. When they had gone a little way Hansel stood still and looked back towards the house, and this he did again and again, till his father said to him, "Hansel, what are you looking at? take care not to forget your legs."

　　"O father," said Hansel, "lam looking at my little white kitten, who is sitting up on the roof to bid me good-bye." - "You young fool," said the woman, "that is not your kitten, but the sunshine on the chimney-pot." Of course Hansel had not been looking at his kitten, but had been taking every now and then a flint from his pocket and dropping it on the road. When they reached the middle of the forest the father told the children to collect wood to make a fire to keep them, warm; and Hansel and Grethel gathered brushwood enough for a little mountain j and it was set on fire, and when the flame was burning quite high the wife said, "Now lie down by the fire and rest yourselves, you children, and we will go and cut wood; and when we are ready we will come and fetch you."

　　So Hansel and Grethel sat by the fire, and at noon they each ate their pieces of bread. They thought their father was in the wood all the time, as they seemed to hear the strokes of the axe: but really it was only a dry branch hanging to a withered tree that the wind moved to and fro. So when they had stayed there a long time their eyelids closed with weariness, and they fell fast asleep.

　　When at last they woke it was night, and Grethel began to cry, and said, "How shall we ever get out of this wood? "But Hansel comforted her, saying, "Wait a little while longer, until the moon rises, and then we can easily find the way home." And when the full moon got up Hansel took his little sister by the hand, and followed the way where the flint stones shone like silver, and showed them the road. They walked on the whole night through, and at the break of day they came to their fathers house. They knocked at the door, and when the wife opened it and saw that it was Hansel and Grethel she said, "You naughty children, why did you sleep so long in the wood? we thought you were never coming home again!" But the father was glad, for it had gone to his heart to leave them both in the woods alone.

　　Not very long after that there was again great scarcity in those parts, and the children heard their mother say at night in bed to their father, "Everything is finished up; we have only half a loaf, and after that the tale comes to an end. The children must be off; we will take them farther into the wood this time, so that they shall not be able to find the way back again; there is no other way to manage." The man felt sad at heart, and he thought, "It would better to share ones last morsel with ones children." But the wife would listen to nothing that he said, but scolded and reproached him. He who says A must say B too, and when a man has given in once he has to do it a second time.

　　But the children were not asleep, and had heard all the talk. When the parents had gone to sleep Hansel got up to go out and get more flint stones, as he did before, but the wife had locked the door, and Hansel could not get out; but he comforted his little sister, and said, "Dont cry, Grethel, and go to sleep quietly, and God will help us." Early the next morning the wife came and pulled the children out of bed. She gave them each a little piece of "bread -less than before; and on the way to the wood Hansel crumbled the bread in his pocket, and often stopped to throw a crumb on the ground. "Hansel, what are you stopping behind and staring for?" said the father.

　　"I am looking at my little pigeon sitting on the roof, to say good-bye to me," answered Hansel. "You fool," said the wife, "that is no pigeon, but the morning sun shining on the chimney pots." Hansel went on as before, and strewed bread crumbs all along the road. The woman led the children far into the wood, where they had never been before in all their lives. And again there was a large fire made, and the mother said, "Sit still there, you children, and when you are tired you can go to sleep; we are going into the forest to cut wood, and in the evening, when we are ready to go home we will come and fetch you."

　　So when noon came Grethel shared her bread with Hansel, who had strewed his along the road. Then they went to sleep, and the evening passed, and no one came for the poor children. When they awoke it was dark night, and Hansel comforted his little sister, and said, "Wait a little, Grethel, until the moon gets up, then we shall be able to see the way home by the crumbs of bread that I have scattered along it."

　　So when the moon rose they got up, but they could find no crumbs of bread, for the birds of the woods and of the fields had come and picked them up. Hansel thought they might find the way all the same, but they could not. They went on all that night, and the next day from the morning until the evening, but they could not find the way out of the wood, and they were very hungry, for they had nothing to eat but the few berries they could pick up. And when they were so tired that they could no longer drag themselves along, they lay down under a tree and fell asleep.

　　It was now the third morning since they had left their fathers house. They were always trying to get back to it, but instead of that they only found themselves farther in the wood, and if help had not soon come they would have been starved. About noon they saw a pretty snow-white bird sitting on a bough, and singing so sweetly that they stopped to listen. And when he had finished the bird spread his wings and flew before them, and they followed after him until they came to a little house, and the bird perched on the roof, and when they came nearer they saw that the house was built of bread, and roofed with cakes; and the window was of transparent sugar. "We will have some of this," said Hansel, "and make a fine meal. I will eat a piece of the roof, Grethel, and you can have some of the window-that will taste sweet." So Hansel reached up and broke off a bit of the roof, just to see how it tasted, and Grethel stood by the window and gnawed at it. Then they heard a thin voice call out from inside,

　　"Nibble, nibble, like a mouse,

　　Who is nibbling at my house?"

　　And the children answered,

　　"Never mind, It is the wind."

　　And they went on eating, never disturbing themselves. Hansel, who found that the roof tasted very nice, took down a great piece of it, and Grethel pulled out a large round window-pane, and sat her down and began upon it.

　　Then the door opened, and an aged woman came out, leaning upon a crutch. Hansel and Grethel felt very frightened, and let fall what they had in their hands. The old woman, however, nodded her head, and said, "Ah, my dear children, how come you here? you must come indoors and stay with me, you will be no trouble." So she took them each by the hand, and led them into her little house. And there they found a good meal laid out, of milk and pancakes, with sugar, apples, and nuts. After that she showed them two little white beds, and Hansel and Grethel laid themselves down on them, and thought they were in heaven.

　　The old woman, although her behaviour was so kind, was a wicked witch, who lay in wait for children, and had built the little house on purpose to entice them. When they were once inside she used to kill them, cook them, and eat them, and then it was a feast day with her. The witchs eyes were red, and she could not see very far, but she had a keen scent, like the beasts, and knew very well when human creatures were near. When she knew that Hansel and Grethel were coming, she gave a spiteful laugh, and said triumphantly, "I have them, and they shall not escape me!"

　　Early in the morning, before the children were awake, she got up to look at them, and as they lay sleeping so peacefully with round rosy cheeks, she said to herself, "What a fine feast I shall have!" Then she grasped Hansel with her withered hand, and led him into a little stable, and shut him up behind a grating; and call and scream as he might, it was no good. Then she went back to Grethel and shook her, crying, "Get up, lazy bones; fetch water, and cook something nice for your brother; he is outside in the stable, and must be fattened up. And when he is fat enough I will eat him." Grethel began to weep bitterly, but it was of no use, she had to do what the wicked witch bade her. And so the best kind of victuals was cooked for poor Hansel, while Grethel got nothing but crab-shells. Each morning the old woman visited the little stable, and cried, "Hansel, stretch out your finger, that I may tell if you will soon be fat enough." Hansel, however, used to hold out a little bone, and the old woman, who had weak eyes, could not see what it was, and supposing it to be Hansels finger, wondered very much that it was not getting fatter.

　　When four weeks had passed and Hansel seemed to remain so thin, she lost patience and could wait no longer. "Now then, Grethel," cried she to the little girl; "be quick and draw water; be Hansel fat or be he lean, tomorrow I must kill and cook him." Oh what a grief for the poor little sister to have to fetch water, and how the tears flowed down over her cheeks! "Dear God, pray help us!" cried she; "if we had been devoured by wild beasts in the wood at least we should have died together."

　　"Spare me your lamentations," said the old woman; "they are of no avail." Early next morning Grethel had to get up, make the fire, and fill the kettle. "First we will do the baking," said the old woman; "I nave heated the oven already, and kneaded the dough." She pushed poor Grethel towards the oven, out of which the flames were already shining.

　　"Creep in," said the witch, "and see if it is properly hot, so that the bread may be baked." And Grethel once in, she meant to shut the door upon her and let her be baked, and then she would have eaten her. But Grethel perceived her intention, and said, "I dont know how to do it: how shall I get in?"

　　"Stupid goose," said the old woman, "the opening is big enough, do you see? I could get in myself!" and she stooped down and put her head in the ovens mouth. Then Grethel gave her a push, so that she went in farther, and she shut the iron door upon her, and put up the bar. Oh how frightfully she howled! but Grethel ran away, and left the wicked witch to burn miserably.

　　Grethel went straight to Hansel, opened the stable-door, and cried, "Hansel, we are free! the old witch is dead!" Then out flew Hansel like a bird from its cage as soon as the door is opened. How rejoiced they both were! how they fell each on the others neck! and danced about, and kissed each other! And as they had nothing more to fear they went over all the old witchs house, and in every corner there stood chests of pearls and precious stones. "This is something better than flint stones," said Hansel, as he filled his pockets, and Grethel, thinking she also would like to carry something home with her, filled her apron full. i! Now, away we go," said Hansel, "if we only can get out of the witchs wood." When they had journeyed a few hours they came to a great piece of water. "We can never get across this," said Hansel, "I see no stepping-stones and no bridge."

　　"And there is no boat either," said Grethel; "but here comes a white duck; if I ask her she will help us over." So she cried,

　　"Duck, duck, here we stand,

　　Hansel and Grethel, on the land,

　　Stepping-stones and bridge we lack,

　　Carry us over on your nice white back."

　　And the duck came accordingly, and Hansel got upon her and told his sister to come too. "No," answered Grethel, "that would be too hard upon the duck; we can go separately, one after the other." And that was how it was managed, and after that they went on happily, until they came to the wood, and the way grew more and more familiar, till at last they saw in the distance their fathers house. Then they ran till they came up to it, rushed in at the door, and fell on their fathers neck. The man had not had a quiet hour since he left his children in the wood; but the wife was dead. And when Grethel opened her apron the pearls and precious stones were scattered all over the room, and Hansel took one handful after another out of his pocket. Then was all care at an end, and they lived in great joy together. My tale is done, there runs a mouse, whosoever catches it, may make himself a big fur cap out of it.

【漢賽爾與格萊特Hansel and Gretel】相關(guān)文章：