英语有声儿童童话故事 海的女儿 第18章

She grew more and more to likehuman beings and wished more and more to be able to wander about with thosewhose world seemed to be so much larger than her own. They could fly over the seain ships and mount the high hills which were far above the clouds; and thelands they possessed, their woods and their fields, stretched far away beyondthe reach of her sight. There was so much that she wished to know! but hersisters were unable to answer all her questions. She then went to her oldgrandmother, who knew all about the upper world, which she rightly called “thelands above the sea.”

“If human beings are notdrowned,” asked the little mermaid, “can they live forever? Do they never die,as we do here in the sea?”

“Yes,” replied the old lady,“they must also die, and their term of life is even shorter than ours. Wesometimes live for three hundred years, but when we cease to exist here, webecome only foam on the surface of the water and have not even a grave amongthose we love. We have not immortal souls, we shall never live again; like thegreen seaweed when once it has been cut off, we can never flourish more. Humanbeings, on the contrary, have souls which live forever, even after the body hasbeen turned to dust. They rise up through the clear, pure air, beyond theglittering stars. As we rise out of the water and behold all the land of theearth, so do they rise to unknown and glorious regions which we shall neversee.”

英语有声儿童童话故事 海的女儿 第17章

Now that the little mermaid knewwhere the prince lived, she spent many an evening and many a night on the waternear the palace. She would swim much nearer the shore than any of the othershad ventured, and once she went up the narrow channel under the marble balcony,which threw a broad shadow on the water. Here she sat and watched the youngprince, who thought himself alone in the bright moonlight.

She often saw him evenings,sailing in a beautiful boat on which music sounded and flags waved. She peepedout from among the green rushes, and if the wind caught her long silvery-whiteveil, those who saw it believed it to be a swan, spreading out its wings.

英语有声儿童童话故事 海的女儿 第16章

It was her only comfort to sit inher own little garden and fling her arm around the beautiful marble statue,which was like the prince. She gave up tending her flowers, and they grew inwild confusion over the paths, twining their long leaves and stems round thebranches of the trees so that the whole place became dark and gloomy.

At length she could bear it nolonger and told one of her sisters all about it. Then the others heard thesecret, and very soon it became known to several mermaids, one of whom had anintimate friend who happened to know about the prince. She had also seen thefestival on board ship, and she told them where the prince came from and wherehis palace stood.

有声英语儿童童话故事 海的女儿 第15章

It was not long before she saw ayoung girl approach the spot where the prince lay. She seemed frightened atfirst, but only for a moment; then she brought a number of people, and themermaid saw that the prince came to life again and smiled upon those who stoodabout him. But to her he sent no smile; he knew not that she had saved him.This made her very sorrowful, and when he was led away into the great building,she dived down into the water and returned to her father’s castle.

有声英语儿童童话故事 海的女儿 第14章

In the morning the storm hadceased, but of the ship not a single fragment could be seen. The sun came upred and shining out of the water, and its beams brought back the hue of healthto the prince’s cheeks, but his eyes remained closed. The mermaid kissed hishigh, smooth forehead and stroked back his wet hair. He seemed to her like themarble statue in her little garden, so she kissed him again and wished that hemight live.

Presently they came in sight of land, and she saw lofty bluemountains on which the white snow rested as if a flock of swans were lying uponthem. Beautiful green forests were near the shore, and close by stood a largebuilding, whether a church or a convent she could not tell. /ˈɒrɪndʒ/and citron trees grew in the garden, and before the door stood lofty palms. Thesea here formed a little bay, in which the water lay quiet and still, but verydeep. She swam with the handsome prince to the beach, which was covered withfine white sand, and there she laid him in the warm sunshine, taking care toraise his head higher than his body. Then bells sounded in the large whitebuilding, and some young girls came into the garden. The little mermaid swamout farther from the shore and hid herself among some high rocks that rose outof the water. Covering her head and neck with the foam of the sea, she watchedthere to see what would become of the poor prince.

有声英语儿童童话故事 海的女儿 第13章

The little mermaid now perceivedthat the crew were in danger; even she was obliged to be careful, to avoid thebeams and planks of the wreck which lay scattered on the water. At one momentit was pitch dark so that she could not see a single object, but when a flashof lightning came it revealed the whole scene; she could see every one who hadbeen on board except the prince. When the ship parted, she had seen him sinkinto the deep waves, and she was glad, for she thought he would now be withher. Then she remembered that human beings could not live in the water, so thatwhen he got down to her father’s palace he would certainly be quite dead.

有声英语儿童童话故事 海的女儿 第12章

It was very late, yet the little mermaid could not take her eyesfrom the ship or from the beautiful prince. The colored lanterns had beenextinguished, no more rockets rose in the air, and the cannon had ceasedfiring; but the sea became restless, and a moaning, grumbling sound could beheard beneath the waves. Still the little mermaid remained by the cabin window,rocking up and down on the water, so that she could look within. After a whilethe sails were quickly set, and the ship went on her way. But soon the wavesrose higher, heavy clouds darkened the sky, and lightning appeared in thedistance. A dreadful storm was approaching. Once more the sails were furled,and the great ship pursued her flying course over the raging sea. The wavesrose mountain high, as if they would /'əʊvə'tɒp/the mast, but the ship dived like a swan between them, then rose again on theirlofty, foaming crests. To the little mermaid this was pleasant sport; but notso to the sailors. At length the ship groaned and creaked; the thick planksgave way under the lashing of the sea, as the waves broke over the deck; themainmast snapped asunder like a reed, and as the ship lay over on her side, thewater rushed in.

有声英语儿童童话故事 海的女儿 第11章

The little mermaid swam close tothe cabin windows, and now and then, as the waves lifted her up, she could lookin through glass window-panes and see a number of gayly dressed people.

Among them, and the mostbeautiful of all, was a young prince with large, black eyes. He was sixteenyears of age, and his birthday was being celebrated with great display. Thesailors were dancing on deck, and when the prince came out of the cabin, morethan a hundred rockets rose in the air, making it as bright as day. The littlemermaid was so startled that she dived under water, and when she againstretched out her head, it looked as if all the stars of heaven were fallingaround her.

She had never seen such fireworksbefore. Great suns spurted fire about, splendid fireflies flew into the blueair, and everything was reflected in the clear, calm sea beneath. The shipitself was so brightly illuminated that all the people, and even the smallestrope, could be distinctly seen. How handsome the young prince looked, as hepressed the hands of all his guests and smiled at them, while the musicresounded through the clear night air!

有声英语儿童童话故事 海的女儿 第10章

“Well, now you are grown up,”said the old dowager, her grandmother. “Come, and let me adorn you like yoursisters.” And she placed in her hair a wreath of white lilies, of which everyflower leaf was half a pearl. Then the old lady ordered eight great oysters toattach themselves to the tail of the princess to show her high rank.

“But they hurt me so,” said thelittle mermaid.

“Yes, I know; pride must sufferpain,” replied the old lady.

Oh, how gladly she would haveshaken off all this grandeur and laid aside the heavy wreath! The red flowersin her own garden would have suited her much better. But she could not changeherself, so she said farewell and rose as lightly as a bubble to the surface ofthe water.

The sun had just set when sheraised her head above the waves. The clouds were tinted with crimson and gold,and through the glimmering twilight beamed the evening star in all its beauty.The sea was calm, and the air mild and fresh. A large ship with three masts laybecalmed on the water; only one sail was set, for not a breeze stirred, and thesailors sat idle on deck or amidst the rigging. There was music and song onboard, and as darkness came on, a hundred colored lanterns were lighted, as ifthe flags of all nations waved in the air.

有声英语儿童童话故事 海的女儿 第9章

Yet often, in the evening hours,the five sisters would twine their arms about each other and rise to thesurface together. Their voices were more charming than that of any human being,and before the approach of a storm, when they feared that a ship might be lost,they swam before the vessel, singing enchanting songs of the delights to befound in the depths of the sea and begging the voyagers not to fear if theysank to the bottom. But the sailors could not understand the song and thoughtit was the sighing of the storm. These things were never beautiful to them, forif the ship sank, the men were drowned and their dead bodies alone reached thepalace of the Sea King.

When the sisters rose, arm inarm, through the water, their youngest sister would stand quite alone, lookingafter them, ready to cry—only, since mermaids have no tears, she suffered moreacutely.

“Oh, were I but fifteen years old!”said she. “I know that I shall love the world up there, and all the people wholive in it.”

At last she reached her fifteenthyear.