有声英语儿童童话故事 海的女儿 第30章

Beautiful female slaves, dressedin silk and gold, stepped forward and sang before the prince and his royalparents. One sang better than all the others, and the prince clapped his handsand smiled at her. This was a great sorrow to the little mermaid, for she knewhow much more sweetly she herself once could sing, and she thought, “Oh, if hecould only know that I have given away my voice forever, to be with him!”

The slaves nextperformed some pretty fairy-like dances, to the sound of beautiful music. Thenthe little mermaid raised her lovely white arms, stood on the tips of her toes,glided over the floor, and danced as no one yet had been able to dance. At eachmoment her beauty was more revealed, and her expressive eyes appealed moredirectly to the heart than the songs of the slaves. Every one was enchanted,especially the prince, who called her his little foundling. She danced againquite readily, to please him, though each time her foot touched the floor itseemed as if she trod on sharp knives.