THE CRYSTAL PALACE

Many, many years ago there lived in the village of Zurdorf, a queer little old woman. She was a very kind old lady and a good nurse. Often she was called upon to care for the boys and girls of the village.

They quite enjoyed being ill because she knew so many interesting stories. She told them of great knights¹ and ladies, of castles and fairies, of the wood nymphs and the water sprites; but best of all was the story of old Father Rhine.

One night as she sat knitting, a knock came at the cottage door. She opened it and there stood a strange man, carrying a lantern of curious pattern. He did not speak, but motioned to her to follow him.

The night was dark, and the rain was[8] pouring down in torrents². Great pools were found in the streets. Aunt Margot, as the children called the old lady, hesitated to follow the stranger. It was not, however, because she was afraid of the storm, but because the man was a stranger.

He motioned to her again. She saw that his face was kindly³, and so decided⁴ to follow him. Down the dark street they passed, splashing through the deep pools of water.

Suddenly the water became deeper, and began to eddy⁵ about Margot’s ankles. She became frightened and was about to turn and flee.

“I can go no farther,” she shouted; “what manner of man art thou, and whither wouldst thou lead me?”

The old man did not answer, but caught Margot in his arms and plunged⁶ into the river Rhine. It had risen from its banks, and its eddying⁷ waters had frightened Margot.

Down, down, through cold green waters[9] they sank. It seemed to Margot as if she were going down forever. She closed her eyes and ceased to struggle.

At last they seemed to have passed out of the water, and Margot opened her eyes. She found herself in a wonderful crystal palace. Precious stones glittered all about her. The ornaments⁸ were of silver and gold. As soon as she had recovered from her wonder, she was led into an immense chamber⁹. Here on a bed of crystal, with silken coverings, lay a beautiful golden haired nymph, who was ill.

“I have brought you here,” said the old man, “to care for my beautiful wife. Nurse her tenderly back to health, and you shall never regret it.”

The lovely nymph was so good to look upon that old Margot took great delight in caring for her. She tended her so gently and so faithfully that the golden haired lady improved rapidly. She was soon quite well.

In soft whispers she told the old nurse[10] that her husband was a mighty¹⁰ water spirit. Mortals called him Father Rhine. She had lived on the earth and was the only daughter of the Lord of Rheidt.

One day when she was at a village dance, there appeared before her a strange man. He was clad in foamy¹¹ green. He asked her to tread a measure with him. Round and round they whirled until they reached the water edge. Suddenly he plunged with her into the stream, and brought her to the crystal palace, where he made her his happy wife.

“And now, kind nurse, we must soon part,” said the beautiful lady. “When Father Rhine offers to reward you, accept from him only your usual fee, no matter how much he urges you to take more. He loves honesty, but loathes¹² greed.”

Just then Father Rhine appeared. Seeing his beloved wife quite well again, the river god beckoned¹³ to the nurse to follow him. He led her through many halls of the great castle. Finally they came to his[11] treasure chamber. Here all around lay great heaps of gold, silver, and precious stones.

The water god was very grateful to the good nurse for saving his wife; so he bade her help herself. The old woman gazed upon the jewels longingly¹⁴. How well she could use them to help the poor! She remembered, however, what the beautiful golden haired lady had told her. So she selected only a small fee such as she always received. The mysterious man urged her to take more, but she firmly refused.

Then the great water god took her by the hand and led her through a long dark corridor. Suddenly she found herself again in the cold water of the Rhine. Slowly he rose with her through the dark flood. Up and up they went until she found herself, dripping but safe, on the shore near her own house. As he beckoned adieu to her, Father Rhine flung a whole handful of gold into her lap. Then[12] he plunged into the river again and was gone.

Ever since that time the little people of the village have loved to hear of the wonders of the crystal palace beneath the flood. So the good nurse tells it over and over again. And she never forgets to show the handful of gold which, she says, is the same Father Rhine gave her.

1 knights   

骑士； （中古时代的）武士( knight的名词复数 )； 骑士； 爵士； （国际象棋中）马

参考例句：

• stories of knights and fair maidens 关于骑士和美女的故事
• He wove a fascinating tale of knights in shining armour. 他编了一个穿着明亮盔甲的骑士的迷人故事。

2 torrents   

n.倾注；奔流( torrent的名词复数 )；急流；爆发；连续不断

参考例句：

• The torrents scoured out a channel down the hill side. 急流沿着山腰冲刷出一条水沟。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Sudden rainstorms would bring the mountain torrents rushing down. 突然的暴雨会使山洪暴发。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

3 kindly   

adj.和蔼的，温和的，爽快的；adv.温和地，亲切地

参考例句：

• Her neighbours spoke of her as kindly and hospitable.她的邻居都说她和蔼可亲、热情好客。
• A shadow passed over the kindly face of the old woman.一道阴影掠过老太太慈祥的面孔。

4 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

5 eddy   

n.漩涡，涡流

参考例句：

• The motor car disappeared in eddy of dust.汽车在一片扬尘的涡流中不见了。
• In Taylor's picture,the eddy is the basic element of turbulence.在泰勒的描述里，旋涡是湍流的基本要素。

6 plunged   

v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降

参考例句：

• The train derailed and plunged into the river. 火车脱轨栽进了河里。
• She lost her balance and plunged 100 feet to her death. 她没有站稳，从100英尺的高处跌下摔死了。

7 eddying   

涡流，涡流的形成

参考例句：

• The Rhine flowed on, swirling and eddying, at six or seven miles an hour. 莱茵河不断以每小时六、七哩的速度，滔滔滚流，波涛起伏。

8 ornaments   

n.装饰( ornament的名词复数 )；点缀；装饰品；首饰v.装饰，点缀，美化( ornament的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The shelves were chock-a-block with ornaments. 架子上堆满了装饰品。
• Playing the piano sets up resonance in those glass ornaments. 一弹钢琴那些玻璃饰物就会产生共振。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 chamber   

n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所

参考例句：

• For many,the dentist's surgery remains a torture chamber.对许多人来说，牙医的治疗室一直是间受刑室。
• The chamber was ablaze with light.会议厅里灯火辉煌。

10 mighty   

adj.强有力的；巨大的

参考例句：

• A mighty force was about to break loose.一股巨大的力量即将迸发而出。
• The mighty iceberg came into view.巨大的冰山出现在眼前。

11 foamy   

adj.全是泡沫的，泡沫的，起泡沫的

参考例句：

• In Internet foamy 2001, so hard when, everybody stayed. 在互联网泡沫的2001年，那么艰难的时候，大家都留下来了。 来自互联网
• It's foamy milk that you add to the coffee. 将牛奶打出泡沫后加入咖啡中。 来自互联网

12 loathes   

v.憎恨，厌恶( loathe的第三人称单数 )；极不喜欢

参考例句：

• He loathes the sight of crabs. 他看到蟹就恶心。 来自辞典例句
• Loathes this continually air all to bring the false society. 厌恶这连空气都带着虚伪的社会。 来自互联网

13 beckoned   

v.（用头或手的动作）示意，召唤( beckon的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He beckoned to the waiter to bring the bill. 他招手示意服务生把账单送过来。
• The seated figure in the corner beckoned me over. 那个坐在角落里的人向我招手让我过去。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 longingly   

adv. 渴望地 热望地

参考例句：

• He looked longingly at the food on the table. 他眼巴巴地盯着桌上的食物。
• Over drinks,he speaks longingly of his trip to Latin America. 他带着留恋的心情，一边喝酒一边叙述他的拉丁美洲之行。