"Oh, how beautiful, how grand, how noble he is! How came such a lordly bird to have for a cousin so homely3 a creature as I?"
But the Crow would answer, trying to comfort his friend, "Yes, he is gorgeous. But listen, what a harsh and disagreeable voice he has! And see how vain he is. I would not be so vain had I so scandalous a tale in my family history."
Then the Crow told the Peacock's cousin how his proud relative came to have so unmusical a voice.
When Adam and Eve were living peacefully in their fair garden, while Satan was still seeking in vain a way to enter there, the Peacock was the most beautiful of all the companions who surrounded the happy pair. His plumage shone like pearl and emerald, and his voice was so melodious4 that he was selected to sing the Lord's praises every day in the streets of heaven. But he was then, as now, very, very vain; and Satan, prowling about outside the wall of Paradise, saw this.
"Aha!" he said to himself, "here is the vainest creature in all the world. He is the one I must flatter in order to win entrance to the garden, where I am to work my mischief5. Let me approach the Peacock."
"O most wonderful and beautiful bird! Are you one of the birds of Paradise?"
"Yes, I am one of the dwellers7 in the happy garden," answered the Peacock, strutting. "But who are you who slink about so secretly, as if afraid of some one?"
"I am one of the cherubim who are appointed to sing the Lord's praises," answered the wicked Satan. "I have stopped for a moment to visit the Paradise which He has prepared for the blest, and I find as my first glimpse of its glories you, O most lovely bird! Will you conceal8 me under your rainbow wings and bring me within the walls?"
"I dare not," answered the Peacock. "The Lord allows none to enter here. He will be angry and will punish me."
"O charming bird!" went on Satan with his smooth tongue, "take me with you, and I will teach you three mysterious words which shall preserve you forever from sickness, age, and death."
At this promise the Peacock was greatly tempted9 and began to hesitate in his refusals. And at last he said,—
"I dare not myself let you in, O stranger, but if you keep your promise I will send the Serpent, who is wiser than I and who may more easily find some way to let you enter unobserved."
So it was through the Peacock that Satan met the vile11 Serpent, whose shape he assumed in order to enter the garden and tempt10 Eve with the apple. And for the Peacock's share in the doings of that dreadful day the Lord took away his beautiful voice and sent him forth12 from the pleasant garden to chatter13 harshly in this workaday world, where his gorgeousness and his vanity are but a reminder14 to men of the shame which he brought upon their ancestors.
"And therefore," said the Crow, concluding his gossip, "therefore, dear Pheasant, I see no reason why we should envy your cousin. We are very plain citizens of Birdland, but we are at least respectable. I like you much better, having nothing to make you vain, nothing of which to be ashamed."
So the Crow spoke15, in the wisdom which he had learned from Solomon. But the Peacock's cousin refused to be comforted. The shabbiness of his coat preyed16 upon his mind, and he fancied that the other birds jeered17 at him because in such old clothes he dared to be the Peacock's cousin. It seemed to him that every day the Peacock himself grew more haughty18 and more patronizing.
One day the Crow and the Peacock's cousin were sauntering through the Malay woods when they met the Peacock face to face. The Crow looked defiant19 and stood jauntily20; but the Pheasant tried to shrink out of sight. The Peacock, however, had spied his poor relative, and was filled with cousinly resentment21 at his appearance.
He stopped short. He stood upon one leg. He puffed22 and ruffled23 himself, spreading out his thousand-eyed tail so that its colors flashed wonderfully in the sunshine. He frilled his neck feathers and snapped his mean little eyes maliciously24; then turning his back on the shabby couple said, as he stepped airily away,—
"Ah, I have dropped some of my old feathers back there a little way. You can have them if you like, Pheasant. They will freshen you up a bit; you really are looking shockingly seedy. But for mercy's sake don't wear them in my presence! I can't bear to see any one parading in my cast-off elegance25." Then the Peacock minced26 away.
The Peacock's cousin stamped on the ground and flapped his wings with rage. If he had been a girl he would have burst into tears. "I cannot stand this," he cried. "To be treated as if I were a beggar! To be given old clothes to wear! Crow, Crow, if you were any kind of friend you would help me. But you stand staring there and see me insulted, without turning a feather! What is the use of all your wisdom that you learned from King Solomon if you cannot help a friend in need? I tell you, I must have some better garments, or I shall die of mortification27."
"Don't be excited," said the Crow soothingly28. "I have been thinking the matter over, and I believe I can do something. Listen. Yesterday I found brushes and a box of colors in a room of the King's palace. They belonged to the Court Painter. Now they belong to me, for I have hidden them away in a hollow tree where no one else can find them. I thought they might be useful, and I think so still."
"Well, well! What do you propose to do with paints and brushes?" cried the Peacock's cousin impatiently.
"Oh, you dear Crow!" exclaimed the other, clapping his wings. "You will make me brilliant and beautiful! You will make me worthy31 of the Peacock, will you not? How clever of you to think of such a thing!"
"Yes," replied the Crow; "I watched the Court Painter at work in the garden one day, and I know how it is done. I will make you as gorgeous as you wish. But you must return the compliment. If you are to be an ornament32 of fashion, so must I be; for are we not inseparable cronies? And when you become beautiful it would not do for you to be seen with such a dowdy33 as I am."
"You dear creature!" said the Peacock's cousin affectionately; "of course we will share alike. I will paint you as soon as I see how you succeed with me. Ah, I know your skill in everything. You will be a fine artist, my friend! But come, let us get to work at once."
So the flattered Crow led him to the hollow tree where he had concealed34 the brushes and the gilding35 and the India ink, and all the gorgeous changeable tints36 which an Eastern artist uses in his paintings. "Here we are," said the Crow. "Now let us see what we shall see, when Master Crow turns painter."
The Crow set to work with a will, splashing on the colors generously, gold and green and bronze iridescence37. He had the Peacock in mind, and though he did not exactly copy the plumage of that wonderful bird, he managed to suggest the cousinship of the Pheasant in the golden eyes of his long and beautiful tail. When he had finished, the Crow was delighted with his work.
"Ah!" he cried. "Now bend over this fountain, my dear friend, and observe yourself. I think you do credit to my skill as an artist, eh?"
The Peacock's cousin hurried down to the water-pool, all in a flutter of excitement. And when he saw his image he cried, "How beautiful, how truly beautiful, I am! Why, I am quite as handsome as Peacock himself. Surely, now he need not be ashamed to call me cousin. I shall move in the most fashionable circles. Heavens! Look at my lovely tail! Look at my burnished38 feathers! I must go immediately and show my new dress to Cousin Peacock. I should not be surprised if he became jealous of my gorgeousness." And off he started as fast as he could go.
"Hold on!" cried the Crow. "Don't run away so quickly. You have forgotten something. Don't you remember that you promised to paint me beautiful like yourself?"
"Oh, bother!" answered the ungrateful friend, tossing his head. "I have no time now for such business. I must hasten to my cousin, for this is a matter of family pride. Run along like a good creature; and by the way, you may as well gather the feathers which Peacock mentioned. I am sure they will make you look quite respectable. Besides, I will give you some of mine when I have worn them a little. Ta-ta!" And he stepped airily away.
But the Crow strode after him, shaking his wings and crying, "Come back, come back and perform your part of the bargain, you selfish, ungrateful creature!" And he caught the Pheasant by one of his long tail-feathers.
"Let go my train, impertinent wretch39!" shrieked40 the Peacock's cousin, turning upon him fiercely. "I tell you I have no time to spend in such nonsense. I must be presenting myself in high society."
"Villain41!" croaked42 the Crow, and he rushed forward fiercely, intending to tear out the beautiful feathers which he had painted for his ungrateful friend. Thereupon the Pheasant exclaimed,—
"You want to be painted, do you? Well, take that!" and, seizing the bottle of India ink which was in the Eastern artist's paint-box, he hurled43 it at the poor Crow, deluging44 with blackness his spotless feathers. Then laughing harshly, away he flew to his cousin the Peacock, who received him with proud affection, because they were now really birds of a feather. For the Peacock's cousin was become one of the most beautiful birds in the world.
But the poor Crow was now a sombre, black bird, wearing the seedy-looking, inky coat which we know so well to-day. His heart was broken by his friend's faithlessness, and he became a sour cynic who can see no good in anything. He flies about crying "Caw! Caw!" in the most disagreeable, sarcastic45 tone, as if sneering46 at the mean action of that Malay bird, which he can never forget.
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1
strutting
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| 加固，支撑物 | |
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enviously
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| adv.满怀嫉妒地 | |
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homely
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| adj.家常的，简朴的；不漂亮的 | |
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melodious
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| adj.旋律美妙的，调子优美的，音乐性的 | |
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mischief
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| n.损害，伤害，危害；恶作剧，捣蛋，胡闹 | |
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6
wheedling
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| v.骗取（某物），哄骗（某人干某事）( wheedle的现在分词 ) | |
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7
dwellers
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| n.居民，居住者( dweller的名词复数 ) | |
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conceal
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| v.隐藏，隐瞒，隐蔽 | |
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tempted
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| v.怂恿（某人）干不正当的事；冒…的险（tempt的过去分词） | |
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10
tempt
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| vt.引诱，勾引，吸引，引起…的兴趣 | |
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vile
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| adj.卑鄙的，可耻的，邪恶的；坏透的 | |
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forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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chatter
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| vi.／n.喋喋不休；短促尖叫；(牙齿)打战 | |
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reminder
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| n.提醒物，纪念品；暗示，提示 | |
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spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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preyed
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| v.掠食( prey的过去式和过去分词 )；掠食；折磨；（人）靠欺诈为生 | |
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17
jeered
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| v.嘲笑( jeer的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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haughty
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| adj.傲慢的，高傲的 | |
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defiant
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| adj.无礼的，挑战的 | |
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jauntily
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| adv.心满意足地；洋洋得意地；高兴地；活泼地 | |
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resentment
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| n.怨愤，忿恨 | |
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puffed
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| adj.疏松的v.使喷出( puff的过去式和过去分词 )；喷着汽（或烟）移动；吹嘘；吹捧 | |
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23
ruffled
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| adj. 有褶饰边的, 起皱的 动词ruffle的过去式和过去分词 | |
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maliciously
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| adv.有敌意地 | |
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elegance
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| n.优雅；优美，雅致；精致，巧妙 | |
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26
minced
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| v.切碎( mince的过去式和过去分词 )；剁碎；绞碎；用绞肉机绞（食物，尤指肉） | |
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27
mortification
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| n.耻辱，屈辱 | |
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soothingly
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| adv.抚慰地，安慰地；镇痛地 | |
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varnish
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| n.清漆；v.上清漆；粉饰 | |
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gild
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| vt.给…镀金，把…漆成金色，使呈金色 | |
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worthy
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| adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的 | |
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ornament
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| v.装饰，美化；n.装饰，装饰物 | |
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dowdy
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| adj.不整洁的；过旧的 | |
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concealed
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| a.隐藏的，隐蔽的 | |
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gilding
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| n.贴金箔，镀金 | |
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36
tints
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| 色彩( tint的名词复数 )； 带白的颜色； （淡色）染发剂； 痕迹 | |
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iridescence
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| n.彩虹色；放光彩；晕色；晕彩 | |
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38
burnished
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| adj.抛光的，光亮的v.擦亮（金属等），磨光( burnish的过去式和过去分词 )；被擦亮，磨光 | |
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wretch
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| n.可怜的人，不幸的人；卑鄙的人 | |
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shrieked
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| v.尖叫( shriek的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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41
villain
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| n.反派演员，反面人物；恶棍；问题的起因 | |
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42
croaked
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| v.呱呱地叫( croak的过去式和过去分词 )；用粗的声音说 | |
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43
hurled
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| v.猛投，用力掷( hurl的过去式和过去分词 )；大声叫骂 | |
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44
deluging
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| v.使淹没( deluge的现在分词 )；淹没；被洪水般涌来的事物所淹没；穷于应付 | |
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45
sarcastic
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| adj.讥讽的，讽刺的，嘲弄的 | |
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46
sneering
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| 嘲笑的，轻蔑的 | |
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