Tales of Wonder I Wonder

 Once on a time there was a man who had three sons—Peter, Paul, and the least of all, whom they called Youngling. I can't say the man had anything more than these three sons, for he hadn't one penny to rub against another; and he told the lads, over and over again, that they must go out into the world and try to earn their bread, for at home there was nothing to be looked for but starving to death.

 

Now near by the man's cottage was the King's palace, and, you must know, just against the windows a great oak had sprung up, which was so stout¹ and tall that it took away all the light. The King had said he would give untold² treasure to the man who could fell the oak, but no one was man enough for that, for as soon as one chip of the oak's trunk flew off, two grew in its stead.

 

A well, too, the King desired, which was to hold water for the whole year; for all his neighbours had wells, but he hadn't any, and that he thought a shame. So the King said he would give both money and goods to anyone who could dig him such a well as would hold water for a whole year round, but no one could do it, for the palace lay high, high up on a hill, and they could only dig a few inches before they came upon the living rock.

 

But, as the King had set his heart on having these two things done, he had it given out far and wide, in all the churches of his dominion³, that he who could fell the big oak in the King's courtyard, and get him a well that would hold water the whole year round, should have the Princess and half the kingdom.

 

Well! you may easily know there was many a man who came to try his luck; but all their hacking⁵ and hewing⁷, all their digging and delving⁸, were of no avail. The oak grew taller and stouter⁹ at every stroke, and the rock grew no softer.

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So one day the three brothers thought they'd set off and try, too, and their father hadn't a word against it; for, even if they didn't get the Princess and half the kingdom, it might happen that they would get a place somewhere with a good master, and that was all he wanted. So when the brothers said they thought of going to the palace, their father said "Yes" at once, and Peter, Paul, and Youngling went off from their home.

 

They had not gone far before they came to a fir-wood, and up along one side of it rose a steep hillside, and as they went they heard something hewing and hacking away up on the hill among the trees.

 

"I wonder now what it is that is hewing away up yonder?" said Youngling.

 

"You are always so clever with your wonderings," said Peter and Paul, both at once. "What wonder is it, pray, that a wood-cutter should stand and hack⁴ up on a hillside?"

 

"Still, I'd like to see what it is, after all," said Youngling, and up he went.

 

"Oh, if you're such a child, 't will do you good to go and take a lesson," cried out his brothers after him.

 

But Youngling didn't care for what they said; he climbed the steep hillside toward where the noise came, and when he reached the place, what do you think he saw?

 

Why, an axe¹⁰ that stood there hacking and hewing, all of itself, at the trunk of a fir.

 

"Good day," said Youngling. "So you stand here all alone and hew⁶, do you?"

 

"Yes, here I've stood and hewed¹¹ and hacked¹² a long, long time, waiting for you, my lad," said the Axe.

 

"Well, here I am at last," said Youngling, as he took the Axe, pulled it off its haft, and stuffed both head and haft into his wallet.

 

So when he climbed down again to his brothers, they began to jeer¹³ and laugh at him.

 

"And now, what funny thing was it you saw up yonder on the hillside?" they said.

 

"Oh, it was only an axe we heard," said Youngling.

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When they had gone a bit farther, they came under a steep spur of rock, and up above they heard something digging and shovelling¹⁴.

 

"I wonder, now," said Youngling, "what it is digging and shovelling up yonder at the top of the rock?"

 

"Ah, you're always so clever with your wonderings," said Peter and Paul again; "as if you'd never heard a woodpecker hacking and pecking at a hollow tree."

 

"Well, well," said Youngling, "I think it would be a piece of fun just to see what it really is."

 

And so off he set to climb the rock, while the others laughed and made game of him. But he didn't care a bit for that; up he clambered, and when he got near the top, what do you think he saw? Why, a spade that stood there digging and delving.

 

"Good day," said Youngling. "So you stand here all alone, and dig and delve¹⁵?"

 

"Yes, that's what I do," said the Spade, "and that's what I've done this many a long day, waiting for you, my lad."

 

"Well, here I am," said Youngling again, as he took the Spade and knocked off its handle, and put it into his wallet; and then he climbed down again to his brothers.

 

"Well, what was it, so strange and rare," said Peter and Paul, "that you saw up there at the top of the rock?"

 

"Oh," said Youngling, "nothing more than a spade; that was what we heard."

 

So they went on again a good bit, till they came to a brook¹⁶. They were thirsty all three, after their long walk, and so they lay down beside the brook to have a drink.

 

"I have a great fancy to see where this brook comes from," said Youngling.

 

So up alongside the brook he went, in spite of all that his brothers shouted after him. Nothing could stop him. On he went. And as he went up and up, the brook grew smaller and smaller, and at last, a little way farther on, what do you think he saw? Why, a great walnut¹⁷, and out of that the water trickled¹⁹.

 

"Good day," said Youngling again. "So you lie here and trickle¹⁸, and run down all alone?"

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"Yes, I do," said the Walnut "and here have I trickled and run this many a long day, waiting for you, my lad."

 

"Well, here I am," said Youngling, as he took a lump of moss²⁰ and plugged up the hole, so that the water mightn't run out. Then he put the Walnut into his wallet, and ran down to his brothers.

 

"Well, now," said Peter and Paul, "have you found out where the water comes from? A rare sight it must have been!"

 

"Oh, after all, it was only a hole it ran out of," said Youngling, and the others laughed and made game of him again, but Youngling didn't mind that a bit.

 

So when they had gone a little farther, they came to the King's palace; but as every man in the kingdom had heard that he might win the Princess and half the realm, if he could only fell the big oak and dig the King's well, so many had come to try their luck that the oak was now twice as stout and big as it had been at first, for you will remember that two chips grew for every one they hewed out with their axes.

 

So the King had now laid it down as a punishment that if anyone tried and couldn't fell the oak, he should be put on a barren island, and both his ears were to be clipped off. But the two brothers didn't let themselves be frightened by this threat; they were quite sure they could fell the oak, and Peter, as he was the eldest²¹, was to try his hand first; but it went with him as with all the rest who had hewn at the oak: for every chip he cut two grew in its place. So the King's men seized him, and clipped off both his ears, and put him out on the island.

 

Now Paul was to try his luck, but he fared just the same! When he had hewn two or three strokes, they began to see the oak grow, and so the King's men seized him, too, and clipped his ears, and put him out on the island; and his ears they clipped closer, because they said he ought to have taken a lesson from his brother.

 

So now Youngling was to try.

 

"If you want to look like a marked sheep, we're quite ready to clip your ears at once, and then you'll save yourself some

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trouble," said the King, for he was angry with him for his brothers' sake.

 

"Well, I'd just like to try first," said Youngling, and so he got leave. Then he took his Axe out of his wallet and fitted it to its handle.

 

"Hew away!" said he to his Axe, and away it hewed, making the chips fly again, so that it wasn't long before down came the oak.

 

When that was done, Youngling pulled out his Spade and fitted it to its handle.

 

"Dig away!" said he to his Spade, and so the Spade began to dig and delve till the earth and rock flew out in splinters, and he soon had the well deep enough, you may believe.

 

And when he had got it as big and deep as he chose, Youngling took out his Walnut and laid it in one corner of the well, and pulled the plug of moss out.

 

"Trickle and run," said Youngling, and so the Nut trickled and ran till the water gushed²² out of the hole in a stream, and in a short time the well was brimful.

 

So as Youngling had felled the oak which shaded the King's palace, and dug a well in the palace-yard, he got the Princess and half the kingdom, as the King had said; but it was lucky for Peter and Paul that they had lost their ears, else they might have grown tired of hearing how everyone said each hour of the day:

 

"Well, after all, Youngling wasn't so much out of his mind when he took to wondering."

2 untold   

adj.数不清的，无数的

参考例句：

• She has done untold damage to our chances.她给我们的机遇造成了不可估量的损害。
• They suffered untold terrors in the dark and huddled together for comfort.他们遭受着黑暗中的难以言传的种种恐怖，因而只好挤在一堆互相壮胆。

3 dominion   

n.统治，管辖，支配权；领土，版图

参考例句：

• Alexander held dominion over a vast area.亚历山大曾统治过辽阔的地域。
• In the affluent society,the authorities are hardly forced to justify their dominion.在富裕社会里，当局几乎无需证明其统治之合理。

4 hack   

n.劈，砍，出租马车；v.劈，砍，干咳

参考例句：

• He made a hack at the log.他朝圆木上砍了一下。
• Early settlers had to hack out a clearing in the forest where they could grow crops.早期移民不得不在森林里劈出空地种庄稼。

5 hacking   

n.非法访问计算机系统和数据库的活动

参考例句：

• The patient with emphysema is hacking all day. 这个肺气肿病人整天不断地干咳。
• We undertook the task of hacking our way through the jungle. 我们负责在丛林中开路。

6 hew   

v.砍；伐；削

参考例句：

• Hew a path through the underbrush.在灌木丛中砍出一条小路。
• Plant a sapling as tall as yourself and hew it off when it is two times high of you.种一棵与自己身高一样的树苗，长到比自己高两倍时砍掉它。

7 hewing   

v.（用斧、刀等）砍、劈( hew的现在分词 )；砍成；劈出；开辟

参考例句：

• The farmer spent a day in the woods hewing timber. 这个农夫花了一天时间在森林里砍木材。 来自辞典例句
• He was hewing away at the trunk of the tree. 他不停地照着树干砍去。 来自辞典例句

8 delving   

v.深入探究，钻研( delve的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He has been delving into the American literature of 20th century. 他一直在潜心研究美国20世纪文学。 来自互联网
• In some ways studying Beckett is like delving into Shakespeare's words. 在某些方面，研究Beckett的戯好像是深入研究莎士比亚的语句。 来自互联网

9 stouter   

粗壮的( stout的比较级 )； 结实的； 坚固的； 坚定的

参考例句：

• Freddie was much stouter, more benevolent-looking, cheerful, and far more dandified. 弗烈特显得更魁伟，更善良、更快活，尤其更像花花公子。 来自教父部分
• Why hadn't she thought of putting on stouter shoes last night? 她昨天晚上怎么没想起换上一双硬些的鞋呢？

10 axe   

n.斧子；v.用斧头砍，削减

参考例句：

• Be careful with that sharp axe.那把斧子很锋利，你要当心。
• The edge of this axe has turned.这把斧子卷了刃了。

11 hewed   

v.（用斧、刀等）砍、劈( hew的过去式和过去分词 )；砍成；劈出；开辟

参考例句：

• He hewed a canoe out of a tree trunk. 他把一根树干凿成独木舟。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He hewed out an important position for himself in the company. 他在公司中为自己闯出了要职。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

12 hacked   

生气

参考例句：

• I hacked the dead branches off. 我把枯树枝砍掉了。
• I'm really hacked off. 我真是很恼火。

13 jeer   

vi.嘲弄，揶揄；vt.奚落；n.嘲笑，讥评

参考例句：

• Do not jeer at the mistakes or misfortunes of others.不要嘲笑别人的错误或不幸。
• The children liked to jeer at the awkward students.孩子们喜欢嘲笑笨拙的学生。

14 shovelling   

v.铲子( shovel的现在分词 )；锹；推土机、挖土机等的)铲；铲形部份

参考例句：

• The workers are shovelling the sand. 工人们正在铲沙子。 来自辞典例句
• They were shovelling coal up. 他们在铲煤。 来自辞典例句

15 delve   

v.深入探究，钻研

参考例句：

• We should not delve too deeply into this painful matter.我们不应该过分深究这件痛苦的事。
• We need to delve more deeply into these questions.这些是我们想进一步了解的。

16 brook   

n.小河，溪；v.忍受，容让

参考例句：

• In our room we could hear the murmur of a distant brook.在我们房间能听到远处小溪汩汩的流水声。
• The brook trickled through the valley.小溪涓涓流过峡谷。

17 walnut   

n.胡桃，胡桃木，胡桃色，茶色

参考例句：

• Walnut is a local specialty here.核桃是此地的土特产。
• The stool comes in several sizes in walnut or mahogany.凳子有几种尺寸，材质分胡桃木和红木两种。

18 trickle   

vi.淌，滴，流出，慢慢移动，逐渐消散

参考例句：

• The stream has thinned down to a mere trickle.这条小河变成细流了。
• The flood of cars has now slowed to a trickle.汹涌的车流现在已经变得稀稀拉拉。

19 trickled   

v.滴( trickle的过去式和过去分词 )；淌；使)慢慢走；缓慢移动

参考例句：

• Blood trickled down his face. 血从他脸上一滴滴流下来。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The tears trickled down her cheeks. 热泪一滴滴从她脸颊上滚下来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

20 moss   

n.苔，藓，地衣

参考例句：

• Moss grows on a rock.苔藓生在石头上。
• He was found asleep on a pillow of leaves and moss.有人看见他枕着树叶和苔藓睡着了。

21 eldest   

adj.最年长的，最年老的

参考例句：

• The King's eldest son is the heir to the throne.国王的长子是王位的继承人。
• The castle and the land are entailed on the eldest son.城堡和土地限定由长子继承。

22 gushed   

v.喷，涌( gush的过去式和过去分词 )；滔滔不绝地说话

参考例句：

• Oil gushed from the well. 石油从井口喷了出来。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Clear water gushed into the irrigational channel. 清澈的水涌进了灌溉渠道。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》