HAVE you ever seen a very old wooden cupboard, quite black with age, and ornamented1 with carved foliage2 and arabesques3? Just such a cupboard stood in a parlour: it had been a legacy4 from the great-grandmother, and was covered from top to bottom with carved roses and tulips. There were the quaintest5 flourishes upon it, and from among these peered forth6 little stags' heads with antlers. In the middle of the cupboard door an entire figure of a man had been cut out: he was certainly ridiculous to look at, and he grinned, for you could not call it laughing: he had goat's legs, little horns on his head, and a long beard. The children in the room always called him the Billygoate-legs-Lieutenant-and-Major-General-War-Com- mander-Sergeant7; that was a difficult name to pronounce, and there are not many who obtain this title; but it was something to have cut him out. And there he was! He was always looking at the table under the mirror, for on this table stood a lovely little Shepherdess made of china. Her shoes were gilt8, her dress was neatly9 caught up with a red rose, and besides this she had a golden hat and a shepherd's crook10: she was very lovely. Close by her stood a little Chimney-Sweeper, black as a coal, but also made of porcelain11: he was as clean and neat as any other man, for it was only make-believe that he was a sweep; the china-workers might just as well have made a prince of him, if they had been so minded.
There he stood very nattily12 with his ladder, and with a face as white and pink as a girl's; and that was really a fault, for he ought to have been a little black. He stood quite close to the Shepherdess: they had both been placed where they stood; but as they had been placed there they had become engaged to each other. They suited each other well. Both were young people, both made of the same kind of china, and both equally frail13.
Close to them stood another figure, three times greater than they. This was an old Chinaman, who could nod. He was also of porcelain, and declared himself to be the grandfather of the little Shepherdess; but he could not prove his relationship. He declared he had authority over her, and that therefore he had nodded to Mr. Billygoatlegs-Lieutenant-and-Major-General-War-Commander- Sergeant, who was wooing her for his wife.
“Then you will get a husband!”said the old Chinaman, “a man who I verily believe is made of mahogany. He can make you Billygoat-legs-Lieutenant-and-Major-General-War-Commander-Sergeantess: he has the whole cupboard full of silver plate, besides what he hoards14 up in secret drawers.”
“I won't go into the dark cupboard!”said the little Shepherdess.“I have heard tell that he has eleven porcelain wives in there.”
“Then you may become the twelfth,”cried the Chinaman.“This night, so soon as it creaks in the old cupboard, you shall be married, as true as I am an old Chinaman!”
And with that he nodded his head and fell asleep. But the little Shepherdess wept and looked at her heart's beloved, the porcelain Chimney-Sweeper.
“I should like to beg of you,”said she,“to go out with me into the wide world, for we cannot remain here.”
“I'll do whatever you like,”replied the little Chimney-Sweeper.“Let us start directly! I think I can keep you by exercising my profession.”
“If we were only safely down from the table!” said she.“I shall not be happy until we are out in the wide world.”
And he comforted her, and showed her how she must place her little foot upon the carved corners and the gilded15 foliage down the leg of the table; he brought his ladder, too, to help her, and they were soon together upon the floor. But when they looked up at the old cupboard there was great commotion16 within: all the carved stag were stretching out their heads, rearing up their antlers, and turning their necks; and the Billygoat-legs-Lieutenant-and- Major-General-War-Commander-Sergeant sprang high in the air, and called across to the old Chinaman,
“Now they're running away! now they're running away!”
Then they were a little frightened, and jumped quickly into the drawer of the window-seat. Here were three or four packs of cards which were not complete, and a little puppet-show, which had been built up as well as it could be done. There plays were acted, and all the ladies, diamonds, clubs, hearts, and spades, sat in the first row, fanning themselves with their tulips; and behind them stood all the knaves17, showing that they had a head above and below, as is usual in playing-cards. The play was about two people who were not to be married to each other, and the Shepherdess wept, because it was just like her own history.
“I cannot bear this!”said she.“I must go out of the drawer.”
But when they arrived on the floor, and looked up at the table, the old Chinaman was awake and was shaking over his whole body----for below he was all one lump.
“Now the old Chinaman's coming!”cried the little Shepherdess and she fell down upon her porcelain knee, so startled was she.
“I have an idea, said the Chimney-Sweeper. “Shall we creep into the great pot-pourri vase which stands in the corner? Then we can lie on roses and lavender, and throw salt in his eyes if he comes.”
“That will be of no use,” she replied.“Besides, I know that the old Chinaman and the pot-pourri vase were once engaged to each other, and a kind of liking18 always remains19 when people have stood in such a relation to each other. No, there's nothing left for us but to go out into the wide world.”
“Have you really courage to go into the wide world with me?”asked the Chimney-Sweeper.“Have you considered how wide the world is, and that we can never come back here again?”
“I have,”replied she.
And the Chimney-Sweeper looked fondly at her, and said,
“My way is through the chimney. If you have really courage to creep with me through the stove----through the iron fire-box as well as up the pipe, then we can get out into the chimney, and I know how to find my way through there. We'll mount so high that they can't catch us, and quite at the top there's a hole that leads out into the wide world.”
And he led her to the door of the stove.
“It looks very black there,”said she; but still she went with him, through the box and through the pipe, where it was pitch-dark night.
“Now we are in the chimney,”said he;“and look, look! up yonder a beautiful star is shining.”
And it was a real star in the sky, which shone straight down upon them, as if it would show them the way. And they clambered and crept: it was a frightful20 way, and terribly steep; but he supported her and helped her up; he held her, and showed her the best places where she could place her little porcelain feet; and thus they reached the edge of the chimney, and upon that they sat down, for they were desperately21 tired, as they well might be.
The sky with all its stars was high above, and all the roofs of the town deep below them. They looked far around----far, far out into the world. The poor Shepherdess had never thought of it as it really was: she leaned her little head against the Chimney-Sweeper, then she wept so bitterly that the gold ran down off her girdle.
“That is too much,”she said.“I cannot bear that. The world is too large! If I were only back upon the table below the mirror! I shall never be happy until I am there again. Now I have followed you out into the wide world, you may accompany me back again if you really love me.”
And the Chimney-Sweeper spoke22 sensibly to her---- spoke of the old Chinaman and of the Billygoat-legs-Lieu- tenant-and-Major-General-War-Commander-Sergeant; but she sobbed23 bitterly and kissed her little Chimney-Sweeper, so that he could not help giving way to her, though it was foolish.
And so with much labour they climbed down the chimney again. And they crept through the pipe and the fire-box. That was not pleasant at all. And there they stood in the dard stove; there they listened behind the door, to find out what was going on in the room. Then it was quite quiet: they looked in----ah! there lay the old Chinaman in the middle of the floor! He had fallen down from the table as he was pursuing them, and now he lay broken into three pieces; his back had come off all in one piece, and his head had rolled into a corner. The Billy goat-legs-Lieutenant-and-Major-General-War-Commander Sergeant stood where he had always stood, considering.
“That is terrible! said the little Shepherdess.“The old grandfather has fallen to pieces, and it is our fault. I shall never survive it!”And then she wrung24 her little hands.
“He can be mended! he can be mended!”said the Chimney-Sweeper.“Don't be so violent. If they glue his back together and give him a good rivet25 in his neck he will be as good as new, and may say many a disagreeable thing to us yet.”
“Do you think so?”cried she.
So they climbed back upon the table where they used to stand.
“You see, we have come back to this,”said the Chimney-Sweeper:“we might have saved ourselves all the trouble we have had.”
“If the old grandfather were only riveted26!”said the Shepherdess.“I wonder if that is dear?”
And he was really riveted. The family had his back cemented, and a great rivet was passed through his neck: he was as good as new, only he could no longer nod.
“It seems you have become proud since you fell to pieces,”said the Billygoat-legs-Lieutenant-and-Major- General-War-Commandr-Sergeant.“I don't think you have any reason to give yourself such airs. Am I to have her, or am I not?”
And the Chimney-Sweeper and the little Shepherdess looked at the old Chinaman most piteously, for they were afraid he might nod. But he could not do that, and it was irksome to him to tell a stranger that he always had a rivet in his neck. And so the porcelain people remained together, and they blessed Grandfather's rivet, and loved one another until they broke.
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1
ornamented
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| adj.花式字体的v.装饰，点缀，美化( ornament的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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2
foliage
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| n.叶子，树叶，簇叶 | |
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3
arabesques
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| n.阿拉伯式花饰( arabesque的名词复数 )；错综图饰；阿拉伯图案；阿拉贝斯克芭蕾舞姿（独脚站立，手前伸，另一脚一手向后伸） | |
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legacy
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| n.遗产，遗赠；先人(或过去)留下的东西 | |
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quaintest
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| adj.古色古香的( quaint的最高级 )；少见的，古怪的 | |
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forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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sergeant
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| n.警官，中士 | |
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gilt
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| adj.镀金的；n.金边证券 | |
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neatly
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| adv.整洁地，干净地，灵巧地，熟练地 | |
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crook
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| v.使弯曲；n.小偷，骗子，贼；弯曲(处) | |
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porcelain
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| n.瓷；adj.瓷的，瓷制的 | |
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nattily
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| adv.整洁地，帅地 | |
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frail
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| adj.身体虚弱的；易损坏的 | |
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hoards
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| n.（钱财、食物或其他珍贵物品的）储藏，积存( hoard的名词复数 )v.积蓄并储藏（某物）( hoard的第三人称单数 ) | |
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gilded
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| a.镀金的，富有的 | |
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commotion
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| n.骚动，动乱 | |
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knaves
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| n.恶棍，无赖( knave的名词复数 )；（纸牌中的）杰克 | |
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liking
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| n.爱好；嗜好；喜欢 | |
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remains
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| n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹 | |
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frightful
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| adj.可怕的；讨厌的 | |
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desperately
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| adv.极度渴望地，绝望地，孤注一掷地 | |
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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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sobbed
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| 哭泣，啜泣( sob的过去式和过去分词 )； 哭诉，呜咽地说 | |
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wrung
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| 绞( wring的过去式和过去分词 )； 握紧（尤指别人的手）； 把（湿衣服）拧干； 绞掉（水） | |
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rivet
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| n.铆钉；vt.铆接，铆牢；集中(目光或注意力) | |
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26
riveted
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| 铆接( rivet的过去式和过去分词 )； 把…固定住； 吸引； 引起某人的注意 | |
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