“Well,” remarked Mr. Thimblefinger, “there’s no telling what happens in a Looking-glass when nobody is watching. I’ve often wanted to know. The little that I’ve heard about the Woog and the Weeze will do me until I can hear more.”
“I remember a story that I thought was a very good one when I first heard it,” said Mrs. Meadows. “But sometimes a great deal more depends on the time, place, and company than on the stories that are told. I’m such a poor hand at telling tales that I’m almost afraid to tell any that I know. I’ve heard a great many in my day and time, but the trouble is to pick out them that don’t depend on a wink3 of the eye and a wave of the hand.”
“Give us a taste of it, anyhow,” suggested Mr. Rabbit. “I’ll do the winking4, the Tar-Baby can do the blinking, and Mr. Thimblefinger can wave his hands.”
“Well,” said Mrs. Meadows, “once upon a time there lived in a country not very far from here a man who had a wife and two children,—a boy and a girl. This was not a large family, but the man was very poor, and he found it a hard matter to get along. He was a farmer, and farming, no matter what they say, depends almost entirely5 on the weather. Now, this farmer never could get the weather he wanted. One year the Rain would come and drown out his crops, and the next year the Drouth would come and burn them up.
“Matters went from bad to worse, and the farmer and his wife talked of nothing else but the Rain and the Drouth. One year they said they would have made a living but for the Drouth, and the next they said they would have been very well off but for the Rain. So it went on from year to year until the two children,—the boy and the girl,—grew up large enough to understand what their father and mother were talking about. One year they’d hear they could have no Sunday clothes and shoes because of the Drouth. The next year they’d hear they could have no shoes and Sunday clothes because of the Rain.
“All this set them to thinking. The boy was about ten years old and the girl was about nine. One day at their play they began to talk as they had heard their father and mother talk. It was early in the spring, and their father was even then ploughing and preparing his fields for planting another crop.
“‘We will have warm shoes and good clothes next winter if the Rain doesn’t come and stay too long,’ said the boy.
“‘Yes,’ replied the girl, ‘and we’ll have good clothes and warm shoes if the Drouth doesn’t come and stay too long.’
“‘I wonder why they’ve got such a spite against us,’ remarked the boy.
“‘I’m sure I don’t know,’ replied the girl. ‘If we go and see them, and tell them who we are, and beg them not to make us so cold and hungry when the ice grows in the ponds and on the trees, maybe they’ll take pity on us.’
“This plan pleased the boy, and the two children continued to talk it over, until finally they agreed to go in search of the Rain and the Drouth. ‘Do you,’ said the boy, ‘go in search of Brother Drouth, and I will go in search of Uncle Rain. When we have found them, we must ask them to visit our father’s house and farm, and see the trouble and ruin they have caused.’
“To this the girl agreed; and early the next morning, after eating a piece of corn bread, which was all they had for breakfast, they started on their journey, the boy going to the east and the girl to the south. The boy traveled a long way, and for many days. Sometimes he thought he would never come to the end of his journey; but finally he came to Cousin Mist’s house, and there he inquired his way.
“‘What do you want with Uncle Rain?’ asked Cousin Mist. ‘He is holding court now, and he is very busy. Besides, you are not dressed properly. When people go to court, they have to wear a certain kind of dress. In your case, you ought to have a big umbrella and an oilcloth overcoat.’
“‘Well,’ replied the boy, ‘I haven’t got ’em, and that’s the end of that part of it. If you’ll show me the way to Uncle Rain’s house, I’ll go on and be much obliged to boot.’
“Cousin Mist looked at the boy and laughed. ‘You are a bold lad,’ he said, ‘and since you are so bold, I’ll lend you an umbrella and an oilcloth overcoat, and go a part of the way with you.’
“So the boy put on the overcoat and hoisted6 the umbrella, and trudged7 along the muddy road toward the house of Uncle Rain. When they came in sight of it, Cousin Mist pointed8 it out, told the boy good-by, and then went drizzling9 back home. The boy went forward boldly, and knocked at the door of Uncle Rain’s house.
“‘Who is there?’ inquired Uncle Rain in a hoarse10 and wheezy voice. He seemed to have the asthma11, the choking quinsy, and the croup, all at the same time.
“‘It’s only me,’ said the boy. ‘Please, Uncle Rain, open the door.’
“With that, Uncle Rain opened the door and invited the little fellow in. He did more than that: he went to the closet and got out a dry spot, and told the boy to make himself as comfortable as he could.”
“Got out a—what?” asked Buster John, trying hard to keep from laughing.
“A dry spot,” replied Mrs. Meadows solemnly. “Uncle Rain went to the closet and got out a dry spot. Of course,” she continued, “Uncle Rain had to keep a supply of dry spots on hand, so as to make his visitors comfortable. It’s a great thing to be polite. Well, the boy sat on the dry spot, and, after some remarks about the weather, Uncle Rain asked him why he had come so far over the rough roads. Then the boy told Uncle Rain the whole story about how poor his father was, and how he had been made poorer year after year, first by Brother Drouth and then by Uncle Rain. And then he told how he and his little sister had to go without shoes and wear thin clothes in cold weather, all because the crops were ruined year after year, either by Brother Drouth or Uncle Rain.
“He told his story so simply and with so much feeling that Uncle Rain was compelled to wipe his eyes on a corner of the fog that hung on the towel rack behind the door. He asked the boy a great many questions about his father and his mother.
“‘I reckon,’ said Uncle Rain finally, ‘that I have done all of you a great deal of damage without knowing it, but I think I can pay it back. Bring the dry spot with you, and come with me.’ He went into the barnyard, and the boy followed. They went into the barn, and there the boy saw, tied by a silver cord, a little black sheep. It was very small, but seemed to be full grown, because it had long horns that curled round and round on the sides of its head. And, although the horns were long and hard, the little sheep was very friendly. It rubbed its head softly against the boy’s hand, and seemed to be fond of him at first sight.
“Uncle Rain untied12 the silver cord, and placed the loose end in the boy’s hand. ‘Here is a sheep,’ he said, ‘that is worth more than all the flocks in the world. When you want gold, all you have to do is to press the golden spring under the left horn. The horn will then come off, and you will find it full of gold. When you want silver, press the silver spring under the right horn. The horn will come off, and you will find it full of silver. When the horns have been emptied, place them back where they belong. This may be done once, twice, or fifty times a day.’
“The boy didn’t know how to thank Uncle Rain enough for this wonderful gift. He was so anxious to get home that he would have started off at once.
“‘Wait a minute,’ said Uncle Rain. ‘You may tell your father about this, but he must tell no one else. The moment the secret of the sheep is told outside your family, it will no longer be valuable to you.’
“The boy thanked Uncle Rain again, and started home, leading his wonderful sheep, which trotted13 along after him, as if it were glad to go along. The boy went home much faster than he had gone away, and it was not long before he reached there.”
“But what became of the little girl?” asked Sweetest Susan, as Mrs. Meadows paused a moment.
“I am coming to her now,” said Mrs. Meadows. “The girl, according to the bargain that had been made between her and her brother, was to visit Brother Drouth, and lay her complaints before him. So she started on her way. As she went along, the roads began to get drier and drier, and the grass on the ground and the leaves on the trees began to look as if they had been sprinkled with yellow powder. By these signs, the girl knew that she was not far from the house of Cousin Dust, and presently she saw it in the distance. She went to the door, which was open, and inquired the way to Brother Drouth’s. Cousin Dust was much surprised to see a little girl at his door; but, after a long fit of coughing, he recovered himself, and told her that she was now in Brother Drouth’s country.
“‘If you’ll show me the way,’ said the girl, ‘I’ll be more than obliged to you.’
“‘I’ll go a part of the way with you,’ said Cousin Dust, ‘and lend you a fan besides.’
“So they went along until they came in sight of Brother Drouth’s house, and then Cousin Dust went eddying14 back home in the shape of a small whirlwind. The girl went to Brother Drouth’s door and knocked. Brother Drouth came at once and opened the door, and invited her in.
“‘I’ll not deny that I’m surprised,’ said he, ‘for I never expected to find a little girl knocking at my door at this time of day. But you are welcome. I’m glad to see you. You must have come a long journey, for you look hot.’
“With that he went to the cupboard and got her a cool place to sit on, and this she found very comfortable. But still Brother Drouth wasn’t satisfied. As his visitor was a little girl, he wanted to be extra polite, and so he went to his private closet and brought her a fresh breeze with a handle to it; and, as the cool place had a cushioned back and the fresh breeze a handle that the girl could manage, she felt better in Brother Drouth’s house than she had at any time during her long journey. She sat there on the cool place and fanned with the fresh breeze, and Brother Drouth sat in his big armchair and smiled at her. The little girl noticed this after awhile, and so she said:—
“‘Oh, you can laugh, but it’s no laughing matter. If you could see the trouble you’ve caused at our house, you’d laugh on the other side of your mouth.’
“When he heard this, Brother Drouth at once became very serious, and apologized. He said he wasn’t laughing, but just smiling because he thought she was enjoying herself.
“‘I may be enjoying myself now,’ said the little girl, ‘and I’m much obliged to you; but if I was at home, I shouldn’t be enjoying myself.’
“Then she went on to tell Brother Drouth how her father’s crops had been ruined year after year, either by Uncle Rain or by Brother Drouth, and how the family got poorer and poorer all the time on that account, so that the little children couldn’t have warm shoes and thick clothes in cold weather, but had to go barefooted and wear rags. Brother Drouth listened with all his ears; and when the little girl had told her story, he shook his head, and said that he was to blame as well as Uncle Rain. He explained that, for many years, there had been a trial of strength going on between him and Uncle Rain, and they had become so much interested in overcoming each other that they had paid no attention to poor people’s crops. He said he was very sorry that he had taken part in any such affair. Then he told the little girl that he thought he could pay her back for a part of the damage he had done, and that he would be more than glad to do so.
“Says he, ‘Bring your cool place and your fresh breeze with you, and come with me.’
“She followed Brother Drouth out into the barnyard, and into the barn; and there, tied by a golden cord, she saw a snow-white goat.
“‘This goat,’ said Brother Drouth, ‘is worth more than all the goats in the world, tame or wild.’ With that he untied the golden cord, and placed the loose end in the girl’s hand. The goat was small, but seemed to be old; for its horns, which were of the color of ivory, curved upward and over its back. They were so long that, by turning its head a bit, the snow-white goat could scratch itself on its ham. And though it seemed to be old, it was very gentle; for it rubbed its nose and face against the little girl’s frock, and appeared to be very glad to see her.
“‘Now then,’ said Brother Drouth, ‘this goat is yours. Take it, and take care of it. On the under side of each horn, you will find a small spring. Touch it, and the horn will come off; and each horn, no matter how many times you touch the spring, you will always find full of gold and silver. But this is not all. At each change of the moon, you will find the right horn full of diamonds, and the left horn full of pearls. Now listen to me. You may tell your father about this treasure; but as soon as the secret is told out of the family, your goat will be worth no more to you than any other goat.’
“The little girl thanked Brother Drouth until he would allow her to thank him no more. She would have left the cool place and the fresh breeze, but Brother Drouth said she was welcome to both of them. ‘When the weather is cold,’ said he, ‘you can put them away; but when it is warm, you will find that the cool place and the fresh breeze will come in right handy.’
“Thanking Brother Drouth again and again, the girl started on her journey home, leading her wonderful goat, and carrying with her the cool place and the fresh breeze. In this way, she made the long journey with ease and comfort, and came to her father’s house without any trouble. She reached the gate, too, just as her brother did. They were very glad to see each other, and the sheep and the goat appeared to be old friends; for they rubbed their noses together in friendly fashion.
“‘I’ll make our father and mother rich,’ said the boy proudly.
“‘And I’ll make them richer,’ said the girl still more proudly.
“So they took their wonderful goat and sheep into the stable, gave them some hay to eat, and then went into the house.”
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1
mighty
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| adj.强有力的；巨大的 | |
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apron
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| n.围裙；工作裙 | |
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3
wink
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| n.眨眼，使眼色，瞬间；v.眨眼，使眼色，闪烁 | |
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4
winking
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| n.瞬眼，目语v.使眼色( wink的现在分词 )；递眼色（表示友好或高兴等）；（指光）闪烁；闪亮 | |
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5
entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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6
hoisted
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| 把…吊起，升起( hoist的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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7
trudged
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| vt.& vi.跋涉，吃力地走（trudge的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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8
pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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9
drizzling
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| 下蒙蒙细雨，下毛毛雨( drizzle的现在分词 ) | |
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10
hoarse
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| adj.嘶哑的，沙哑的 | |
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11
asthma
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| n.气喘病，哮喘病 | |
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12
untied
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| 松开，解开( untie的过去式和过去分词 )； 解除，使自由； 解决 | |
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13
trotted
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| 小跑，急走( trot的过去分词 )； 匆匆忙忙地走 | |
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14
eddying
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| 涡流，涡流的形成 | |
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