The Maid of Brakel

A girl from Brakel once went to St. Anne’s Chapel¹ at the foot of the Hinnenberg, and as she wanted to have a husband, and thought there was no one else in the chapel, she sang,

“Oh, holy Saint Anne! Help me soon to a man. Thou know’st him right well, By Suttmer gate does he dwell, His hair it is golden, Thou know’st him right well.”

The clerk, however, was standing² behind the altar and heard that, so he cried in a very gruff voice, “Thou shalt not have him! Thou shalt not have him!” The maiden³ thought that the child Mary who stood by her mother Anne had called out that to her, and was angry, and cried, “Fiddle de dee, conceited⁴ thing, hold your tongue, and let your mother speak!”

1 chapel   

n.小教堂，殡仪馆

参考例句：

• The nimble hero,skipped into a chapel that stood near.敏捷的英雄跳进近旁的一座小教堂里。
• She was on the peak that Sunday afternoon when she played in chapel.那个星期天的下午，她在小教堂的演出，可以说是登峰造极。

2 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

3 maiden   

n.少女，处女；adj.未婚的，纯洁的，无经验的

参考例句：

• The prince fell in love with a fair young maiden.王子爱上了一位年轻美丽的少女。
• The aircraft makes its maiden flight tomorrow.这架飞机明天首航。

4 conceited   

adj.自负的，骄傲自满的

参考例句：

• He could not bear that they should be so conceited.他们这样自高自大他受不了。
• I'm not as conceited as so many people seem to think.我不像很多人认为的那么自负。