The Three Wishes

Once upon a time a poor man took his ax and went out into the forest to cut wood. He was a lazy fellow, so as soon as he was in the forest he began to look about to see which tree would be the easiest to cut down. At last he found one that was hollow inside, as he could tell by knocking upon it with his ax. “It ought not to take long to cut this down,” said he to himself. He raised his ax and struck the tree such a blow that the splinters flew.

从前有个穷汉，拿着斧头出门到森林里去砍柴。他是个懒惰的家伙，一进森林就四处张望，想找一棵最容易砍倒的树。最后他发现了一棵树，用斧头一敲，听声音便知道里面是空心的。“这棵砍起来应该用不了多久，”他心里想道。他举起斧头，朝树上狠狠劈了一下，木屑四溅。

At once the bark opened and a little old fairy with a long beard came running out of the tree.

树皮立刻裂开，一个留着长胡子的矮小老精灵从树里跑了出来。

“What do you mean by chopping into my house?” he cried; and his eyes shone like red hot sparks, he was so angry.

“你这是要干什么，居然砍进我家里来了？”他喊道，气得两眼像烧红的火星一样闪闪发光。

“I did not know it was your house,” said the man.

“我不知道这是您的家啊，”这汉子说道。

“Well, it is my house, and I’ll thank you to let it alone,” cried the fairy.

“哼，这就是我的家，还请你别再动它了，”精灵喊道。

“Very well,” said the man. “I’d just as lieve cut down some other tree. I’ll chop down the one over yonder.”

“好吧，”这汉子说道。“我就去砍别的树好了。我去砍那边那棵。”

“That is well,” said the fairy. “I see that you are an obliging fellow, after all. I have it in my mind to reward you for sparing my house, so the next three wishes you and your wife make shall come true, whatever they are; and that is your reward.”

“这才对，”精灵说道。“我看你到底还是个通情达理的人。我打算奖赏你手下留情、没砍我的家，这样吧，从今往后你和你妻子许下的下三个愿望，不管是什么，都会实现；这就是给你的报答。”

Then the fairy went back into the tree again and pulled the bark together behind him.

说完精灵便钻回树里，把树皮合拢在身后。

The man stood looking at the tree and scratching his head. “Now that is a curious thing,” said he. Then he sat down and began to wonder what he should wish for. He thought and he thought, but he could decide on nothing. “I’ll just go home and talk it over with my wife,” said he; so he shouldered his ax, and set off for home. As soon as he came in at the door he began to bawl for his wife, and she came in a hurry, for she did not know what had happened to him.

这汉子站在那儿望着那棵树，挠了挠头。“这可真是件稀罕事，”他说道。于是他坐下来，开始琢磨该许什么愿。他想了又想，可怎么也拿不定主意。“我还是回家跟老婆商量商量吧，”他说；于是他扛起斧头，动身回家去了。他一进门就扯着嗓子喊老婆，妻子急忙跑了出来，不知道他出了什么事。

He told his story and his wife listened. “This is a fine thing to have happen to us,” said she. “Now we must be very careful what we wish for.”

他把事情的经过讲了一遍，妻子听了。“这可真是件好事落到咱们头上了，”她说。“咱们这下可得小心，许愿的时候得想清楚了。”

They sat down one on each side of the fire to talk it over. They thought of ever so many things they would like to have—a bag of gold, and a coach and four, and a fine house to live in, and fine clothes to wear, but nothing seemed just the right thing to choose.

他们俩一左一右地坐在炉火边商量起来。他们想了好多好多样自己想要的东西——一袋金子、一辆四马大马车、一座漂亮的房子、几身华丽的衣裳，可怎么也挑不出一个真正合适的愿望。

They talked so long that they grew hungry. “Well, here we sit,” said the man, “and not a thing cooked for dinner. I wish we had one of those fine black puddings you used to make.”

他们商量了老半天，肚子都饿了起来。“瞧瞧咱们这儿，”这汉子说道，“连顿饭都没做。我真希望能有一根你以前做的那种上好的黑布丁。”

No sooner had he spoken than there was a great thumping and bumping in the chimney and a great black pudding fell down on the hearth before him.

他话音刚落，烟囱里就传来一阵咚咚哐哐的响动，一根大大的黑布丁扑通一声掉在了他面前的炉边。

“What is this?” cried the man staring.

“这是怎么回事？”这汉子瞪大了眼睛喊道。

“Oh, you oaf! you stupid!” shrieked his wife. “It’s the pudding you wished for. There’s one of our wishes wasted. I wish the pudding were stuck on the end of your nose! It would serve you right!”

“哎呀，你这个笨蛋！你这个傻瓜！”他妻子尖叫道。“这就是你许愿要的布丁啊。咱们一个愿望就这么白白浪费了。我真希望这布丁粘到你鼻子尖上去！这才活该呢！”

The moment she said this the pudding flew up and stuck to the man’s nose, and there it was and he couldn’t get it off; the man pulled and tugged, and his wife pulled and tugged, but it was all of no use.

她话音刚落，那布丁便腾地飞起，粘到了这汉子的鼻子上，就那么挂在那儿，怎么也弄不下来；这汉子又拉又扯，他妻子也又拉又扯，可怎么都没用。

“Well, there’s no help for it,” said the husband; “we’ll have to wish it off again.”

“唉，这下没法子了，”丈夫说道，“咱们只能再许个愿把它弄下来了。”

His wife begun to cry and bawl. “No, no,” she cried. “We only have one wish left, and we can’t waste it that way. Let’s wish ourselves the richest people in the world.”

他妻子哭喊起来。“不行，不行，”她哭道。“咱们只剩最后一个愿望了，可不能这么白白浪费掉。咱们许愿变成世界上最有钱的人吧。”

But to this the man would not agree. He wanted the pudding off his nose whatever it cost. So at last the wife was obliged to let him have his own way. “I wish the pudding was off my nose again,” said the man, and that was the third of their wishes. So all the good they had of the fairy’s gift was a black pudding for dinner; but then it was the best black pudding they had ever eaten. “And after all,” said the man, “there’s nothing much better in the world to wish for than a full stomach.”

可这汉子说什么也不同意。不管付出什么代价，他都要把布丁从鼻子上弄下来。最后妻子只好依了他。“我希望布丁从我鼻子上弄下来吧，”这汉子说道，这便是他们的第三个愿望了。所以他们从精灵那份礼物里得到的全部好处，不过就是一顿晚饭吃的黑布丁；不过话说回来，那可真是他们吃过的最好吃的黑布丁了。“说到底，”这汉子说道，“这世上也没有什么比吃饱肚子更值得许愿的了。”