四则英语寓言故事

　　The ass and the grasshopper 驴子与蚱蜢

　　An ass1 having heard some grasshoppers2 chirping3, was highly enchanted4; and, desiring to possess the same charms of melody, demanded what sort of food they lived on to give them such beautiful voices. They replied, "The dew."

　　The ass resolved that he would live only upon dew, and in a short time died of hunger.

　　驴子听见蚱蜢唱歌，被美妙动听的歌声所打动，自己也想能发出同样悦耳动听的声音，便羡慕地问他们吃些什么，才能发出如此美妙的声音来。蚱蜢答道：“吃露水。”

　　驴子便也只吃露水，没多久就饿死了。

　　The Cock and the Pearl 公鸡和珍珠

　　A cock was once strutting1 up and down the farmyard among the hens when suddenly he espied2 something shinning amid the straw. "Ho! ho!" quoth he, "that's for me," and soon rooted it out from beneath the straw. What did it turn out to be but a pearl that by some chance had been lost in the yard? "You may be a treasure," quoth master pock, "to men that prize you, but for me I would rather have a single barley-corn than a peck of pearls."

　　Precious things are for those that can prize them.

　　在农场的庭院里有一只公鸡正昂首阔步地在一群母鸡中间来来回回。突然他瞥到稻草中有什么东西在闪闪发光。“哈哈”他说“那是我的”。然后迅速把它从稻草中刨了出来。他刨出出来的是一颗不知什么时候遗落在庭院里的珍珠“你也许这是个宝贝”，公鸡大人说，“对于人类来说，他们会珍惜你，但在我看来，我宁可要一粒大麦也不想琢一粒珍珠。”

　　只有懂得价值的人才会珍惜宝物。

　　The labourer and the snake 工人和蛇

　　A labourer's little son was bitten by a snake and died of the wound. The father was beside himself with grief, and in his anger against the snake the caught up an axe1 and went and stood close to the snake's hole, and watched for a chance of killing2 it. Presently the snake come out, and the man aimed a blow at it, but only succeeded in cutting of the tip of its tail before it wriggled3 in again. He then tried to get it to come out a second time, pretending that he wished to make up the quarrel. But the snake said, "I can never be your friend because of my lost tail, nor you mine because of your lost child."

　　Injuries are never forgotten in the presence of those who caused them.

　　工人的小儿子被一条毒蛇咬了一口，并且死于蛇伤。悲痛气愤之余，工人抓起一把斧头，气冲冲地跑到蛇洞外，等待机会砍死蛇。不久，蛇从洞里出来了，工人立即一斧头砍过去，可是只砍断了它的尾巴尖。随后，工人还想再如法炮制，便假装想与蛇和解。可是，蛇却说：“我永远也无法成为你的朋友，因为我丢了自己的尾巴，而你却丢失了儿子。”

　　在造成创伤的双方心里，永远无法忘却伤痛。