小學(xué)英語英語故事（童話故事）The Count's Beard伯爵的胡子

TheCount'sBeard伯爵的胡子

TheCount,sBeard

ThetownofPocapagliawasperchedonthepinnacleofahillsosteepthatits

inhabitantstiedlittlebagsonthetailfeathersoftheirhenstocatcheachfreshly

laideggthatotherwisewouldhavegonerollingdowntheslopesintothewoodsbelow

AllofwhichgoestoshowthatthepeopleofPocapagliawerenottheduncesthey

weresaidtobe,andthattheproverb,

InPocapagliawaysThedonkeywhistles,themasterbrays,

merelyreflectedthemaliciousgrudgetheneighboringtownspeopleborethe

Pocapagliansfortheirpeacefulwaysandtheirreluctancetoquarrelwithanyone

〃Yes,yes,〃wasallthePocapaglianswouldreply,“butjustwaituntilMasinoreturns,

andyouwillseewhobraysmore,weoryou”

EverybodyinPocapaglialovedMasino,thesmartestboyintownHewasnostronger

physicallythananybodyelse;infact,heevenlookedratherpunyButhehadalways

beenverycleverConcernedoverhow1ittlehewasatbirth,hismotherhadbathed

himinwarmwinetokeephimaliveandmakehimalittlestrongerHisfatherhad

heatedthewinewithared-hothorseshoeThatwayMasinoabsorbedthesubtletyof

wineandtheenduranceofironTocoolhimoffafterhisbath,hismothercradled

himintheshellofanunripenedchestnut;itwasbitterandgavehimunderstanding

AtthetimethePocapaglianswereawaitingthereturnofMasino,whomnoonehad

seensincethedayhewentofftobeasoldier(andwhowasnowmostlikelysomewhere

inAfrica),strangethingsstartedhappeninginPocapagliaEveryeveningasthe

cattlecamebackfrompastureintheplainbelow,ananimalwaswhiskedawayby

MicillinatheWitch

Thewitchwouldhideinthewoodsatthefootofthehill,andallsheneededto

dowasgiveoneheavypuff,andshehadherselfanoxWhenthefarmersheardher

stealthroughthethicketafterdark,theirteethwouldchatter,andeveryonewould

falldowninaswoonThatbecamesocommonthatpeopletooktosaying:

BewareofMicillina,thatoldwitch,Foral1youroxenshewi11filch,Thentrain

onyouhercrossed-eye,Andwaitforyoutofallanddie

AtnighttheybeganlightinghugebonfirestokeepMicillinatheWitchfromventuring

outofthewoodsButshewouldsneakuponthesolitaryfarmerwatchingovercattle

besidethebonfireandknockhimoutinonebreathInthemorninguponawaking,he'd

findcowsandoxengone,andhisfriendswouldhearhimweepingandmoaningand

hittinghimselfontheheadTheneverybodycombedthewoodsfortracesofthestolen

cattle,butfoundonlytuftsofhair,hairpins,andfootprintslefthereandthere

byMicillinatheWitch

ThingswentfrombadtoworseShutupallthetimeinthebarn,thecowsgrewas

thinasrailsArakeinsteadofabrushwasallthatwasneededtogroomthem,from

ribtoribNobodydaredleadthecattletopastureanymoreEveryonestayedclear

ofthewoodsnow,andthemushroomsthatgrewtherewentunpickedandgotasbig

asumbrellas

MicillinatheWitchwasnottemptedtoplunderothertowns,knowingfullwellthat

calmandpeace-lovingpeopleweretobefoundonlyinPocapagliaTherethepoor

farmerslitabigbonfireeverynightinthetownsquare,whilethewomenandchildren

lockedthemselvesindoorsThemensataroundthefirescratchingtheirheadsand

groaningDayafterdaytheyscratchedandgroaneduntiladecisionwasfinally

reachedtogotothecountforhelp

Thecountlivedhighabovethetownonalargecircularestatesurroundedbyamassive

wallThetopofthewallwasencrustedwithsharpbitsofglassOneSundaymorning

allthetownsmenarrived,withhatsinhandTheyknocked,thedoorswungopen,and

theyfiledintothecourtyardbeforethecourt，srounddwelling,whichhadbarsat

allthewindowsAroundthecourtyardsatthecourt'ssoldierssmoothingtheir

mustacheswithoiltomakethemshineandscowlingatthefarmersAttheendofthe

courtyard,inavelvetchair,satthecounthimselfwithhislongblackbeard,which

foursoldierswerecombingfromheadtofoot

Theoldestfarmertookheartandsaid,“YourHonor,wehavedaredcometoyouabout

ourmisfortuneAsourcattlegointothewoods,MicillinatheWitchappearsandmakes

offwiththem〃So,amidsighsandgroans,withtheotherfarmersnoddinginassent,

hetoldthecountallabouttheirnightmare

Thecountremainedsilent

〃Wehavecomehere,〃saidtheoldman,〃tobesoboldastoaskYourHonor，sadvice”

Thecountremainedsilent

〃卜Vehavecomehere,“headded,〃tobesoboldastoaskYourHonortohelpusIf

youassignedusanescortofsoldiers,wecouldagaintakeourcattledowntopasture”

Thecountshookhishead“IfIletyouhavethesoldiers,hesaid,〃Imustalso

letyouhavethecaptain”

Thefarmerslistened,hardlydaringtohope

〃Butifthecaptainisawayintheevening,saidthecount,“whocanIplaylotto

with?"

Thefarmersfelltotheirknees"Helpus,noblecount,forpity'ssake!”Thesoldiers

aroundthecourtyardyawnedandstrokedtheirmustaches

Againthecountshookhisheadandsaid:

IamthecountandIcountforthree;NowitchhaveIseen,So,nowitchhasthere

been

Atthosewordsandstillyawning,thesoldierspickeduptheirgunsand,withbayonets

extended,movedslowlytowardthefarmers,whoturnedandfiledsilentlyoutofthe

courtyard

Backinthetownsquareandcompletelydiscouraged,thefarmershadnoideawhat

todonextButtheseniorofthemall,theonewhohadspokentothecount,said,

“There'snothinglefttodobutsendforMasino!z，

SotheywroteMasinoaletterandsentittoAfricaThenoneevening,whilethey

wereallgatheredaroundthebonfireasusual,MasinoreturnedImaginethewelcome

theygavehim,theembraces,thepotsofhot,spicedwine!"'Whereonearthhaveyou

been?Whatdidyousee?Ifyouonlyknewwhatwehavebeengoingthrough!

Masinoletthemhavetheirsay,thenhehadhis〃InAfricaIsawcannibalswhoate

notmenbutlocusts;inthedesertIsawamadmanwhohadlethisfingernailsgrow

twelvemeterslongtodigforwater;intheseaIsawafishwithashoeandaslipper

whowantedtobekingoftheotherfish,sincenootherfishpossessedshoeorslipper;

inSicilyIsawawomanwithseventysonsandonlyonekettle;inNaplesIsawpeople

whowalkedwhilestandingstill,sincethechatterofotherpeoplekeptthemgoing;

IsawsinnersandIsawsaints;Isawfatpeopleandpeoplenobiggerthanmites;

many,manyfrightenedsoulsdidIsee,butneversomanyashereinPocapaglia^

Thefarmershungtheirheadsinshame,forMasinohadhitasensitivespotin

suggestingtheywerecowardsButMasinowasnotcrosswithhisfellowtownsmenHe

askedforadetailedaccountofthewitch，sdoings,thensaid,“Letmeaskyouthree

questions,andatthestrokeofmidnightI'11gooutandcatchthewitchandbring

herbacktoyou”

“Let'shearyourquestions!Outwiththem!”theyallsaid

“ThefirstquestionisforthebarberHowmanypeoplecametoyouthismonth?”

Thebarberreplied:

z，Longbeards,shortbeards,Finebeards,coarsebeards,Locksstraight,lockscurly,

AllItrimmed(sic)inahurry”

“Yourturnnow,cobblerHowmanypeoplebroughtyoutheiroldshoestomendthis

month?”

“Alas!”beganthecobbler:

“Shoesofwood,shoesofleather,Nai1bynailIhammeredbacktogether,Mendedshoes

ofsatinandshoesofserpentButthere，snothinglefttodo,Alltheirmoneyis

spent”

“Thethirdquestiongoestoyou,ropemakerHowmuchropedidyousellthismonth?”

Theropemakerreplied:

“RopegaloreofeverysortIsold:Hemprope,braided,wicker,cord,Needle-thin

toarm-thick,Lard-softtoiron-strongThismonthIcouldn，tgowrong”

“Verywell,“saidMasino,stretchingoutbythefire〃I'mnowgoingtosleepfor

afewhours,I'mverytiredWakemeupatmidnightandI'11goafterthewitch"He

puthishatoverhisfaceandfellasleep

Thefarmerskeptperfectlyquietuntilmidnight,notevendaringtobreathe,for

fearofawakinghimAtmidnightMasinoshookhimself,yawned,drankacupofmulled

wine,spatthreetimesintothefire,gotupwithoutlookingatasoul,andheaded

forthewoods

Thefarmersstayedbehindwatchingthefireburndownandthelastembersturnto

ashesThen,whomshouldMasinodraginbythebeardbutthecount!Acountthatwept,

kicked,andpleadedformercy

"Here'sthewitch!z，criedMasino,andasked,“Wheredidyouputthemulledwine?”

Beneaththefarmers'amazedstares,thecounttriedtomakehimselfassmallas

possible,sittingonthegroundandshrinkinguplikeacold-bittenfly

“Thethiefcouldhavebeennoneofyou,〃explainedMasino,“sinceyouhadal1gone

tothebarberandhadnohairtoloseinthebushesThentherewerethosetracks

madebybigheavyshoes,butallofyougobarefootNorcouldthethiefhavebeen

aghost,sincehewouldn'thaveneededtobuyallthatcordtotieuptheanimals

andcarrythemawayButwhereismymulledwine?〃

Shakingallover,thecounttriedtohideinthatbeardofhiswhichMasinohadtousled

andtorninpullinghimoutofthebushes

“Howdidheevermakeusfaintbyjustlookingatus?〃askedonefarmer

〃HewouldsmiteyouontheheadwithapaddedclubThatwayyouwouldhearonlya

whirHe'dleavenomarkonyou,you*dsimplywakeupwithaheadache”

“Andthosehairpinshelost?”askedanother

“Theywereusedtoholdhisbearduponhisheadandmakeitlooklikeawoman's

hair”

Untilthenthefarmershadlistenedinsilence,butwhenMasinosaid,“Andnow,what

shallwedowithhim?”astormofshoutsarose:"Burnhim!Skinhimalive!String

himupforascarecrow!Sealhiminacaskandrollhimdownthecliff!Sewhimup

inasackwithsixcatsandsixdogs!”

“Havemercy!”saidthecountinavoicejustaboveawhisper

“Sparehim,“saidMasino,“andhewillbringbackyourcattleandcleanyourbarns

Andsinceheenjoyedgoingintothewoodsatnight,makehimgothereeverynight

andgatherbundlesoffirewoodforeachofyouTellthechildrennevertopickup

thehairpinstheyfindontheground,fortheybelongtoMicillinatheWitch,whose

hairandbeardwillbedisheveledfromnowon〃

Thefarmersfollowedthesuggestion,andsoonMasinoleftPocapagliatotravelabout

theworldInthecourseofhistravels,hefoundhimselffightinginfirstonewar

andanother,andtheyalllastedsolongthathissayingsprangup:

Soldierfighter,whatahardlotIWretchedfood,thegroundforacotYoufeedthe

cannonpowder:Boom-BOOM!Boom-BOOM!Boomlouder!

(Bra)

NOTES:

“TheCount，sBeard”(LabarbadelConte)Publishedhereforthefirsttime,collected

byGiovanniArpinoinJuly1956,incertainvillagesofsouthernPiedmont:Bra(told

byCaterinaAsteggiano,inmateofahomeforoldpeople,andLuigiBerzia),inGuarene

(toldbyDoroPalladino,farmer),inNarzole(toldbyAnnettaTaricco,servantwoman),

andinPocapaglia

Thislongnarrative,whichwriterGiovanniArpinohastranscribedandunifiedfrom

differentversionswithvariantsandadditionsfromBraandsurroundings,cannot

inmyviewbeclassifiedasafolktaleItisalocallegendofrecentorigininpart

(Iamthinking,forinstance,ofthegeographicalparticularsgiven),thatis,not

priortothenineteenthcentury,andcontainingdisparateelements:explanationof

alocalsuperstition(thehairpinsofWitchMicillina),antifeudalcountrylegend

suchasonefindsinmanynortherncountries,curiousdetective-storystructurea

laSherlockHolmes,manydigressionsnonessentialtothestory(suchasthetrip

fromAfricabacktotown-whichArpinotellsmealsoexistsasaseparatestory

--andalltheallusionstoMasino'spastandfutureadventureswhichleadtothe

conclusionglobetrotterfromacountrywhoseinhabitantsarereputedtobe

contrastinglyslowandbackward),verse(ofwhichArpinoandIhavepresentedonly

asmuchaswecouldeffectivetranslate),andgrotesqueimageswhichseemrooted

intradition,suchasthesacksunderthehens'tails,theoxensothinthatthey

werecurriedwiththerake,thecountwhosebeardwascombedbyfoursoldiers,etc

Copyright:ItaiianFolktalesSelectedandRetoldbyItaloCalvino,

translatedbyGeorgeMartin,

PantheonBooks,NewYork1980

伯爵的胡子

博卡帕利亞是建在陡峭山坡上的一個小鎮(zhèn)，鎮(zhèn)上人家的雞只要一下蛋就會滾落到山下的樹林

里。為了防止雞蛋滾落丟失，居民們在每只母雞的尾巴上掛了一個小袋子。

這說明博卡帕利亞人并非像別人挖苦的那樣軟弱無能，附近曾經(jīng)流傳著這樣一句話：

誰都知道在博卡帕利亞，

驢子吹口哨，主人嚎叫。

這純粹是附近村鎮(zhèn)的人對他們的污蔑，這些人這樣對待博卡帕利亞人就是因為他們生性平

靜，不愿意和任何人爭吵。

“讓你們誣蔑吧，挖苦吧，”博卡帕利亞人都這樣說，“等馬西諾回來，看我們當(dāng)中誰還會

嚎叫?！?/p>

馬西諾是博卡帕利亞人中最聰明的人，深受全鎮(zhèn)的人愛戴。他并不比別人粗壯，甚至比一般

人還瘦弱很多，但他天生聰明。他剛出世時，看上去瘦弱嬌小，媽媽為了讓他能活下來，而

且還能長得強(qiáng)壯一點，就用熱葡萄酒給他洗澡。爸爸還把燒紅的鐵放到酒里給酒加熱。這樣

馬西諾既通過浸泡皮膚而獲得了酒的柔力，又吸收了鐵的剛強(qiáng)。洗完澡后，媽媽又把她放在

鋪滿生栗子殼的搖籃里，讓他的身體變涼爽，使他在刺痛中變得更加睿智。

長大后，馬西諾出發(fā)去服兵役，以后再也沒有回到自己的村鎮(zhèn)?，F(xiàn)在好像到了非洲的某個地

方。這期間博卡帕利亞開始出了一系列的怪事。每天晚上人們都會發(fā)現(xiàn)，他們的牛從平原上

的草地放牧回來時，總要被女巫米奇利娜搶走好幾頭。

女巫米奇利娜總是藏在村子下方的樹林中，伺機(jī)而出，她只須吹一口氣就可以把一頭牛劫走。

天黑后，每當(dāng)村民們聽到林中灌木叢的沙沙響動，就會嚇的牙齒打架，甚至昏倒在地，所以

大家都說：

女巫米奇利娜，

從牛欄把牛偷走，

只要用眼斜一下，

你就嚇得倒下。

村民們只好在夜里點起一堆堆大篝火，使女巫米奇利娜不敢從樹叢中現(xiàn)身。但當(dāng)只有一個人

在篝火邊上看守牲畜時，女巫就會悄悄地靠上去，用氣把這個人吹昏，等到早上他醒過來的

時候，奶牛、耕牛早已不見了，于是大家便聽到他痛哭、絕望，擊自己的頭。然后，所有的

人都會一齊到樹林中尋找牲畜，結(jié)果，除了一結(jié)頭發(fā)、女人的的發(fā)釵和女巫米奇利娜四處留

下的足印，什么也找不到。

就這樣過去了好幾個月，奶牛被一直關(guān)在牛圈里變得越來越瘦。刷毛的時候已經(jīng)不需要刷子

了，用耙子在牛肋骨上耙?guī)紫戮托辛恕]有人再敢將牲畜帶到草地上去了，也沒有人敢再進(jìn)

樹林里，林子里邊的蘑菇因為長久無人采摘，長得像雨傘一般大。

女巫米奇利娜從不去別的村鎮(zhèn)搶牛，因為她知道再沒有哪個村的村民像博卡帕利亞人這樣與

世無爭、平靜忍耐了。每天晚上，這些貧苦的村民就在場院中間點上一堆篝火，女人和孩子

留在家中，男人則圍著篝火撓頭抱怨著。怨了今天，怨明天，最后，他們決定得去找這里的

伯爵幫忙。

伯爵住在村鎮(zhèn)山頂上的一座圓形莊園里，四周圍著圍墻，墻上還插滿了玻璃片。一個星期天

的早上，村民們聚在一塊，帽子拿在手上，前來敲響了伯爵家的門。門打開后，村民們來到

伯爵圓形房屋前的庭院，只見屋子的窗戶都用鐵柵欄封著，庭院四周坐著伯爵的衛(wèi)兵，他們

的胡子上都涂著油，好讓胡子看上去光彩油亮。這些人一個個對村民們怒目而視。庭院的最

里端，伯爵坐在絲絨面的椅子上，黑胡子很長很長，四個衛(wèi)兵正用四把梳子在給他從上往下

地梳理它。

年紀(jì)最長的村民定了定神，說：“伯爵老爺，我們斗膽來您這里，是為了向您稟告我們的不

幸遭遇，森林中有一個女巫米奇利娜，把我們的牲畜都搶了去?！彪S后，老人嘆著氣，訴著

苦，在別的村民的點頭證實下，向伯爵講述了他們這段時間的可怕經(jīng)歷0

伯爵一聲不吭。

老人又說：“我們來這里想冒昧向老爺您求討一個解決辦法?！?/p>

伯爵還是一聲不吭。

老人又補充說：“我們來這里想斗膽請老爺您行行好幫我們一把，要是您肯派出一隊衛(wèi)士，

我們就可以回到草場上放牲畜了?！?/p>

伯爵把腦袋在脖子上轉(zhuǎn)了一圈，說：“要是派衛(wèi)兵，我就還得派一個隊長……”

村民們都豎著耳朵聽著，似乎感受到一線希望。

“但要是我派隊長去，”伯爵說，“那么，晚上，我還跟誰玩擲彩游戲呢？”

村民們跪在地上說：“幫幫我們吧，伯爵老爺，可憐可憐我們吧！”周圍的衛(wèi)士們開始厭煩

地打著哈欠，給胡子涂著黑油。

伯爵又轉(zhuǎn)了一下頭，說：

“我是伯爵，我說話能頂三個人說話，

既然我沒見過女巫，

說明根本就沒有女巫?！?/p>

聽到伯爵的話，那些正打著哈欠的衛(wèi)士立即端起步槍，用刺刀慢慢地逼著村民們退出了庭院。

村民們垂頭喪氣地回到場院，不知下一步該怎么辦,那個跟伯爵說過話的年紀(jì)最長的老人說：

“現(xiàn)在我們得派人去把馬西諾請回來！”

說完，他們便立即給馬西諾寫了封信，然后將信寄到非洲。一天晚上，當(dāng)村民們像往常一樣

聚集在場院的篝火旁邊時，馬西諾回來了。人們激動的情景就別提了，大家沖上去擁抱他，

煮上加香料的熱葡萄酒。有人問：“你去了什么地方？”有人說：“你見到了些什么東西？”

還有人說：“你知道我們有多慘嗎？”

馬西諾先讓大家說了個夠，然后他開始敘述起來：“在非洲我遇到過不吃人只吃蟬的野蠻人；

在沙漠我碰到過一個為了挖地下水而留了十二米長的指甲的瘋子;在海上我見過一條魚穿著

一只皮鞋和一只拖鞋，它想成為眾魚之王，因為別的魚既沒有穿皮鞋的，也沒有穿拖鞋的；

在西西里，我認(rèn)識一位婦女生了七十個兒子，但全家只有一口鍋；在那不勒斯，我看見人們

停住腳也能往前走，因為別人的閑言碎語太厲害了，變成了一股很大的推力；我還看見過圣

人