Kitabı oku: «The Young and Field Literary Readers, Book 2», sayfa 4

THE SHOE

(A man once left his shoe in the woods. The beasts found it. They had never seen anything like it before, so they came together and began to talk about it.)

Bear. It must be the husk or the outside of some fruit.

All the Birds. O, just hear him!

All the Beasts. O, just hear him!

Wolf. No, that is not it. It is some kind of nest. See! Here is the hole at the top, for the bird to go into, and here is the place for the eggs and the young birds.

Birds. O, just hear him!

Bear. Just hear him talk!

Goat. No, you are both wrong. It is the root of some plant.

(He showed them the shoe string hanging at the side.)

See this long, fine root. Surely it is a root!

Birds. O, just hear him talk!

Beasts. Just hear him!

Bear. I tell you it is the husk of a fruit.

Wolf. And I tell you it is a nest.

Goat. And I tell you it is a root. Surely it is a root!

Owl. Let me speak. I have lived among men, and I have seen many such things as this. It is a man's shoe.

Bear. What is a man?

Goat. What is a shoe?

Owl. A man is a thing with two legs. He can stand up like a monkey, he can walk like a bird, but he cannot fly. He can eat and talk, and he can do many things that we cannot do.

Beasts. O, no!

Birds. No, no!

Bear. How can that be? How can anything with two legs do more than we, who have four?

Birds. And this thing you call a man cannot be good for much if he cannot fly.

Goat. But what does the man do with this root?

Owl. It is not a root. I tell you it is a shoe.

Wolf. And what is a shoe?

Owl. It is what the man puts on his feet. He puts one of these shoes on each of his feet.

Birds. Hear the owl talk!

Beasts. Who ever heard of such a thing as a shoe?

Goat. Hear that! The man puts them on his feet!

Wolf. It is not true!

Bear. No, it is not true! The owl doesn't know.

Wolf. You know nothing, Owl. Get out of our woods. You are not fit to live with us.

Bear. Yes, Owl, go away!

Beasts. Leave us! Go away!

Birds. Leave us! Leave us, Owl! You surely don't know what you are talking about!

(The beasts chase the owl out of the woods.)

Owl. (Going off) But it is a shoe, anyway.

THE CAMEL AND THE JACKAL

Once upon a time a camel and a jackal lived together by the side of a river.

One fine morning the jackal said:

"There is a big field of sugar cane over on the other side of the river. Take me on your back, Brother Camel, and I will show you where it is. You may eat all the sugar cane, and I will find some crabs or fish on the shore."

This pleased the camel very much. So he waded through the river and carried the jackal on his back.

The jackal could not swim.

The camel found the sugar cane, and the jackal found some crabs.

The jackal ate much faster than the camel and soon had enough.

"Now, Brother Camel," he said, "take me back. I have had enough."

"But I haven't," said the camel.

So the camel went on eating.

The jackal tried to think how he could make the camel go home.

At last he thought of a way.

He began to bark and to cry and to make such a noise that all the men from the village ran out to see what was going on.

There they found the camel eating the sugar cane, and at once they beat the poor beast with sticks and so drove him out of the field.

"Brother Camel, hadn't you better go home now?" asked the jackal.

"Yes, jackal, jump on my back," said the camel.

The jackal jumped on his back, and the camel waded through the river with him.

As he went, he said to the jackal:

"Brother Jackal, I think you have not been very good to me to-day. Why did you make such a noise?"

"O, I don't know," said the jackal. "It's a way I sometimes have. I like to sing a little, after dinner."

The camel waded on.

When they got out where the water was deep, the camel stopped and said, "Jackal, I feel as if I must roll a little in the water.

"O, no, no!" said the jackal. "Why do you want to do that?"

"O, I don't know," said the camel. "It's a way I sometimes have. I like to roll a little, after dinner."

With that, he rolled over, and the jackal fell into the water.

POEMS BY LAURA E. RICHARDS ¹

THE BUMBLEBEE

 
The bumblebee, the bumblebee,
He flew to the top of the tulip tree.
He flew to the top,
But he could not stop,
For he had to get home to his early tea.
 
 
The bumblebee, the bumblebee,
He flew away from the tulip tree;
But he made a mistake,
And flew into the lake,
And he never got home to his early tea.
 

LITTLE BROWN BOBBY

 
Little Brown Bobby sat on the barn floor,
Little Brown Bossy looked in at the door.
Little Brown Bobby said, "Lackaday!
Who'll drive me this little Brown Bossy away?"
 
 
Little Brown Bobby said, "Shoo! shoo! shoo!"
Little Brown Bossy said, "Moo! moo! moo!"
This frightened them so that both of them cried,
And wished they were back at their mammy's side.
 

JIPPY AND JIMMY

 
Jippy and Jimmy were two little dogs.
They went to sail on some floating logs;
The logs rolled over, the dogs rolled in,
And they got very wet, for their clothes were thin.
 
 
Jippy and Jimmy crept out again.
They said, "The river is full of rain!"
They said, "The water is far from dry!
Ki-hi! ki-hi! ki-hi-yi! ki-hi!"
 
 
Jippy and Jimmy went shivering home.
They said, "On the river no more we will roam;
And we won't go to sail until we learn how,
Bow-wow! bow-wow! bow-wow-wow! bow-wow!"
 

THE SONG OF THE CORN POPPER

 
Pip! pop! flippety flop!
Here am I, all ready to pop.
Girls and boys, the fire burns clear;
Gather about the chimney here,
Big ones, little ones, all in a row.
Hop away! pop away! here we go!
 
 
Pip! pop! flippety flop!
Into the bowl the kernels drop;
Sharp and hard and yellow and small,
Must say they don't look good at all;
But wait till they burst into warm white snow!
Hop away! pop away! here we go!
 
 
Pip! pop! flippety flop!
Shake me steadily; do not stop!
Backward and forward, not up and down;
Don't let me drop, or you'll burn it brown.
Never too high and never too low;
Hop away! pop away! here we go!
 

A FRENCH FAIRY TALE

THE FAIRY

Once on a time there was a woman who had two daughters. The older was very much like her mother, and was very ugly.

The younger was not like her, but was very good and beautiful.

The woman liked the older girl because she was like herself.

She did not like the younger; so she made her do all the hard work.

One day the younger daughter had gone to the spring to get water. It was a long way from home.

As she was standing by the spring, a poor old woman came by and asked her for a drink.

"Indeed, you shall have a drink," said the girl.

She filled her pitcher and gave the old woman some water.

The woman drank, and then said, "You are so kind and good, my dear, that I will give you a gift."

Now this old woman was a fairy, but the girl did not know it.

"I will give you a gift," she said, "and this shall be the gift: With every word that you speak, either a flower or a jewel shall fall from your mouth."

When the younger girl came home, her mother scolded her because she had been so long at the spring.

"I am very sorry indeed, mother," said the girl.

At once two roses, two pearls, and two diamonds fell from her mouth.

"What is this!" cried the mother. "I think I see pearls and diamonds falling out of your mouth! How does this happen, my child?"

This was the first time the woman had ever called her "my child."

The girl told her all that had happened, and while she spoke, many more diamonds fell from her mouth.

"Well, well, well!" said the woman, "I must surely send my dear Fanny to the spring, so that she too may have this gift."

Then she called her older daughter. "Fanny, my dear, come here! See what has happened to your sister. Should you not like to have such diamonds whenever you wish them?

"All you need to do is to go out to the spring to get some water. An old woman will ask for a drink and you will give it to her."

"I think I see myself going out there to the spring to get water!" said the older daughter.

"Go at once!" said the mother.

So the older daughter went.

She took with her the best silver pitcher in the house, and grumbled all the way.

When she had come to the spring, she saw a lady in beautiful clothes standing under a tree.

The lady came to her and asked for a drink.

It was really the fairy, but now she looked like a princess.

The older daughter did not know that it was the fairy, so she said:

"Do you think that I came to the spring to get water just for you, or that I brought this fine silver pitcher so that you could drink from it? Drink from the spring if you wish."

"You are not very polite, I think," said the fairy, "but I will give you a gift, and this shall be the gift: With every word that you speak, either a snake or a toad shall fall from your mouth."

When the older daughter went back to the house, her mother called out, "Well, daughter?"

"Well, mother," said the girl, and as she spoke, a snake and a toad fell out of her mouth.

"What!" cried the mother. "Your sister has done all this, but she shall pay for it!"

With that, the mother took a stick and ran after the younger daughter.

The poor child ran away from her and hid in the woods.

The prince of that country had been hunting and happened to pass through those woods on his way home.

He saw the young girl and asked her why she was standing there and crying, all alone in the woods.

"O sir, my mother has turned me out of the house," she said.

The prince was greatly surprised to see five or six pearls and as many diamonds fall from her mouth as she spoke.

"Tell me how all this happened," said the prince.

So she told him all about it.

The prince took her with him, and they went to the king's house, and there they were married, and were very happy.

But the older sister grew more and more ugly in her heart, until even her mother could not live with her.

So her mother turned her out, and no one ever heard of her again.

A NORSE FOLK TALE

EAST OF THE SUN AND WEST OF THE MOON

Once there was a poor woodcutter who had so many children that it was hard to get enough for them to eat.

They were all pretty children, but the youngest daughter was the prettiest of them all.

One cold, dark night in the fall they were sitting around the fire, when all at once something went rap! rap! rap! on the window.

The father went out to see what it was, and there stood a big white bear.

"Good evening," said the bear.

"The same to you," said the man.

"Give me your youngest daughter, and you shall be rich," said the bear.

"You can't have her," said the man.

"Think it over," said the bear, "I will come again next week."

Then the bear went away.

They talked it over and at last the youngest daughter said that she would go away with the bear when he came back.

Next Thursday night they heard the rap! rap! rap! on the window, and there was the white bear again.

The girl went out and climbed up on his back and off they went.

When they had gone a little way, the bear turned around and asked, "Are you afraid?"

No, she was not afraid.

"Well, hold fast to me, and there will be nothing to be afraid of," said the bear.

They went a long, long way, until they came to a great hill.

The bear knocked on the ground, and a door opened. They went in.

It was a castle, with many lights, and it shone with silver and gold.

The white bear gave to the girl a silver bell, and said to her, "Ring this bell when you want anything."

Then he went away.

Every night, when all the lights had been put out, the bear came and talked with her. He slept in a bed in the great hall.

But it was so dark that she could never see him, or know how he looked, and when she took his paw, it was not like a paw. It was like a hand.

She wanted so much to see him! but he told her she must not.

At last she felt that she could not wait any longer.

So one night, when he was asleep, she lighted a candle and bent over and looked at him.

What do you think she saw?

It was not a bear, but a prince, and the most beautiful prince that was ever seen!

She was so surprised that her hand began to shake, and three drops from the candle fell upon the coat of the prince.

This woke him up.

"What have you done?" he cried. "You have brought trouble upon us. An ugly witch turned me into a bear, but every night I am myself again, and if you had waited only a year, and had not tried to find me out, I should have been free.

"Now I must go back to my other castle and marry an ugly princess with a nose three yards long."

The girl cried and cried and cried, but it did no good.

She asked if she could go with him, but he said that she could not.

"Tell me the way there," she said, "and I will find you."

"It is East of the Sun and West of the Moon, but there is no way to it," he said.

Next morning when the girl awoke, she found herself all alone in the deep woods.

She set out and walked and walked till she came to a very old woman sitting under a hill. The old woman had a golden apple in her hand.

The girl asked the woman to tell her the way to the castle of the prince who lived East of the Sun and West of the Moon.

The old woman didn't know, but she gave the girl the golden apple, and lent her a horse, and said to her:

"Ask my next neighbor. Maybe she will know. And when you find her, switch my horse under the left ear and tell him to be off home."

So the girl got on the horse and rode until she came to an old woman with a golden comb. This old woman answered her as the first had done, and lent her another horse and gave her the golden comb.

The girl got on the horse and rode till she came to another old woman spinning on a golden spinning wheel. This old woman did as the others had done, and lent her another horse and gave her the golden spinning wheel.

"You might ask the East Wind. Maybe he will know," she said.

So the girl rode on until she came to the house of the East Wind.

"I have heard of the prince and his castle, but I never went so far as that," said the East Wind.

"Get on my back, and I will carry you to my brother, the West Wind. Maybe he will know."

She got on his back, and away they went. O how fast they went!

At last they found the West Wind, but he had never been so far as the castle of the prince.

"Get on my back," said West Wind, "and I will take you to our brother, the South Wind. He will know, for he has been everywhere."

So she got on the West Wind, and away they went to the South Wind.

"It is a long way to that castle," said the South Wind, with a sigh. "I have never been so far as that, but our brother, the North Wind, is stronger than any of us. If he has not been there, you will never find the way, and you might as well give it up. So get on my back, and I will take you to him."

The girl got on the back of the South Wind, and soon they came to where the North Wind lived.

"Boo-oo-oo! What do you want?" roared the North Wind.

"Here is a girl who is looking for the prince that lives East of the Sun and West of the Moon. Do you know where that is?" asked the South Wind.

"Yes, once I blew a leaf as far as that, and I was so tired after it that I couldn't blow for a long time. But if you are sure you want to go and are not afraid, I'll take you."

Yes, she was sure she wanted to go.

North Wind blew himself out so big that he was dreadful to look at.

But she jumped on his back, and away they went.

How they did go!

The North Wind grew so tired that he almost had to stop.

His feet began to trail in the sea.

"Are you afraid?" he asked.

No, she was not afraid.

So they kept going on and on, till at last they came to the castle, and the North Wind put her down and went away and left her.

The next morning, as she sat there, Princess Long-Nose looked out of the window.

"What will you take for your big golden apple?" asked Long-Nose.

"It is not for sale," said the girl.

"I will give you anything you ask," said Long-Nose.

"Let me speak to the prince, and you may have it," said the girl.

"Very well," said Long-Nose.

She made the girl wait till night, and then let her in, but the prince was fast asleep.

He would not wake up.

Long-Nose had given him a kind of drink to make him sleep soundly.

So the girl went sadly out.

Next morning Long-Nose looked out of the window and said to her, "What will you take for the comb?"

"It is not for sale," said the girl.

Long-Nose said that the girl might see the prince again if she would give her the comb.

So she saw the prince again, but he was asleep as before.

Next morning Long-Nose looked out and saw the spinning wheel.