特別英語小故事 安徒生童話10

      

文章內(nèi)容

THE OLD HOUSE

In the street, up there, was an old, a very old house--it was almost three hundred years old, for that might be known by reading the great beam on which the date of the year was carved: together with tulips and hop-binds there were whole verses spelled as in former times, and over every window was a distorted face cut out in the beam. The one story stood forward a great way over the other; and directly under the eaves was a leaden spout with a dragon's head; the rain-water should have run out of the mouth, but it ran out of the belly, for there was a hole in the spout.

All the other houses in the street were so new and so neat, with large window panes and smooth walls, one could easily see that they would have nothing to do with the old house: they certainly thought, "How long is that old decayed thing to stand here as a spectacle in the street? And then the projecting windows stand so far out, that no one can see from our windows what happens in that direction! The steps are as broad as those of a palace, and as high as to a church tower. The iron railings look just like the door to an old family vault, and then they have brass tops--that's so stupid!"

On the other side of the street were also new and neat houses, and they thought just as the others did; but at the window opposite the old house there sat a little boy with fresh rosy cheeks and bright beaming eyes: he certainly liked the old house best, and that both in sunshine and moonshine. And when he looked across at the wall where the mortar had fallen out, he could sit and find out there the strangest figures imaginable; exactly as the street had appeared before, with steps, projecting windows, and pointed gables; he could see soldiers with halberds, and spouts where the water ran, like dragons and serpents. That was a house to look at; and there lived an old man, who wore plush breeches; and he had a coat with large brass buttons, and a wig that one could see was a real wig. Every morning there came an old fellow to him who put his rooms in order, and went on errands; otherwise, the old man in the plush breeches was quite alone in the old house. Now and then he came to the window and looked out, and the little boy nodded to him, and the old man nodded again, and so they became acquaintances, and then they were friends, although they had never spoken to each other--but that made no difference. The little boy heard his parents say, "The old man opposite is very well off, but he is so very, very lonely!"

The Sunday following, the little boy took something, and wrapped it up in a piece of paper, went downstairs, and stood in the doorway; and when the man who went on errands came past, he said to him--"I say, master! will you give this to the old man over the way from me? I have two pewter soldiers--this is one of them, and he shall have it, for I know he is so very, very lonely."

And the old errand man looked quite pleased, nodded, and took the pewter soldier over to the old house. Afterwards there came a message; it was to ask if the little boy himself had not a wish to come over and pay a visit; and so he got permission of his parents, and then went over to the old house.

And the brass balls on the iron railings shone much brighter than ever; one would have thought they were polished on account of the visit; and it was as if the carved-out trumpeters--for there were trumpeters, who stood in tulips, carved out on the door--blew with all their might, their cheeks appeared so much rounder than before. Yes, they blew--"Trateratra! The little boy comes! Trateratra!"--and then the door opened.

The whole passage was hung with portraits of knights in armor, and ladies in silken gowns; and the armor rattled, and the silken gowns rustled! And then there was a flight of stairs which went a good way upwards, and a little way downwards, and then one came on a balcony which was in a very dilapidated state, sure enough, with large holes and long crevices, but grass grew there and leaves out of them altogether, for the whole balcony outside, the yard, and the walls, were overgrown with so much green stuff, that it looked like a garden; only a balcony. Here stood old flower-pots with faces and asses' ears, and the flowers grew just as they liked. One of the pots was quite overrun on all sides with pinks, that is to say, with the green part; shoot stood by shoot, and it said quite distinctly, "The air has cherished me, the sun has kissed me, and promised me a little flower on Sunday! a little flower on Sunday!"

And then they entered a chamber where the walls were covered with hog's leather, and printed with gold flowers.

"The gilding decays, but hog's leather stays!" said the walls.

And there stood easy-chairs, with such high backs, and so carved out, and with arms on both sides. "Sit down! sit down!" said they. "Ugh! how I creak; now I shall certainly get the gout, like the old clothespress, ugh!"

And then the little boy came into the room where the projecting windows were, and where the old man sat.

"I thank you for the pewter soldier, my little friend!" said the old man. "And I thank you because you come over to me."

"Thankee! thankee!" or "cranky! cranky!" sounded from all the furniture; there was so much of it, that each article stood in the other's way, to get a look at the little boy.

In the middle of the wall hung a picture representing a beautiful lady, so young, so glad, but dressed quite as in former times, with clothes that stood quite stiff, and with powder in her hair; she neither said "thankee, thankee!" nor "cranky, cranky!" but looked with her mild eyes at the little boy, who directly asked the old man, "Where did you get her?"

"Yonder, at the broker's," said the old man, "where there are so many pictures hanging. No one knows or cares about them, for they are all of them buried; but I knew her in by-gone days, and now she has been dead and gone these fifty years!"

Under the picture, in a glazed frame, there hung a bouquet of withered flowers; they were almost fifty years old; they looked so very old!

The pendulum of the great clock went to and fro, and the hands turned, and everything in the room became still older; but they did not observe it.

"They say at home," said the little boy, "that you are so very, very lonely!"

"Oh!" said he. "The old thoughts, with what they may bring with them, come and visit me, and now you also come! I am very well off!"

Then he took a book with pictures in it down from the shelf; there were whole long processions and pageants, with the strangest characters, which one never sees now-a-days; soldiers like the knave of clubs, and citizens with waving flags: the tailors had theirs, with a pair of shears held by two lions--and the shoemakers theirs, without boots, but with an eagle that had two heads, for the shoemakers must have everything so that they can say, it is a pair! Yes, that was a picture book!

The old man now went into the other room to fetch preserves, apples, and nuts--yes, it was delightful over there in the old house.

"I cannot bear it any longer!" said the pewter soldier, who sat on the drawers. "It is so lonely and melancholy here! But when one has been in a family circle one cannot accustom oneself to this life! I cannot bear it any longer! The whole day is so long, and the evenings are still longer! Here it is not at all as it is over the way at your home, where your father and mother spoke so pleasantly, and where you and all your sweet children made such a delightful noise. Nay, how lonely the old man is--do you think that he gets kisses? Do you think he gets mild eyes, or a Christmas tree? He will get nothing but a grave! I can bear it no longer!"

"You must not let it grieve you so much," said the little boy. "I find it so very delightful here, and then all the old thoughts, with what they may bring with them, they come and visit here."

"Yes, it's all very well, but I see nothing of them, and I don't know them!" said the pewter soldier. "I cannot bear it!"

"But you must!" said the little boy.

Then in came the old man with the most pleased and happy face, the most delicious preserves, apples, and nuts, and so the little boy thought no more about the pewter soldier.

The little boy returned home happy and pleased, and weeks and days passed away, and nods were made to the old house, and from the old house, and then the little boy went over there again.

The carved trumpeters blew, "Trateratra! There is the little boy! Trateratra!" and the swords and armor on the knights' portraits rattled, and the silk gowns rustled; the hog's leather spoke, and the old chairs had the gout in their legs and rheumatism in their backs: Ugh! it was exactly like the first time, for over there one day and hour was just like another.

"I cannot bear it!" said the pewter soldier. "I have shed pewter tears! It is too melancholy! Rather let me go to the wars and lose arms and legs! It would at least be a change. I cannot bear it longer! Now, I know what it is to have a visit from one's old thoughts, with what they may bring with them! I have had a visit from mine, and you may be sure it is no pleasant thing in the end; I was at last about to jump down from the drawers.

"I saw you all over there at home so distinctly, as if you really were here; it was again that Sunday morning; all you children stood before the table and sung your Psalms, as you do every morning. You stood devoutly with folded hands; and father and mother were just as pious; and then the door was opened, and little sister Mary, who is not two years old yet, and who always dances when she hears music or singing, of whatever kind it may be, was put into the room--though she ought not to have been there--and then she began to dance, but could not keep time, because the tones were so long; and then she stood, first on the one leg, and bent her head forwards, and then on the other leg, and bent her head forwards--but all would not do. You stood very seriously all together, although it was difficult enough; but I laughed to myself, and then I fell off the table, and got a bump, which I have still--for it was not right of me to laugh. But the whole now passes before me again in thought, and everything that I have lived to see; and these are the old thoughts, with what they may bring with them.

"Tell me if you still sing on Sundays? Tell me something about little Mary! And how my comrade, the other pewter soldier, lives! Yes, he is happy enough, that's sure! I cannot bear it any longer!"

"You are given away as a present!" said the little boy. "You must remain. Can you not understand that?"

The old man now came with a drawer, in which there was much to be seen, both "tin boxes" and "balsam boxes," old cards, so large and so gilded, such as one never sees them now. And several drawers were opened, and the piano was opened; it had landscapes on the inside of the lid, and it was so hoarse when the old man played on it! and then he hummed a song.

"Yes, she could sing that!" said he, and nodded to the portrait, which he had bought at the broker's, and the old man's eyes shone so bright!

"I will go to the wars! I will go to the wars!" shouted the pewter soldier as loud as he could, and threw himself off the drawers right down on the floor. What became of him? The old man sought, and the little boy sought; he was away, and he stayed away.

"I shall find him!" said the old man; but he never found him. The floor was too open--the pewter soldier had fallen through a crevice, and there he lay as in an open tomb.

That day passed, and the little boy went home, and that week passed, and several weeks too. The windows were quite frozen, the little boy was obliged to sit and breathe on them to get a peep-hole over to the old house, and there the snow had been blown into all the carved work and inscriptions; it lay quite up over the steps, just as if there was no one at home--nor was there any one at home--the old man was dead!

In the evening there was a hearse seen before the door, and he was borne into it in his coffin: he was now to go out into the country, to lie in his grave. He was driven out there, but no one followed; all his friends were dead, and the little boy kissed his hand to the coffin as it was driven away.

Some days afterwards there was an auction at the old house, and the little boy saw from his window how they carried the old knights and the old ladies away, the flower-pots with the long ears, the old chairs, and the old clothes-presses. Something came here, and something came there; the portrait of her who had been found at the broker's came to the broker's again; and there it hung, for no one knew her more--no one cared about the old picture.

In the spring they pulled the house down, for, as people said, it was a ruin. One could see from the street right into the room with the hog's-leather hanging, which was slashed and torn; and the green grass and leaves about the balcony hung quite wild about the falling beams. And then it was put to rights.

"That was a relief," said the neighboring houses.

A fine house was built there, with large windows, and smooth white walls; but before it, where the old house had in fact stood, was a little garden laid out, and a wild grapevine ran up the wall of the neighboring house. Before the garden there was a large iron railing with an iron door, it looked quite splendid, and people stood still and peeped in, and the sparrows hung by scores in the vine, and chattered away at each other as well as they could, but it was not about the old house, for they could not remember it, so many years had passed--so many that the little boy had grown up to a whole man, yes, a clever man, and a pleasure to his parents; and he had just been married, and, together with his little wife, had come to live in the house here, where the garden was; and he stood by her there whilst she planted a field-flower that she found so pretty; she planted it with her little hand, and pressed the earth around it with her fingers. Oh! what was that? She had stuck herself. There sat something pointed, straight out of the soft mould.

It was--yes, guess! It was the pewter soldier, he that was lost up at the old man's, and had tumbled and turned about amongst the timber and the rubbish, and had at last laid for many years in the ground.

The young wife wiped the dirt off the soldier, first with a green leaf, and then with her fine handkerchief--it had such a delightful smell, that it was to the pewter soldier just as if he had awaked from a trance.

"Let me see him," said the young man. He laughed, and then shook his head. "Nay, it cannot be he; but he reminds me of a story about a pewter soldier which I had when I was a little boy!" And then he told his wife about the old house, and the old man, and about the pewter soldier that he sent over to him because he was so very, very lonely; and he told it as correctly as it had really been, so that the tears came into the eyes of his young wife, on account of the old house and the old man.

"It may possibly be, however, that it is the same pewter soldier!" said she.

"I will take care of it, and remember all that you have told me; but you must show me the old man's grave!"

"But I do not know it," said he, "and no one knows it! All his friends were dead, no one took care of it, and I was then a little boy!"

"How very, very lonely he must have been!" said she.

"Very, very lonely!" said the pewter soldier. "But it is delightful not to be forgotten!"

"Delightful!" shouted something close by; but no one, except the pewter soldier, saw that it was a piece of the hog's-leather hangings; it had lost all its gilding, it looked like a piece of wet clay, but it had an opinion, and it gave it:

"The gilding decays, but hog's leather stays!" This the pewter soldier did not believe.

老房子

街上有一幢很老很老的房子,，它幾乎有３００年的歷史,，這一點(diǎn),，人們在它的大梁上就可以看得出來,；那上面刻著郁金香和牽藤的啤酒花花紋——在這中間刻著的是它興建的年月,。在那上面人們還可以看到整首用古老的字體刻出來的詩篇,。在每個(gè)窗子上的桁條上還刻著做出譏笑樣子的臉譜,。第二層樓比第一層樓向外突出很多,；屋檐下有一個(gè)刻著龍頭的鉛水筧,。雨水本來應(yīng)該是從龍的嘴里流出來的，但它卻從它的肚皮中冒出來了,，因?yàn)樗a有一個(gè)洞,。

街上所有的別的房子都是很新、很整齊的,；它們的墻很光,，窗玻璃很寬,，人們可以看得出，它們不愿意跟這座老房子有什么來往,。它們無疑地在想：“那個(gè)老垃圾堆作為街上的一個(gè)笑柄還能站得住多久呢,？它的吊窗凸出墻外太遠(yuǎn)，誰也不能從我們的窗子這邊看到那邊所發(fā)生的事情,。它的樓梯寬得像宮殿里的樓梯,，高得像是要通到一個(gè)教堂的塔里面去。它的鐵欄桿像一個(gè)家庭墓窖的門——上面還裝置著黃銅小球,。這真可笑,！”

它的對面也是整齊的新房子。它們也有同樣的看法,。不過這兒有一個(gè)孩子坐在窗子里面,。他有一副紅潤的面孔和一對閃耀的眼睛。他特別喜歡這幢老房子,，不論在太陽光里或在月光里都是這樣,。他看到那些泥灰全都脫落了的墻壁，就坐著幻想出許多奇怪的圖景來——這條街,、那些樓梯,、吊窗和尖尖的山形墻，在古時(shí)會像一個(gè)什么樣子呢,？他可以看到拿著戟的兵士,，以及形狀像龍和鮫的水筧。這的確是一幢值得一看的房子,！那里面住著一個(gè)老人,。他穿著一條天鵝絨的馬褲，一件有大黃銅扣子的上衣,；他還戴著一副假發(fā)①——人們一眼就可以看出這是真正的假發(fā)。每天早晨有一個(gè)老仆人來為他打掃房間和跑腿,。除此以外,，這座老房子里就只孤獨(dú)地住著這位穿天鵝絨馬褲的老人了。他偶爾來到窗子跟前,，朝外面望一眼,。這時(shí)這個(gè)小孩就對他點(diǎn)點(diǎn)頭，作為回答,。他們就這樣相互認(rèn)識了,，而且成了朋友，雖然他們從來沒有講過一句話,。不過事實(shí)上也沒有這個(gè)必要,。小孩曾經(jīng)聽到他的父母說過：“對面的那個(gè)老人很富有,，不過他是非常孤獨(dú)的！”

①古時(shí)歐洲的紳士和富有的人常常戴著假發(fā),，以掩住禿頂,，同時(shí)也借此顯得尊嚴(yán)一些。

在下一個(gè)星期天,，這孩子用一張紙包了一點(diǎn)東西,，走到門口。當(dāng)那個(gè)為這老人跑腿的仆人走過時(shí),，他就對他說：“請聽著,！你能不能把這東西帶給對面的那個(gè)老人呢？我有兩個(gè)錫兵①,。這是其中的一個(gè),；我要送給他，因?yàn)槲抑浪欠浅９陋?dú)的,?！?BR>
①錫兵，這里是指用鍍錫鐵皮做成的玩具兵,。

老仆人表示出高興的樣子,。他點(diǎn)了點(diǎn)頭，于是就把錫兵帶到老房子里去了,。不久他就來問小孩,，愿意不愿意親自去拜訪一次。他的爸爸媽媽準(zhǔn)許他去,。所以他就去拜訪那個(gè)老房子了,。

臺階欄桿上的那些銅球比平時(shí)要光亮得多；人們很可能以為這是專門為了他的拜訪而擦亮的,。那些雕刻出來的號手——因?yàn)殚T上都刻著號手,，他們立在郁金香花里——都在使勁地吹喇叭；他們的雙頰比以前要圓得多,。是的,，他們在吹：“嗒—嗒—啦—啦！小朋友到來了,！嗒—嗒—啦—啦,！”于是門便開了。

整個(gè)走廊里掛滿了古老的畫像：穿著鎧甲的騎士和穿著絲綢的女子,。鎧甲發(fā)出響聲,，綢衣在窸窸窣窣地顫動。接著就是一個(gè)樓梯,。它高高地伸向上面去,，然后就略微彎下一點(diǎn),。這時(shí)他就來到一個(gè)陽臺上。它的確快要坍塌了,。處處是長長的裂痕和大洞,，不過它們里面卻長出了許多草和葉子。因?yàn)殛柵_,、院子和墻都長滿了那么多的綠色植物,，所以它們整個(gè)看起來像一個(gè)花園。但這還不過是一個(gè)陽臺,。

這兒有些古舊的花盆,；它們都有一個(gè)面孔和驢耳朵?；▋鹤杂勺栽诘仉S處亂長,。有一個(gè)花盆全被石竹花鋪滿了，這也就是說：長滿了綠葉子,，冒出了許多嫩芽——它們在很清楚地說：“空氣撫愛著我,，太陽吻著我，同時(shí)答應(yīng)讓我在下星期日開出一朵小花——下星期日開出一朵小花啦,！”

于是他走進(jìn)一個(gè)房間,。這兒的墻上全都糊滿了豬皮；豬皮上印著金花,。墻兒說：鍍金消失得很快,，但豬皮永遠(yuǎn)不壞！沿墻擺著許多高背靠椅,；每張椅子都刻著花,，而且還有扶手。

“請坐吧,！請坐吧,！”它們說?！鞍?，我的身體真要裂開了！像那個(gè)老碗柜一樣,，我想我一定得了痛風(fēng)??！我背上得了痛風(fēng)病,，噢！”

不一會兒孩子走進(jìn)一個(gè)客廳,，那個(gè)吊窗就在這兒,，那個(gè)老人也在這兒,。

“親愛的小朋友，多謝你送給我的錫兵,！”老人說,，“多謝你來看我！”

“謝謝,！謝謝,！”——也可以說是——“嘎！啪,！”這是所有的家具講的話,。它們的數(shù)目很多，當(dāng)它們都來看這孩子的時(shí)候,，它們幾乎擠做一團(tuán),。

墻中央掛著一個(gè)美麗女子的畫像。她的樣子很年輕和快樂,，但是卻穿著古時(shí)的衣服,；她的頭發(fā)和挺直的衣服都撲滿了粉。她既不說“謝謝”,，也不說“啪”,；她只是用溫和的眼睛望著這個(gè)小孩子。他當(dāng)時(shí)就問這老人：“您從什么地方弄到這張像的,？”

“從對面的那個(gè)舊貨商人那里,！”老人說?！澳莾簰熘S多畫像,。誰也不認(rèn)識他們，也不愿意去管他們,，因?yàn)樗麄冊缇捅宦裨岬袅?。不過從前我認(rèn)識這個(gè)女子，現(xiàn)在她已經(jīng)死了,，而且死了半個(gè)世紀(jì)啦,。”

在這幅畫下邊,，在玻璃的后面,，掛著一個(gè)枯萎了的花束。它們無疑也有半個(gè)世紀(jì)的歷史,，因?yàn)樗鼈兊臉幼右埠芄爬?。那個(gè)大鐘的擺搖來搖去；鐘上的針在轉(zhuǎn)動。這房間里每件東西在時(shí)時(shí)刻刻地變老,，但是人們卻不覺得,。

小孩子說：“家里的人說，你一直是非常孤獨(dú)的,！”

“哎,，”老人說，“舊時(shí)的回憶以及與回憶相聯(lián)的事情,，都來拜訪,，現(xiàn)在你也來拜訪了！我感到非?？鞓?！”

于是他從書架上取出一本畫冊：那里面有許多我們現(xiàn)在見不到的華麗的馬車行列，許多打扮得像紙牌上的“賈克”的兵士和揮著旗子的市民,。裁縫揮著的旗幟上繪著一把由兩只獅子抬著的大剪刀,；鞋匠揮著的旗子上繪有一只雙頭鷹——不是靴子，因?yàn)樾潮仨毎岩磺袞|西安排得使人一看就說：“那是一雙,?！笔堑模褪沁@樣的一本畫冊,！

老人走到另外一個(gè)房間里去拿出一些蜜餞,、蘋果和硬殼果來——這個(gè)老房子里的一切東西真是可愛。

“我再也忍受不了,！”立在五斗柜上的那個(gè)錫兵說,。“這兒是那么寂寞,，那么悲哀,。一個(gè)慣于過家庭生活的人，在這兒實(shí)在住不下去,！我再也忍受不了,！日子已經(jīng)夠長了，而晚間卻是更長,！這兒的情形跟他們那兒的情形完全不一樣,。你的爸爸和媽媽總是愉快地在一起聊天，你和別的一些可愛的孩子也發(fā)出高興的鬧聲,。嗨,！這個(gè)老人，他是多么寂寞??！你以為他會得到什么吻么？你以為會有人溫和地看他一眼么？或者他會有一棵圣誕樹么,？他什么也沒有，只有等死,！我再也忍受不了,！”

“你不能老是從悲哀的角度去看事情呀！”小孩子說,?！拔矣X得這兒什么東西都可愛！而且舊時(shí)的回憶以及與回憶相聯(lián)的事情都到這兒來拜訪,！”

“是的,，但是我看不見它們，也不認(rèn)識它們,！”錫兵說,。

“我再也忍受不了！”

“你要忍受下去,?！毙『⒆诱f。

這時(shí)老人帶著一副最愉快的面孔和最甜美的蜜餞,、蘋果以及硬殼果走來了,。小孩子便不再想起錫兵了。這個(gè)小年輕人,，懷著幸福和高興的心情,，回到家來。許多日子,、許多星期過去了,。和對面那個(gè)老房子，又有許多往返不停的點(diǎn)頭,。最后小孩子又走過去拜訪了,。

那些雕刻的號手又吹起：“嗒—啦—啦，嗒—啦—啦,！小朋友又來了,！嗒—啦—啦！”

接著那些騎士身上的劍和鎧甲又響起來了,，那些綢衣服又沙沙地動起來了,。那些豬皮又講起話來了，那些老椅子的背上又有痛風(fēng)病了,。噢,！這跟頭一次來的時(shí)候完全一樣，因?yàn)樵谶@兒，這一天,，這一點(diǎn)鐘完全跟另一天,，另一點(diǎn)鐘是一樣。

“我再也忍受不了,！”錫兵說,。“我已經(jīng)哭出了錫眼淚,！這兒是太悲哀了,！我寧愿上戰(zhàn)場，犧牲掉我的手和腳——這種生活總算還有點(diǎn)變化,。我再也忍受不了,！現(xiàn)在我才懂得，回憶以及與回憶相聯(lián)的事情來拜訪是一種什么味道,！我的回憶也來拜訪了,。請相信我，結(jié)果并不是太愉快,。我?guī)缀跻獜奈宥饭裆咸聛砹?。你們在對面房子里面的情形，我看得清清楚楚,，好像你們就在這兒一樣,。又是一個(gè)禮拜天的早晨——你們都很熟悉的一天！你們孩子們圍著桌子站著,，唱你們每天早晨唱的圣詩,。你們把手合在一起，莊嚴(yán)地站著,；爸爸和媽媽也是同樣地莊嚴(yán),。于是門開了，小妹妹瑪利亞被領(lǐng)進(jìn)來了——她還不到兩歲,；無論什么時(shí)候,，只要她聽到音樂或歌聲，而且不管什么音樂或歌聲,，她就跳起舞來,。她還不大會跳，但是她卻要馬上跳起來,，雖然她跳得不合拍子,，因?yàn)榕淖邮翘L了。她先用一只腿站著,，把頭向前彎,，然后又用另一只腿站著,，又把頭向前彎，可是這次卻彎得不好,。你們都站著不做一聲,，雖然這是很困難的。但是我在心里卻笑起來了,，因此我就從桌上滾下來了,，而且還跌出一個(gè)包來——這個(gè)包現(xiàn)在還在——因?yàn)槲倚κ遣粚Φ摹５沁@一切,，以及我所經(jīng)歷過的許多事情，現(xiàn)在又來到我的心里——這一定就是回憶以及與回憶相聯(lián)的事情了,。請告訴我,，你們?nèi)匀辉诙Y拜天唱歌嗎？請告訴我一點(diǎn)關(guān)于小瑪利亞的消息好嗎,？我的老朋友——那另一個(gè)錫兵——現(xiàn)在怎樣了,？是的，他一定是很快樂的,！——我卻是再也忍受不了,！”

“你已經(jīng)被送給別人了！”小孩子說,?！澳銘?yīng)該安心下來。這一點(diǎn)你還看不出來嗎,？”

這時(shí)那個(gè)老人拿著一個(gè)抽屜走進(jìn)來,。抽屜里有許多東西可看：粉盒、香膏盒,、舊撲克牌——它們都很大,，還鍍著金，現(xiàn)在我們是看不到這樣的東西的,。他還抽開了許多抽屜,，拉開了一架鋼琴，鋼琴蓋上繪著風(fēng)景畫,。當(dāng)這老人彈著的時(shí)候,，鋼琴就發(fā)出粗啞的聲音。于是他就哼出一支歌來,。

“是的,，她也能唱這支歌！”他說,。于是他就對這幅從舊貨商人那兒買來的畫點(diǎn)點(diǎn)頭,。老人的眼睛變得明亮起來了,。“我要到戰(zhàn)場上去,！我要到戰(zhàn)場上去,！”錫兵盡量提高嗓子大叫；接著他就栽到地上去了,。是的,，他到什么地方去了呢？老人在找,，小孩也在找,，但是他不見了，他失蹤了,?！拔視业剿模　崩先苏f,。不過他永遠(yuǎn)也沒有找到他,，因?yàn)榈匕迳嫌性S多洞和裂口。錫兵滾到一個(gè)裂口里去了,。他躺在那里,，好像躺在一個(gè)沒有蓋土的墳?zāi)估镆粯印?BR>
這一天過去了。小孩子回到家里,。一星期又過去了,，接著又有許多星期過去了。窗子上都結(jié)了冰,，小孩子得坐下來,，在窗玻璃上用嘴哈氣融出一個(gè)小視孔來看看那座老房子。雪花飄進(jìn)那些刻花和刻字中間去,，把整個(gè)臺階都蓋住了,，好像這座老房子里沒有住著什么人似的。的確,，這里現(xiàn)在沒有人,，因?yàn)槟莻€(gè)老人已經(jīng)死了！

黃昏的時(shí)候,，門外停著一輛馬車,。人們把他放進(jìn)棺材，抬上馬車,。他不久就要給埋進(jìn)他鄉(xiāng)下的墳?zāi)估?，他現(xiàn)在就要被運(yùn)到那兒去，可是沒有人來送葬,，因?yàn)樗械呐笥讯家呀?jīng)死了,。當(dāng)棺材被運(yùn)走的時(shí)候,，小孩子在后面用手對他飛吻。

幾天以后,，這座老房子里舉行一次拍賣,。小孩子從他的窗子里看到那些古老的騎士和女子、那些有長耳朵的花盆,、那些古舊的椅子和碗柜,，統(tǒng)統(tǒng)都被人搬走了。有的搬到這兒去,，有的搬到那兒去,。她的畫像——在那個(gè)舊貨商店里找來的——仍然回到那個(gè)舊貨商店里去了，而且一直掛在那里,，因?yàn)檎l也不認(rèn)識她,，誰也不愿意要一張老畫。到了春天,，這座房子就被拆掉了,，因?yàn)槿藗冋f它是一堆爛垃圾,。人們可以從街上一眼就看到墻上貼著豬皮的那個(gè)房間,。這些皮已經(jīng)被拉下來了，并且被撕碎了,。陽臺上那些綠色植物凌亂地在倒下的屋梁間懸著?，F(xiàn)在人們要把這塊地方掃清。

“這才好啦,！”周圍的房子說,。

一幢漂亮的新房子建立起來了；它有寬大的窗子和平整的白墻,。不過那座老房子原來所在的地方恰恰成了一個(gè)小花園,。鄰近的墻上長滿了野生的葡萄藤?；▓@前面有一道鐵欄桿和一個(gè)鐵門,。它們的樣子很莊嚴(yán)。行人在它們面前停下步子,，朝里面望,。

麻雀成群地棲在葡萄藤上，嘰嘰喳喳地互相叫著,。不過它們不是談著關(guān)于那幢老房子的事情,，因?yàn)樗鼈冇洸磺迥切┦隆ＴS多年已經(jīng)過去了,，那個(gè)小孩子已經(jīng)長大成人,，長成了一個(gè)像他父母所期望的有能力的人,。他剛結(jié)婚不久。他要同他的妻子搬進(jìn)這幢有小花園的房子里來,。當(dāng)她正在栽一棵她認(rèn)為很美麗的野花的時(shí)候,，他站在她的身邊。她用小巧的手栽著花,，用指頭在花周圍緊按上些泥土,。

“噢！這是什么,？”她覺得有件什么東西刺著了她,。

有一件尖東西在柔軟的泥土里冒出來了。想想看吧,！這就是那個(gè)錫兵——在那個(gè)老人房間里跑掉的錫兵,。他曾經(jīng)在爛木頭和垃圾里混了很久，最后又在土里睡了許多年,。年輕的妻子先用一片綠葉子,、然后又用她美麗的、噴香的手帕把錫兵擦干凈,。錫兵好像是從昏睡中恢復(fù)了知覺,。

“讓我瞧瞧他吧！”年輕人說,。于是他笑起來,，搖著頭。

“??！這不可能就是他，但是他使我記起了我小時(shí)候跟一個(gè)錫兵的一段故事,！”

于是他就對他的妻子講了關(guān)于那座老房子,、那個(gè)老人和錫兵的故事。他把錫兵送給了老人,，因?yàn)樗悄敲垂陋?dú),。他講得那么仔細(xì)，好像是真事一樣,。年輕的妻子不禁為那座老房子和那個(gè)老人流出淚來,。

“這也許就是那個(gè)錫兵！”她說,?！白屛野阉４嫫饋恚员阌涀∧闼嬖V我的這些事情,。但是你得把那個(gè)老人的墳指給我看,！”

“我不知道它在什么地方呀,，”他說，“誰也不知道它,！他所有的朋友都死了,；沒有誰去照料它，而我自己那時(shí)還不過是一個(gè)小孩了,！”

“那么他一定是一個(gè)非常孤獨(dú)的人了,！”她說。

“是的,，可怕地孤獨(dú),！”錫兵說，“不過他居然沒有被人忘記掉,，倒也真使人高興,！”

“高興！”旁邊一個(gè)聲音喊,。但是除了錫兵以外,，誰也看不出這就是過去貼在墻上的一塊豬皮。它上面的鍍金已經(jīng)全沒有了,。它的樣子很像潮濕的泥土,，但它還是有它的意見。它說：

鍍金消失得很快,，

但豬皮永遠(yuǎn)不壞,！

不過錫兵不相信這套理論,。

（１８４８年）

這個(gè)故事收集在《新的童話》第二卷第二輯里,，主人公是一位基本上已經(jīng)是快要走完人生道路的老人和一個(gè)剛剛進(jìn)入人生的小男孩。兩人結(jié)成了在一般情況下不可能有的友誼,。這是因?yàn)椋赫缧∧泻⑺f的,，“我覺得這兒（老房子）什么東西都可愛，而且舊時(shí)的回憶以及與回憶相聯(lián)的事情都到這兒來拜訪,！”人生就是這樣：平淡無奇的日子中也有使人（甚至對剛進(jìn)入人世的孩子）留戀和喜愛的東西,。寫這篇故事的誘因，安徒生在他的手記中說：“……１８４７年詩人莫生（德國人,，ＪｕｌｉｕｓＭｏｓｅｎ,，１８０３—１８６２）的小兒子在我離開奧爾登堡（Ｏｌｄｅｎｂｏｒｇ，德國西北部的一個(gè)州）時(shí),，送給了我他的一個(gè)錫兵,，為的是使我不要感到太可怕的寂寞。作曲家哈特曼（丹麥人,，ＪｏｈａｎＰｅｔｅｒＨａｒｔｍａｎｎ,，１８０５—１９００）的兩歲的女兒瑪莉日婭,，只要一聽到音樂，就想跳舞,。當(dāng)她的哥哥和姐姐們來到房間里唱圣詩的時(shí)候,，她就要開始跳舞，但是她的音樂感不讓她作不合拍的動作,，她只好站著,，先用這只腳，然后用另一只,，直到她進(jìn)入圣詩的完滿節(jié)奏后開始不知不覺地跳起來,。