FiveChildrenandIt簡介它是個“賽米德”(即沙精)。有一大孩子們在礫石坑中挖沙時發現了它。它已經幾千歲了。當然了，沙精們可以幫人們實現他們的愿望——愿望每天只能實現一個，而且覺得這棒極了。他們的小弟弟還太小，不會許愿，而且大部分時間都呆在家里；可其他幾個盤算著要些激動人心的東西。可那又是什么呢？變得漂亮，富有，還是能像鳥兒一樣飛翔？有時候想出真正的好愿望很困難，可是脫口說出“但愿……”卻是很容易的，那時你就得到了并不真正想要的東西。這時沙精就不肯幫忙了。出了差錯時它就生氣地說：“為什么你不先想好了再而事情的確常出差錯……24年逝世。她一生從事寫作，為兒童寫了很多書。其中著名的有《五個孩子和沙精》、《長生鳥與地毯》及《鐵路上的孩子》等。1BeautifulChildren1BeautifulChildrenThehousewasaboutfourkilometresfromthestation，butafteronlyaminuteortwothechildrenbegantoask，'Arewenearlythere？'AndeverytimetheysawahousetherewasaWhitehousewithagreengardenandlotsoffruittrees.'Hereweare！'Mothersaid.Cyrilroundthehouseandallthroughthegardentoseewhattherewas.ButMotherstoodandwatchedthedriverwhilehecarriedtheboxesintothehouse.Thechildrenlovedthehouse.Theyknewimmediatelythattheyweregoingtobehappythere.Motherdidnotlikethehouseverymuchbecauseitwasoldandtherewerenocup-boards.ButitwasdeepinthecountryandaftertwoyearsinLondonthechildrenthoughtthatitwaswonderful.IfyouliveinLondonandyourfamilyisnotrich，yougetboredbecauseyoucannotgotoshopsandtheatres，andpeoplesay，'Don'tdothis'and'Don'tgothere.'Inthecountryyoucangoany-whereanddoanything.第1頁共28頁 Thewhitehousewasonthehill，withawoodbehinditandagravel-pitononesideItwasatthegravelpitaweeklaterthatthechildrenfoundafairyWellthatwaswhatitcalleditself.Butitwasdifferentfromotherfairies.IthappenedwhenMotherhadtogoandstaywithGrand-mother，whowasill.Marthastayedwiththechildren，ofcourse.Butthehousewasveryquietandempty.Thechildrendidnotknowwhattodo.ThenCyrilsaid，'Let'sgotothegravel-pit.'Thegravel-pitwasverylarge，withgrassandwildflowersroundthesidesatthetop.Whentheygotthere，thechildrendecidedthattheywouldgodownintothepittoplayinthesand.'Let'sdigadeephole—perhapswecangetallthewaydowntoAustralia，'saidRobert.Theothersagreedandtheyallbegantodighardinthesand.Butitwasaveryhotwentonworkingonthehole.alive！'shecried.Theyalljumpedupandhurriedovertoseewhatitwas.It'sgotfeet，'Antheasaid.'Andfur.Don'thurtit.Iknowthissoundsstupid，butitsaidsomething.''Whatdiditsay？'askedCyril.'Itsaid，“Youleavemealone.”Theothersjustlaughed，butthetwoboysbegantomoveawaymoreofthesand.Soontheycouldseethattherereallywassomethingmovinginthehole.Suddenlyahardlittlevoicecried，'Leavemealone！'Theyalljumpedbackandnoonespokeforaminute.ThenRobertsaid，'Butwewanttoseeyou.'teverywhere.Thensomethingbrownandfurryandfatfelloutintothehole.'IthinkIwasasleep，'itsaid.Thechildrenstoodandlookedatit.Itreallywasverystrange.Itcouldmoveitseyesinandoutonstalks，ithadbigearsanditsbodywasfatandroundandfurry.Itslegsandarmshadsoftfuralloverthemtoo，andithadhandsandfeet.第2頁共28頁 'Whatisit？'askedJane.'Shallwetakeithome？'Thethingturneditslongeyestolookather.'Doesshealwayssaystupidthings？'itsaid.'Shedoesn'tmeanit，'Antheasaid.'Don'tbeafraid.Wewon'thurtyou.'Thelittlethingwasangry.'Hurtme！'itcried.'I'mnotafraidofyou！'OhdontbeangrysaidAntheakindlyTelluswhoyouare.Wereallydon'tknow.''Youdon'tknow？'itsaid.'Don'tyouknowaPsammeadwhenyouseeone？''Asand-fairy，ofcourse.Don'tyouknowasand-fairywhenyouseeone？'fairynow.'rtsaidWellIdidntknowthatyouwereaPsammeadbutIcanseethatyouaresomethingverywonder-ful.Pleasetalksomemoretous.'ThePsammeadlookedalittlehappierwhenitheardthat，anditsaid，'Well，youcantalktome，ifyouwantto.Per-hapsI'llansweryouandperhapsIwon't.Nowsaysomething.'Atfirstthechildrencouldnotthinkofanythingtosay，butthenRobertasked，'Howlonghaveyoulivedhere？''Oh，thousandsofyears，'thePsammeadanswered.'Pleasetellusmore，'Robertsaid.on.'PeoplesenttheirchildrenouttolookforPsammeads，andwhentheyfoundus，wegavethemawish.'ppenedtoallthePsammeadsthenRobertaskedetillandtheyusuallydieandthatswhathappenedMostofthemgotwetanddied.AndI'mnotgoingtotellyouanotherthing.''Oh，justonemorequestion，please，'saidRobert.'Doyougivewishesnow？''You'vehadone，'saidthePsammead.'Youwishedtoseeme，andhereIam.'第3頁共28頁 Itisverydifficulttothinkofareallygoodwish，injustasecondortwo.ThenAnthearememberedawishofhersandJane's.Sheknewthattheboyswouldn'tlikeit，butitwasbetterthannothing.ThePsammeadpushedoutitslongeyesandgotbiggerandfatter，andthechildrenwaited.Thenitsaid，'I'msorry.Ihaven'tdonethisforalongtime.I'lltryagain，butlcanonlydoonewishadayforyou.Doyouagreetothat？'ButrememberthewishisonlyforadaysaidthePsammead.'Whenthesungoesdown，everythinggoesbacktowhatitwas.'ThePsammeadslowlygotbigger，thensuddenlywentsmallagain.'That'sallright！'itsaid.Atonceitturnedandwentbackintothesandatthebottomofthehole.Thechildrenstoodthereforasecond，andthenAntheaturnedtospeaktotheothers.Buttheywerenotthere！Shewaslookingatthreestrangers—agirlwithbeautifulredhairandbigblueeyes，andtwoverygood-lookingboys.Suddenlysheunderstood.Theyhadtheirwish.ThestrangerswereRobertandCyrilandJane—butnowtheywerebeautiful.Cyril'shairwasgoldennow，andRobert'swasblack.'Ilikedyoubetterbefore！'Robertcriedangrilytohisbrotherandsisters.'Jane'shairlookslikecarrots，andCyrillooksreallystupidwithlonggoldenhair.'TheywenttofindBaby，buthewasjustthesameashewasbefore.'Perhapsit'sbecausehe'syoung.Hecan'thavewishes.We'llhavetorememberthatnexttime，'Antheasaid，andsheheldoutherarmstohim.ButBaby'smouthturneddownatthecornersandthenhebegantocryloudly.Hedidnotknowthem！themquickly：'Wherearetheothers？'sheasked.'Andwhoareyou？''we'reus，ofcourse，'Robertsaid.'Youdon'tknowusbe-causewe'rebeautiful.''Goaway！'Marthascreamed.'OrI'llsendforthepolice，'andsheclosedthedoorin第4頁共28頁 theirfaces.Thechildrenwereveryhungrybythen，andtheytriedthreetimestogetintothehouse—butMarthawouldnotletthemin.Afterawhiletheywentandsatatthebottomofthegardentowaitforthesuntogodown.'Thewishwillfinishthen，won'tit？'Janesaid.Buttheothersdidn'tanswerbecausenoonewasreallysure.angryandafraid.It'struethattheywereallverybeautiful，butthat'snotalotofhelpwhenyou'rsunhappy.Intheendtheyfellasleep.Itwasnearlydarkwhentheywokeup.Antheawasthefirsttowakeupandshelookedattheothers.Theywerenolongerverybeautiful.Everythingwasallrightagain.'Wherehaveyoubeenallday？'shecried.ItisnoteasytoexplainaPsammeadtoanangrynursemaid，sothechildrendidn'ttry.'Wemetsomebeautifulchildrenandwecouldn'tgetawayfromthemuntilitwasnearlydark，'Antheasaid.'Theywereterrible，andweneverwanttoseethemagain.'Andtheyneverhave.1漂亮的孩子他們的新家距車站大約四公里遠，而每過一兩分鐘孩子們就開口問：“我們快到了個山頂，那兒有一幢帶有綠色的花園和很多果樹的白房子。“我們到了！”母親說。慌不忙。孩子們繞著房子跑，都穿過花園看看那里有什么。但是趕車人把箱子搬到房子里去時媽媽站著看著他。孩子們喜歡這房子。他們馬上就明白在那兒他們會很快活的。母親不太喜歡這房子，因為它很舊，也沒有柜子。可是這房子位于真正意義上的鄉間；在倫敦住了兩年之后，孩子們認為這一點太好了。要是住在倫敦可你的家庭又不富有，你就會覺得厭倦，因為你不能去商店和劇場，人們還會說“不許干這個”、“不許去那兒”的。在鄉下你想去哪兒就去哪兒，想干什么就干什么。這白房子位于小山上，后邊有一片樹林，在一邊還有一個礫石坑。就是在這個礫石坑里孩子們一周之后發現了一個精靈。晤，它是這樣稱呼自己的，但是它和別的精靈可不一樣。第5頁共28頁 說：“咱們去礫石坑吧。”礫石坑大極了，坑口四周長著青草和野花。孩子們到了那兒時，他們決定到坑里去玩沙子。“咱們挖個深深的洞——也許能一直挖到澳大利亞呢，”羅伯特說。別的孩于同意了，他們就都起勁地挖起沙來。可天氣很熱。小弟弟睡覺去了，羅伯特西里爾和簡坐下來休息，可安西婭繼續挖著洞。突然她尖叫起來。“西里爾！到這兒來！快！有什么活的東西！”她叫道。他們都跳起身來，急忙過去看是什么東西。“它有腳，”安西亞說，“還有毛。別傷著它。我知道這話聽起來有些蠢，可它說話別的孩子只是笑，可那兩個男孩開始挖開更多的沙子。很快他們就能看見洞里真有個東西在動。突然一個刺耳的、細小的聲音喊道：“別打攪我！”他們都向后退了幾步，一時誰也沒說話。過了一會兒羅伯特說：“可是我們想看看“是啊，我希望你出來。”安西婭說。“哦，好吧，如果那是你們的愿望的話，”那個聲音說；沙子開始到處亂飛。一會兒一個褐色的、長著毛的、胖乎乎的東西從沙里飛落到洞中。“我想我剛才睡著了，”它孩子們站著看著它。它的確長得很奇怪。它有一雙伸縮自如的柄眼、一對大耳朵，身體又胖又圓，還毛絨絨的。它的胳膊和腿上也覆蓋著柔毛，而它還長著手和腳。“是什么呀？”簡問道，“要不要把它帶回家！”這東西轉動它的柄眼看著她。“她老說蠢話嗎？”它說。“她不是那個意思。”安西婭說，“別怕，我們不會傷害你。”這小東西生氣了。“傷害我？！”它叫著，“我才不怕你們呢！”“哦，別生氣，”安西婭和藹地說，“告訴我們你是誰。我們真不知道。”“你們不知道？”它說，“你們看到一個賽米德時難道會不認識？”第6頁共28頁 “賽米德？那是什么啊？”簡說。“當然是沙精了。你們見到沙精會不認識？”它顯得很不高興，簡就說：“當然！現在我知道你是個沙精了。”羅伯特也說：“喔，我原來不知道你是賽米德，可現在我看得出你棒極了。請再跟我們說些話吧。”聽到那個這個賽米德顯得稍微高興些了，它說：“好吧，如果你們愿意，你們可以和我說說話。我也許回答你們的問題，也許不回答。現在說什么吧。”開頭孩子們想不出要說什么，然而不一會兒羅伯特就問：“你在這兒住多久了？”“哦，幾千年了吧，”賽米德回答說。孩子們等賽米德往下說，但它不說話了。“請多告訴我們一些情況，”羅伯特說。，”它接著說。“人們打發孩子們去找賽米德，找到時我們就給他們實現一個愿望。”“那后來賽米德都怎么樣了？”羅伯特問。“噢，要是它們弄濕了自己，就會生病，常常會死的，事情就是那樣。大部分賽米德弄濕了，死了。我不再告訴你們別的事了。”“哦，請再回答一個問題，”羅伯特說，“你現在還幫人們實現愿望嗎？”“你們已經實現一個了。”賽米德說，“你們希望看到我，我就來了。”“噢，求求你了。就再來實現一個愿望吧。”安西婭叫道。“唔，那好吧，可是快點！你們真煩人！”一兩秒內就想出一個好愿望真困難。接著安西婭記起了她和簡的一個愿望。她知道男孩子們不會喜歡它，可總比沒有強。“我希望我們都非常非常漂亮，”她說。賽米德將雙眼從眼眶伸出去好遠，并變大變胖了，孩子們等待著。一會兒，它說：“對不起。我很久沒這樣做了。我再試一次，但是一天只能為你們實現一個愿望。你們同意嗎？”“同意，同意！”孩子們喊道。“但是記住，只能維持一個白天。”賽米德說，“太陽落下去時，一切就恢復原樣第7頁共28頁 賽米德慢慢地大起來，然后突然又變小了。“好了！”它說。它馬上轉過身回到洞底孩子們站了一下，然后安西婭轉身去和其他的孩子說話。可他們不在了！她看見三個陌生人——一個長著漂亮的紅頭發和大大的藍眼睛的女孩，還有兩個很好看的男孩。——只是他們現在漂亮了。西里爾的頭發現在是金色的了，羅伯特則是黑頭發。“我更喜歡你們原來的樣子！”羅伯特生氣地對他的姐弟們叫著，“簡的頭發像胡蘿卜，西里爾長著金色長發的樣子看起來真傻。”他們去找小弟弟，可他還是原來的樣子。“也許是因為他大小了吧。他也不會希望要什么。下次我們得記住。”安西婭說著并向他伸出手臂。可小弟弟撇著嘴開始大哭起來。他不認識他們！花了一個小時才哄他不哭了。他們又累又氣，把他帶回家。小弟弟的保姆馬莎正在前門等候。她很快地把孩子接過去。“別的孩子們在哪兒呢？”她問，“你們是誰？”“我們就是我們，當然了。”羅伯特說，“你不認識我們是因為我們漂亮了。”“我們還非常餓，”西里爾說，“我們想要午飯，求求了。”“走開！”馬莎叫道，“不然我要叫警察了。”她當著他們的面關上了門。那時孩子們已經非常餓了，他們三次試圖進門——但是馬莎每次都不讓他們進去。過了一會兒，他們去坐在花園盡頭，等太陽落下去。“到那會兒愿望就結束了，不是其他人沒有回答，因為誰也不敢肯定。那個下午可真糟。他們沒有午飯，沒有茶點，還又累又氣又害怕。他們確實都很漂亮他們醒來時天都快黑了。安西婭第一個醒來，她看看其他孩子。他們不再很漂亮了。一切都恢復原樣了。他們都高高興興地回屋了。當然，馬莎很生氣。“你們一整天到哪里對一個發怒的保姆解釋清楚賽米德是什么可不是件容易的事，所以孩子們沒試著解釋。釋“我們遇到了些漂亮孩子，直到天快黑才脫身。”安西婭說，“他們太可怕了，我們不想再見到他們。”他們實際上從來也沒見過那幾個孩子。2TheChildrenWishtoBeRich第8頁共28頁 2TheChildrenWishtoBeRichThenextmorningMarthatookBabyoutwithherandthechildrendecidedtogobacktothegravel-pittolookforthePsammeadagain.Atfirsttheycouldnotfindit.'Per-hapsitwasn'treallyhere，'Robertsaid.ButtheybegantodigintothesandwiththeirhandsandsuddenlytheycametothebrownfurrybodyofthePsammead.Itsatupandshookthesandoutofitsfur.'Howareyoutoday？'Antheaasked.'Well，Ididn'tsleepverywell，butthankyouforasking，'thePsammeadanswered.'Canyougivewishestoday？'Robertsaid.'Becausewe'dliketohavetwo，ifwecan.Butoneisaverylittlewish.'havethelittlewishfirst.'MarthamustntknowaboutthewishesRobertsaid'Imean，shemustn'tseeanythingdifferentaboutus.Andcanyoudothatforeverywishoneveryday？'ThePsammeadwentalittlebiggerandthenwentsmallagain.'I'vedonethat，'itsaid.'Itwaseasy.What'sthenextwish？''Wewish，'saidRobertslowly，'tobeveryrich.''Howmuchmoneydoyouwant？'askedthePsammead.'Itwon'tdoyoumuchdofcourseitsaidquietlytoitselfWellhowmuchanddoyouwantitingoldornotes？''Afullgravel-pit，allright？'saidthePsammead，soundingbored.'ButgetoutItsthinarmsgotverylonganditbegantomovethemabout.Thechildrenwereafraid，andranasfastastheycoulduptotheroad.Whentheywerethere，theyturnedtolookback.Theyhadtoclosetheireyesandopenthemagainveryslowly.Thechildrenstoodwiththeirmouthsopen，andnoonesaidaword.ThenRoberttookoneofthecoinsinhishandandlookedatit.'It'sdifferentfromEnglishmoney，'hesaid.'Well，itdoesn'tmatter.It'sgold，'saidCyril.'Don'tfor-getthatitwillallgowhenthesungoesdown.Comeon！Let'sputasmuchaswecaninourpocketsandgoandspendit.'第9頁共28頁 Sotheyallputgoldcoinsintheirpocketsandwentofftothevillage.Butthegoldwasheavy，andsoontheywereverytiredandhot.TheydecidedtogetsomethingtodrinkinthevillageandthengoontothetownofRochester.Cyrilwentintotheshopandtheotherswaitedoutside.ButwhenCyrilcamebackwithabottleoflemonade，hesaid，'Ihadtopaywithmyrealmoney.Whentheysawallthecoins，theywouldn'tchangethegold.'WellIlltrytogetsomethingwiththegold，'Antheasaid.'Weneedahorseandcart.Comeon.'Antheawenttotalktoamanwhohadahorseandcart，andtheotherswaited.Afterafewminutesshecameback，lookingverypleasedwithherself.'Iwasn'tstupidlikeutonecoinnotallofthemandthemansaidhelldriveustoRochesterandwaitforus.'OnthewaytoRochester，theydidnotspeak.Theyweremakingplansabouthowtospendtheirgold，andtheydidnotwanttotalkinfrontofthedriver.ButwhentheyarrivedinRochester，withabouttwelvehun-dredgoldcoinsintheirpockets，theyfoundthatitwasverydifficulttospendthem.Antheatriedtobuyaverynicehat，butthewomanintheshoplookedverystrangely，firstatthegoldcoins，thenatAnthea.'Ican'ttakethat，'shesaid.'It'snotmodernEnglishmoney.'Theywentfromshoptoshop，butnoonewantedtotaketheirgold.'It'sbecauseourhandsaredirtyandwelookuntidy.Peoplethinkwe'vestolenthegold，'Antheasaid.Anditwasworsewhentheytriedtobuyahorseandcar-riage.CyrilshowedthemanhissonSendforthepolice'It'sourmoney，'saidCyrilangrily.'We'renotthieves.''Wheredidyougetitfromthen？'saidtheman.'Asand-fairygaveittous，'saidJane.'Hegivesusawishadayandtheyallcometrue.'tellingstoriesaboutit.'Justthenapolicemanarrivedandwhenheheardaboutthegold，hesaidtothefourchildren，'Comewithme.I'mtakingyoutothepolicestation！'Thechildrenwereangryandunhappy，butthepolicemanwalkedalongtheroadbehindthemandtheycouldn'tescape.Theyheldtheirheadsdownbecausetheydidnotwantanyonetoseethem，andsuddenlyRobertranintosomeone.'Robert，whathave第10頁共28頁 youdonenow？'avoicecried.ItwasMarthaandBaby！ThepolicemanexplainedeverythingtoMartha，andCyrilhadtotakethegoldoutofhispocketandshowittoher.'Ican'tseeanything—justtwoverydirtyhands，'shesaid.'There'snogoldthere.Whatareyoutalkingabout？'AndthenthechildrenrememberedthatMarthacouldn'tseethewishes.Itwasgettingdarkwhentheyarrivedatthepolicestation.ThepolicemanexplaineditCyrilputhishandsintohispockets—buttheywereempty！whenthesunwentdown！'Howdidtheydothat？'criedthepoliceman.TheothersputtheirallthefairygoldwentMarthawasveryangrywithhim.'Itoldyouthattherewasn'tanygold，'sheshouted.'You'llbeintroubleforthis.Sayingthatthesepoorlittlechildrenarethieves！'Butshewasveryangrywiththechildrentoo.'Whatwereyoudoingintownalone？'shesaidtothemoutsidethepolicestation.Andshetookthemhomeandsentthemtobedearly.2孩子們希望變得富有第二天早晨，馬莎帶著小弟弟出去了，孩子們決定回礫石坑那兒再去找賽米德。開頭他們沒有找到。“也許它不一定真在這里，”羅伯特說。可他們還是開始用手挖沙子，忽然他們觸到了賽米德褐色的、毛絨絨的身體。它坐起來抖掉毛上的沙子。“嗯，我沒睡好，但謝謝你的問候。”賽米德回答。“今天你能給人實現愿望嗎？”羅伯特說，“因為如果可以的話我們想要實現兩個愿望。不過有一個是非常小的愿望。”看著羅伯特。“先來實現這個小愿望吧。”“不能讓馬莎知道愿望的事。”羅伯特說，“我的意思是她不能看出我們有什么變化。你能每天對每個愿望都這樣辦嗎？”賽米德變大了一點兒，然后又變小了。“我把那個辦好了。”它說，“這容易。下一個愿望是什么？”“我們希望，”羅伯特慢慢地說，“變得非常有錢。”第11頁共28頁 “你們想要多少錢？”賽米德問道。“這當然對你們沒什么好處，”它在心里默念著。“好吧，要多少——還有，想要金子還是鈔票？”“請給我們金子，”羅伯特說，“幾百萬！”走開，不然你們會被壓死的。”他們扭頭看了看。他們不得不閉上眼睛，再慢慢睜開。礫石坑滿滿的，到頂上都是閃閃發然后羅伯特將一塊金幣放在手里看著。“和英國錢不一樣，”他說。“唔，那沒關系。是金的。”西里爾說，“別忘了太陽落下去的時候它們就都沒了。所以他們都往兜里裝金幣，然后朝村子走去。可金子很沉，一會兒他們就又累又熱。他們決定在村里買點喝的，然后再繼續趕往羅徹斯特城去。西里爾走進商店，其他孩子在外邊等著。可是當西里爾拿著一瓶檸檬汽水回來時，他說：“我得付我自己的真錢。他們看見所有這些金幣時不肯找錢。”“那我去試著用這金子買點東西。”安西婭說，“我們需要一輛馬套二輪單馬車。來安西婭走過去和一個有馬套二輪單馬車的人談起來，別的孩子等著。幾分鐘后她回來了，看起來很得意的樣子。“我可不像西里爾那么傻。”她說，“我只拿出一塊金幣，而不拿出所有的金幣，那個人說他把我們拉到羅徹斯特去并等著我們。”在去羅徹斯特的路上他們沒有講話。他們計劃著怎樣花他們的金子，而且他們不想在趕車人面前談論。可是當他們兜里裝著大約一千兩百塊金幣到了羅徹斯特時，他們發現要花掉這些金幣很困難。安西妮想買一頂很漂亮的帽子，可店里的那個女人很奇怪地先看看金幣，再看看安西婭。“我不要那個。”她說，“這不是現行的英國貨幣。”他們去了一個又一個商店，可是沒有人要他們的金子。“這是因為我們的手臟，我們自己看起來也不整潔。人們認為這金子是我們偷的。”安西婭說。當他們試圖買一輛馬套四輪馬車時，事情就更糟了。西里爾把他的金幣給那人看，那人朝他的兒子喊：“叫警察來！”“這是我們的錢，”西里爾氣憤地說，“我們不是賊。”第12頁共28頁 “那你從什么地方搞到它的？”那人說。“一個沙精給我們的。”簡說，“他每天為我們實現一個愿望，而且都實現了。”那人慢慢地搖搖頭。“天啊，天啊，”他說，“偷東西，然后又編故事。”這時警察來了，聽了金幣的事他對這四個孩子說：“跟我走。我帶你們去警察局！”孩子們很生氣，很不快。可是警察沿路跟在他們后邊，他們逃跑不了。他們低著頭，因為不愿讓別人看到。突然羅伯特撞到了人身上。“羅伯特，你們干什么去了？”一個聲音喊道。原來是馬莎和小弟弟！警察對馬莎解釋了這一切。西里爾只得從兜里拿出金子給她看。“我什么也沒看見——只是兩只臟手。”她說，“沒有金子。你在說些什么呀？”于是孩子們記起馬莎是看不出這些許愿的事的。黑了。警察解釋了金子的事，巡長說：“好吧，讓我們看看。”西里爾把手伸進兜里——可兜里是空的！其他孩子把手伸進兜里，也都是空的！當然了，太陽一落下山去所有這些變出來的金幣就沒有了！“他們是怎么搞的？”那警察叫起來。馬莎很生他的氣。“我告訴過你沒有什么金子。”她喊道，“你會為此觸霉頭的。竟然說這些可憐的小孩子是小偷！”可她也很生孩子們的氣。“你們自己在城里干什么呢？”在警察局外她對他們說。3Wings3WingsThenextdaywasverywet.ItrainedalldayandthechildrencouldnotgotoseethePsammead.Theystayedathomeandwroteletterstotheirmother.ButnoneofthemtoldheraboutthePsammead.Andthedayafterthat，theirUncleRichardcameandtookthemout，sotheydidnotseethePsammeadfortwodays.ButAntheaspentalotoftimethink-ingaboutwhattowishfor.quietlyandwenttoseethePsammead.Ontheway，Antheasaidtotheothers，'Iknowwhatwecanaskfor——wings！'Theothersweresilentforaminute，butthentheyallagreedthattheytoowouldliketohavewings.第13頁共28頁 TheyfoundthePsammeadeasily.'Iwishweallhadbeauti-fulwingstoflywith，'Antheasaid.ThePsammeadmadeitselfverybigandthenwentsmallagain.Thechildrenfeltstrangeforaminuteandwhentheylooked，theysawthattheyhadbeautifulsoftwingsofmanycolours.Theymovedthemaboutandjumpedupanddown，andsoontheycouldseethegreenfieldsandsunnywoodsbelowthemandtheblueskyabove.TheylongtimeButtheybegantogethungryJustthentheysawbelowthemsometreesfulloflargeredplums.'Wemustn'tsteal，'Cyrilsaid.'We'vegotwings，'Janeansweredquickly，'sowe'rebirds.It'sallrightforbirdstotakethings.Birdscan'tsteal.'Sotheyflewdownontothetrees，andtheyateasmanyoftheplumsastheycould.Theywerefinishingtheplumswhentheysawaveryangrylittlefatman，whowashurryingthroughthetrees.Theywerehisplumsandthepoormanthoughtthatboysfromthevillagewerestealingthem.Butwhenhesawthatthechildrenhadwings，hismouthfellopenandhisfacewentgreen.Antheadidnotwanttostealanything，ofcourse，sosheflewdownandpushedsomemoneyintohispocket.'Don'tbeafraid，'shesaid.'We'vehadsomeofyourplums.Wethoughtthatitwasn'tstealing，butnowI'mnotsosure.Sothatwassomemoneytopayforthem.'Thelittlemansatthereonthegroundandlookedupintothesky.'Talkingbirds！Childrenwithwings！Thisisalessonforme.Fromnowon，I'mgoingtoliveabetterlife，'hesaid.Andhewentintothehouseandwasverykindtohiswife.ldrenstoppedfirstatonehouse，thenanother，toaskforsomethingtoeat.Theydidn'tgetanythingbecauseeveryonewasafraidofthemandscreamedandranawaywhentheysawthem.Byfouro'clocktheyweregettingverytiredandhungry，sotheyflewdownontotheroofofachurch，tothinkwhattodo.'Wecan'tpossiblyflyallthewayhomewithoutsomethingtoeat，'saidRobert.Intheendtheydecidedtotakesomefoodfromthevicar'shousenexttothechurch.'He'sagoodman.He'llunderstand.We'llleavesomemoneyforthefood，'Cyrilsaid，'andanotesayingthatwe'resorry.'Cyrilgotinthroughthewindowandgavethefoodtotheothers，whowereoutside.Therewassomecoldmeat，halfacoldchicken，somebreadandabottleofsoda-water.Thentheyallflewbackupontothechurchrooftoeatit.Theywereveryhungry，sothey第14頁共28頁 reallyenjoyedit.Butwhenyouareveryhungry，andthenyoueatabigmealandsitinthehotsunonaroof，itisveryeasytofallasleep.Andsotheydid—whilethesunslowlywentdowninthewest.Theysleptforalongtime.Whentheywokeupitwasdark—and，ofcourse，theyhadnowings.'Wemustgethome，'Cyrilsaid.'There'sadooroverthere.That'sthewaydown.'Butwhentheytriedthedoor，theyfoundthatitwaslockedfromtheotherside.Theywereontopofthechurchandtheyhadnowings！Howweretheygoingtogetdown？AntheaputherarmroundJane，whowasbeginningtocry.'Itwillonlybeforonenight，'shesaid.ThenCyrilsaid，'Iknow.Let'sshout！Thelightsareoninthevicar'shouse.Someonewillhearusandgetusdown.'Sotheyshoutedandscreamedasloudlyastheycould，andthepeopleinthehouseheardthem.Thevicarranoutwithhisservant.'Someoneismurderingsomebodyinthechurch！'thevicarsaid，afraid.'Perhapsit'sthethiefwhostolethecoldchickenandthings.'Buttheycouldnotunderstandwhythevoiceswerecomingfromthesky.Sothechildrenshouted，'We'reuphere—ontopofthechurch！'Thetwomenwerestillafraid，but，slowlyandcarefully，theywentupthestairsinsidethechurch.Whentheycametothetop，thevicarshoutedthroughthecloseddoor，'Howmanyofyouarethere？Haveyougotguns？''GoodHeavens！'hecried.'They'rechildren！'Sothevicarandhisservanttookthemdownandintothevicar'shouse.Ofcourse，thevicarwantedtoknowwhythechildrenwereonthechurchroof.'Wewentuptherebecausewewantedtoseewhatitwaslike，'saidCyril.'Butthenwecouldn'tgetdownagainbe-causethedoorwaslocked.'Hedidn'tsayanythingaboutthewings，ofcourse.'Butwholockedthedoor？'thevicarasked.第15頁共28頁 'Wedon'tknow，'Janeanswered.'Butwe'renottellingyoueverything.'calledBeale.tellyouabouthimsaidAntheathinkingofthePsammeadThevicarstilldidnotunderstand，buthewasakindman，sohesentthechildrenhomeinacarriagewithhisservantMarthaofcourse，wasveryangrywiththem，butMrBealeexplainedeverythingverywell.Hewasagood-lookingyoungmanwithanicesmile，andafterawhileMarthaforgottobeangry.Sothedayendedhappilyafterall.3翅膀第二天外面很濕。雨下了一天，孩子們不能去看賽米德。他們呆在家里給母親寫信。可誰也沒把賽米德的事告訴她。又過了一天，他們的理查德叔叔來了并帶他們出去了，所以他們兩天沒見賽米德。可安西婭花了很多時間想她該許些什么愿。再一天的早上，馬莎正忙著照顧小弟弟時，孩子們悄悄離開家去看賽米德。在路上安西婭對大家說：“我知道我們希望要什么了——翅膀！”一時別人都沒說話，可然后他們都贊成，他們也愿意長出翅膀。他們沒費勁就找到了賽米德。“我希望我們都有美麗的、可以用以飛翔的翅膀，”安賽米德把自己變得非常大，然后又變小。一時孩子們覺得有些異樣，可當他們一看，上跳下，很快看見他們下方綠色的田野和陽光照耀著的小樹林以及上方蔚藍色的天空。他們會飛了！這太棒了。他們飛過樹林、城鄉，飛了好久。可他們開始餓了。正在這時他們看見下面有些樹，樹上滿是又大又紅的李子。“我們可不能偷啊。”西說。“我們長了翅膀，”簡很快地答道，“所以我們就是鳥。鳥拿點東西沒關系。鳥不會偷。”他們正要吃完的時候，突然看見一個非常生氣的小矮胖子。他正急急忙忙地在樹間穿梭。那是他的李子，那可憐的人認為是村里的孩子們在偷他的李子。但是當他看見這幾個孩子長著翅膀時，他張大了嘴巴，臉色蒼白。安西婭當然不愿偷東西，所以她飛下來把一些錢塞在他兜里。“別怕，”她說，“我們吃了你的一些李子。我們起初覺得這不是偷，可現在我也第16頁共28頁 不敢那么肯定。所以那是付給你的些李子錢。”那個胖子坐在那兒地上，仰望著天空。“會說話的鳥！長翅膀的孩子！這對我可是，對他的妻子很和藹。李子當然很好吃，可很快你就又餓了，所以孩子們在一幢又一幢房子前停下來，想著跑開了。到4點時他們變得又累又餓，于是就飛落在教堂的屋頂上，想想怎么辦。“我們要是沒有東西吃，就不可能飛回家去。”羅伯特說。最后他們決定從緊挨著教堂的牧師家里拿些食物。“他是好人。他會理解的。我們留些食品錢，”西里爾說，“再留張便條說我們很抱歉。”西里爾從窗子進去，把食物拿給在外邊的其他孩子。有些冷肉、半只冷雞、一些面包和一瓶汽水。然后他們全飛回到教堂房頂上吃起來。他們很餓，所以吃得很香。可是當你很餓的時候大吃了一頓、又在屋頂上曬著太陽時，那是很容易睡著的。他們就睡著了——這時太陽慢慢地從西邊落下去。他們睡了好長時間。他們醒來的時候天黑了——當然了，他們也沒有翅膀了。“我們得回家了。”西里爾說，“那兒有個門。那是下去的路。”可他們試著開門時才發現門是從另一面鎖上的。他們在教堂頂上，又沒有了翅膀！安西婭用單臂挽住簡，簡這時已開始哭起來了。“只不過呆一夜，”她說。接著西里爾說：“我知道了。我們喊吧！牧師的家里有燈光。會有人聽見并幫我們下所以他們用最大的聲音喊叫起來，房子里的人聽見了他們的叫聲。牧師和他的仆人了出來。“教堂里有人在殺人！”牧師害怕地說，“可能是偷了冷雞和別的東西的小偷。”可他們不明白為什么聲音是從空中傳來的。于是孩子們就嚷：“我們在這兒——在教堂頂上！”這兩個人還很害怕，可他們慢慢地、小心地從教堂內的樓梯走上來。當他們到了頂上時，牧師在鎖著的門的另一邊叫道：“你們幾個人？有槍嗎？”牧師慢慢地打開門。“天哪！”他叫道，“是些孩子！”第17頁共28頁 牧師和他的仆人帶他們下來，進了牧師屋里。當然嘍，牧師想知道孩子們為什么在教堂頂上。“我們上那兒去是因為我們想看看那是什么樣子。”西里爾說，“可是我們下不來“可誰鎖的門？”牧師問。“不知道。”簡說，“可我們不會把一切都告訴你的。”“啊！那么是有個朋友參與其中吧。”牧師的男仆說。他叫比伊爾。“是的，可我們不能告訴你他的事。”安西婭說，想起了賽米德。“我們真的非常抱歉；還有，請問，我們可以回家了嗎？”牧師仍然不明白，可是他是個好心的人，所以他讓仆人用馬車送孩子們回家。馬莎當然十分生他們的氣，可是比伊爾先生把事情解釋得很好。他是個漂亮的、臉上帶著愉快的笑容的青年，不一會兒馬莎就忘了生氣了。所以，這一天總算快樂地結束了。4BiggerthantheBaker4BiggerthantheBaker'sBoyThenextmorningMarthasaidthatthechildrencouldnotgoout.'Youcanstayinandbegood，'shesaid.'There'ssomethingthatweallwant，'saidRobert.'CanIjustgooutforhalfanhourtogetit？'AndMartha，whowasreallyverykind，saidthathecould.Ofcourse，theyallwantedtheday'swish.SoRoberthur-riedtothesand-pit.ThePsammeadwaswaitingforhim，butwhenRoberttriedtothinkofareally'Hurryup，'thePsammeadsaid.'Ican'twaitallday.''Ohdear，'Robertsaid.'Iwishthatwedidn'thavetocomeheretogetourwish…Butitwastoolate.ThePsammeadwasalreadymakingit-selfbig.There'itsaid.'Thatwasn'teasy，butI'vedoneit.Youdon'tneedtocomeheretohaveyourwish.'RobertthankedthePsammeadandthenhurriedbacktotelltheotherchildren.'We第18頁共28頁 mustwishforsomethingreallygoodtomorrow，'hesaid.Thenextmorningtheythoughtandthought，buttheycouldn'tthinkofareallygoodwish，sotheydecidedtogotothegravel-pit.Suddenlytheysawabaker'sboy，whowascomingalongtheroadwithhisbasketofbread，andtheydecidedtoplayagamewithhim.'Stop！'criedCyril.'Yourmoneyoryourlife！'shoutedRobert.Andtheystoodoneachsideofthebaker'sboy.Thebaker'sboy，whowastallandlarge，wasnotveryinterestedandhepushedthembothaway.'Don'tbestupid！'hesaid.ButRobertpushedhimbackandknockedhimover.Thebreadfelloutoftheboy'sbasketandwentallovertheroad.Thebaker'sboywasveryangry.HehitRobertandtheybegantofight.Butthebaker'sboywasmuchbiggerandstrongerthanRobert.Hewasalsohisway.CyrilwantedtohelpRobert，butthegirlsheldhisarmsandstoppedhim.SoCyrilwasangrywiththegirls，andeverybodywasunhappy.Theywentalongtothegravel-pit，andRobertbegantokickthesandangrily.'I'llteachthatbaker'sboyalessononeday，'hesaid.'IwishIwasbiggerthanhim！'JustthentheysawthatthePsammeadwassittingbehindthem，andwaswatchingthem！Thenextminute，Roberthadhiswish.Hewasbiggerthanthebaker'sboy！Much，muchbigger！Hewasnowmorethanthreemetrestall！Hewasnotpleasedbecausehelookedverystrangenexttotheothers，whowerestillsmall.Theothersfeltsorryforhimthen，andaskedthePsammeadforanotherwish.ButthePsammeadwasverycrossandun-helpful.'Whydon'tyouthinkbeforeyouwish？'itsaid.'He'sawild，noisyboy，andhecanstaylikethatfortheday.Itwilldohimgood.Nowgoawayandleavemealone！'Theothersturnedbacktotheirenormousbrother.'Whatarewegoingtodo？'Theyasked.'First，'saidRobert，'I'mgoingtogetthatbaker'sboy！'Andbecausehehadvery第19頁共28頁 stoppingatthehousesalongtheroadtoleavethebread.Roberthidbehindahaystackandwaitedfortheboy.Whenhesawthebaker'sboycoming，hejumpedoutfrombehindthehaystackandtheboy'smouthfellopeninsurprise.ThenRoberttookholdofhimandputhimontopofthehaystack.'Nowgetdownfromthere，ifyoucan！'Robertsaid.Itwasverylatewhenthebaker'sboygotbacktotheshop，andthebakerwasveryangry！ThenRobertandtheotherswenthome，anddowntothebottomofthegard