小学英语英语故事童话故事TheGardenofParadise天国花园

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1、TheGardenofParadise天国花园There was once a kings son, no one had so many beautiful books as he. In them he could read of everything that had ever happened in this world, and he could see it all pictured in fine illustrations. He could find out about every race of people and every country, but there was

2、 not a single word about where to find the Garden of Paradise, and this, just this, was the very thing that he thought most about.When he was still very young and was about to start his schooling, his grandmother had told him that each flower in the Garden of Paradise was made of the sweetest cake,

3、and that the pistils were bottles full of finest wine. On one sort of flower, she told, history was written, on another geography, or multiplication tables, so that one only had to eat cake to know ones lesson, and the more one ate, the more history, geography, or arithmetic one would know.At the ti

4、me he believed her, but when the boy grew older and more learned and much wiser, he knew that the glories of the Garden of Paradise must be of a very different sort.Oh, why did Eve have to pick fruit from the tree of knowledge, and why did Adam eat what was forbidden him? Now if it had only been I,

5、that would never have happened, and sin would never have come into the world. He said it then, and when he was seventeen he said it still. The Garden of Paradise was always in his thoughts.He went walking in the woods one day. He walked alone, for this was his favorite amusement. Evening came on, th

6、e clouds gathered, and the rain poured down as if the sky were all one big floodgate from which the water plunged. It was as dark as it would be at night in the deepest well. He kept slipping on the wet grass, and tripping over the stones that stuck out of the rocky soil. Everything was soaking wet,

7、 and at length the poor Prince didnt have a dry stitch to his back. He had to scramble over great boulders where the water trickled from the wet moss. He had almost fainted, when he heard a strange puffing and saw a huge cave ahead of him. It was brightly lit, for inside the cave burned a fire so la

8、rge that it could have roasted a stag. And this was actually being done. A magnificent deer, antlers and all, had been stuck on a spit, and was being slowly turned between the rough-hewn trunks of two pine trees. An elderly woman, so burly and strong that she might have been taken for a man in disgu

9、ise, sat by the fire and threw log after log upon it.You can come nearer, she said. Sit down by the fire and let your clothes dry.Theres an awful draft here, the Prince remarked, as he seated himself on the ground.It will be still worse when my sons get home, the woman told him. You are in the cave

10、of the winds, and my sons are the four winds of the world. Do I make myself clear?Where are your sons? the Prince asked.Such a stupid question is hard to answer, the woman told him. My sons go their own ways, playing ball with the clouds in that great hall. And she pointed up toward the sky.Really!

11、said the Prince. I notice that you have a rather forceful way of speaking, and are not as gentle as the women I usually see around me.I suppose they have nothing better to do. I have to be harsh to control those sons of mine. I manage to do it, for all that they are an obstinate lot. See the four sa

12、cks that hang there on the wall! They dread those as much as you used to dread the switch that was kept behind the mirror for you. I can fold the boys right up, let me tell you, and pop them straight into the bag. We dont mince matters. There they stay. They arent allowed to roam around again until

13、I see fit to let them. But here comes one of them.It was the North Wind who came hurtling in, with a cold blast of snowflakes that swirled about him and great hailstones that rattled on the floor. He was wearing a bear-skin coat and trousers; a seal-skin cap was pulled over his ears; long icicles hu

14、ng from his beard; and hailstone after hailstone fell from the collar of his coat.Dont go right up to the fire so quickly, the Prince warned him. Your face and hands might get frostbite.Frostbite! the North Wind laughed his loudest. Frostbite! Why, frost is my chief delight. But what sort of longleg

15、 are you? How do you come to be in the cave of the winds?He is here as my guest, the old woman intervened. And if that explanation doesnt suit you, into the sack you go. Do I make myself clear?She made herself clear enough. The North Wind now talked of whence he had come, and where he had traveled f

16、or almost a month.I come from the Arctic Sea, he told them. I have been on Bear Island with the Russian walrus hunters. I lay beside the helm, and slept as they sailed from the North Cape. When I awoke from time to time the storm bird circled about my knees. Theres an odd bird for you! He gives a qu

17、ick flap of his wings, and then holds them perfectly still and rushes along at full speed.Dont be so long-winded, his mother told him. So you came to Bear Island?Its a wonderful place! Theres a dancing floor for you, as flat as a platter! The surface of the island is all half-melted snow, little pat

18、ches of moss, and outcropping rocks. Scattered about are the bones of whales and polar bears, colored a moldy green, and looking like the arms and legs of some giant.Youd have thought that the sun never shone there. I blew the fog away a bit, so that the house could be seen. It was a hut built of wr

19、eckage and covered with walrus skins, the fleshy side turned outward, and smeared with reds and greens. A love polar bear sat growling on the roof of it.I went to the shore and looked at bird nests, and when I saw the featherless nestlings shrieking, with their beaks wide open, I blew down into thei

20、r thousand throats. That taught them to shut their mouths. Further along, great walruses were wallowing about like monstrous maggots, with pigs heads, and tusks a yard long.How well you do tell a story, my son, the old woman said. My mouth waters when I hear you!The hunt began. The harpoon was hurle

21、d into the walruss breast, and a streaming blood stream spurted across the ice like a fountain. This reminded me of my own sport. I blew my sailing ships, those towering icebergs, against the boats until their timbers cracked. Ho! how the crew whistled and shouted. But I outwhistled them all. Overbo

22、ard on the ice they had to throw their dead walruses, their tackle, and even their sea chests. I shrouded them in snow, and let them drift south with their broken boats and their booty alongside, for a taste of the open sea. They wont ever come back to Bear Island. That was a wicked thing to do, sai

23、d the mother of the winds.Ill let others tell of my good deeds, he said. But here comes my brother from the west. I like him best of all. He has a seafaring air about him, and carries a refreshing touch of coolness wherever he goes.Is that little Zephyr? the Prince asked.Of course its Zephyr, the ol

24、d woman replied, but hes not little. He was a nice boy once, but that was years ago.He looked like a savage, except that he wore a broad-rimmed hat to shield his face. In his hand he carried a mahogany bludgeon, cut in the mahogany forests of America. Nothing less would do!Where have you come from?

25、his mother asked.I come from the forest wilderness, he said, where the thorny vines make a fence between every tree, where the water snake lurks in the wet grass, and where people seem unnecessary.What were you doing there?I gazed into the deepest of rivers, and saw how it rushed through the rapids

26、and threw up a cloud of spray large enough to hold the rainbow. I saw a wild buffalo wading in the river, but it swept him away. He swam with a flock of wild ducks, that flew up when the river went over a waterfall. But the buffalo had to plunge down it. That amused me so much that I blew up a storm

27、, which broke age-old trees into splinters.Havent you done anything else? the old woman asked him.I turned somersaults across the plains, stroked the wild horses, and shook cocoanuts down from the palm trees. Yes indeed, I have tales worth telling, but one shouldnt tell all he knows. Isnt that right

28、, old lady? Then he gave her such a kiss that it nearly knocked her over backward. He was certainly a wild young fellow.Then the South Wind arrived, in a turban and a Bedouins billowing robe.Its dreadfully cold in here, he cried, and threw more wood on the fire. I can tell that the North Wind got he

29、re before me.Its hot enough to roast a polar bear here, the North Wind protested.You are a polar bear yourself, the South Wind said.Do you want to be put into the sack? the old woman asked. Sit down on that stone over there and tell me where you have been.In Africa, dear Mother, said he. I have been

30、 hunting the lion with Hottentots in Kaffirland. What fine grass grows there on the plains. It is as green as an olive. There danced the gnu, and the ostrich raced with me, but I am fleeter than he is. I went into the desert where the yellow sand is like the bottom of the sea. I met with a caravan,

31、where they were killing their last camel to get drinking water, but it was little enough they got. The sun blazed overhead and the sand scorched underfoot. The desert was unending.I rolled in the fine loose sand and whirled it aloft in great columns. What a dance that was! You ought to have seen how

32、 despondently the dromedaries hunched up, and how the trader pulled his burnoose over his head. He threw himself down before me as he would before Allah, his god. Now they are buried, with a pyramid of sand rising over them all. When some day I blow it away, the sun will bleach their bones white, an

33、d travelers will see that men have been there before them. Otherwise no one would believe it, there in the desert.So you have done nothing but wickedness! cried his mother. Into the sack with you! And before he was aware of it, she picked the South Wind up bodily and thrust him into the bag. He thra

34、shed about on the floor until she sat down on the sack. That kept him quiet.Those are boisterous sons you have, said the Prince.Indeed they are, she agreed, but I know how to keep them in order. Here comes the fourth one.This was the East Wind. He was dressed as a Chinaman.So thats where youve been!

35、 said his mother. I thought you had gone to the Garden of Paradise.I wont fly there until tomorrow, the East Wind said. Tomorrow it will be exactly a hundred years since I was there. I am just home from China, where I danced around the porcelain tower until all the bells jangled. Officials of state

36、were being whipped through the streets. Bamboo sticks were broken across their shoulders, though they were people of importance, from the first to the ninth degree. They howled, Thank you so much, my father and protector, but they didnt mean it. And I went about clanging the bells and sang, Tsing, t

37、sang, tsu! You are too saucy, the old woman told him. Its a lucky thing that youll be off to the Garden of Paradise tomorrow, for it always has a good influence on you. Remember to drink deep out of the fountain of wisdom and bring back a little bottleful for me.Ill do that, said the East Wind. But

38、why have you popped my brother from the south into the sack? Lets have him out. He must tell me about the phoenix bird, because the Princess in the Garden of Paradise always asks me about that bird when I drop in on her every hundred years. Open up my sack, like my own sweet mother, and Ill give you

39、 two pockets full of tea as green and fresh as it was when I picked it off the bush.Well-for the sake of the tea, and because you are my pet, Ill open the sack.She opened it up, and the South Wind crawled out. But he looked very glum, because the Prince, who was a stranger, had seen him humbled.Here

40、s a palm-leaf fan for the Princess, the South Wind said. It was given to me by the old phoenix, who was the only one of his kind in the world. On it he scratched with his beak a history of the hundred years that he lived, so she can read it herself. I watched the phoenix bird set fire to her nest, a

41、nd sat there while she burned to death, just like a Hindoo widow. What a crackling there was of dry twigs, what smoke, and what a smell of smoldering! Finally it all burst into flames, and the old phoenix was reduced to ashes, but her egg lay white-hot in the blaze. With a great bang it broke open,

42、and the young phoenix flew out of it. Now he is the ruler over all the birds, and he is the only phoenix bird in all the world. As his greetings to the Princess, he thrust a hole in the palm leaf I am giving you.Lets have a bite to eat, said the mother of the winds.As they sat down to eat the roast

43、stag, the Prince took a place beside the East Wind, and they soon became fast friends.Tell me, said the Prince, who is this Princess youve been talking so much about, and just where is the Garden of Eden?Ah, ha! said the East Wind. Would you like to go there? Then fly with me tomorrow. I must warn y

44、ou, though, no man has been there since Adam and Eve. You have read about them in the Bible?Surely, the Prince said.After they were driven out, the Garden of Paradise sank deep into the earth, but it kept its warm sunlight, its refreshing air, and all of its glories. The queen of the fairies lives t

45、here on the Island of the Blessed, where death never comes and where there is everlasting happiness. Sit on my back tomorrow and I shall take you with me. I think it can be managed. But now lets stop talking, for I want to sleep.And then they all went to sleep. When the Prince awoke the next morning

46、, it came as no small surprise to find himself high over the clouds. He was seated on the back of the East Wind, who carefully held him safe. They were so far up in the sky that all the woods, fields, rivers, and lakes looked as if they were printed on a map spread beneath them.Good morning, said th

47、e East Wind. You might just as well sleep a little longer. Theres nothing very interesting in this flat land beneath us, unless you care to count churches. They stand out like chalk marks upon the green board.What he called the green board was all the fields and pastures.It was not very polite of me

48、 to leave without bidding your mother and brothers farewell, the Prince said.Thats excusable, when you leave in your sleep, the East Wind told him, as they flew on faster than ever.One could hear it in the tree tops. All the leaves and branches rustled as they swept over the forest, and when they cr

49、ossed over lakes or over seas the waves rose high, and tall ships bent low to the water as if they were drifting swans.As darkness gathered that evening, it was pleasant to see the great cities with their lights twinkling here and spreading there, just as when you burn a piece of paper and the spark

50、s fly one after another. At this sight the Prince clapped his hands in delight, but the East Wind advised him to stop it and hold on tight, or he might fall and find himself stuck upon a church steeple.The eagle in the dark forest flew lightly, but the East Wind flew more lightly still. The Cossack

51、on his pony sped swiftly across the steppes, but the Prince sped still more swiftly.Now, said the East Wind, you can view the Himalayas, the highest mountains in Asia. And soon we shall reach the Garden of paradise.They turned southward, where the air was sweet with flowers and spice. Figs and pomeg

52、ranates grew wild, and on untended vines grew red and blue clusters of grapes. They came down here, and both of them stretched out on the soft grass, where flowers nodded in the breeze as if to say: Welcome back.Are we now in the Garden of Paradise? the Prince asked.Oh, no! said the East Wind. But w

53、e shall come to it soon. Do you see that rocky cliff, and the big cave, where the vines hang in a wide curtain of greenery? Thats the way we go. Wrap your coat well about you. Here the sun is scorching hot, but a few steps and it is as cold as ice. The bird that flies at the mouth of the cave has on

54、e wing in summery and the other in wintry air.So this is the way to the Garden of Paradise, said the Prince, as they entered the cave.Brer-r-r! how frosty it was there, but not for long. The East Wind spread his wings, and they shone like the brighest flames. But what a cave that was! Huge masses of

55、 rock, from which water was trickling, hung in fantastic shapes above them. Sometimes the cave was so narrow that they had to crawl on their hands and knees, sometimes so vast that it seemed that they were under the open sky. The cave resembled a series of funeral chapels, with mute organ pipes and

56、banners turned to stone.We are going to the Garden of Paradise through the gates of death, are we not? the Prince asked.The East Wind answered not a word, but pointed to a lovely blue light that shone ahead of them. The masses of stone over their heads grew more and more misty, and at last they look

57、ed up at a clear white cloud in the moonlight. The air became delightfully clement, as fresh as it is in the hills, and as sweetly scented as it is among the roses that bloom in the valley.The river which flowed there was clear as the air itself, and the fish in it were like silver and gold. Purple

58、eels, that at every turn threw off blue sparks, frolicked about in the water, and the large leaves of the aquatic flowers gleamed in all of the rainbows colors. The flowers themselves were like a bright orange flame, which fed on the water just as a lamplight is fed by oil.A strong marble bridge, ma

59、de so delicately and artistically that it looked as if it consisted of lace and glass pearls, led across the water to the Island of the Blessed, where the Garden of Paradise bloomed.The East Wind swept the Prince up in his arms and carried him across to the island, where the petals and leaves sang a

60、ll the lovely old songs of his childhood, but far, far sweeter than any human voice could sing. Were these palm trees that grew there, or immense water plants? Such vast and verdant trees the Prince had never seen before. The most marvelous climbing vines hung in garlands such as are to be seen only

61、 in old illuminated church books, painted in gold and bright colors in the margins or twined about the initial letters. Here was the oddest assortment of birds, flowers, and twisting vines.On the grass near-by, with their brilliantly starred tails spread wide, was a flock of peacocks. Or so they see

62、med, but when the Prince touched them he found that these were not birds. They were plants. They were large burdock leaves that were as resplendent as a peacocks train. Lions and tigers leaped about, as lithe as cats, in the green shrubbery which the olive blossoms made so fragrant. The lions and ti

63、gers were quite tame, for the wild wood pigeon, which glistened like a lovely pearl, brushed the lions mane with her wings, and the timid antelopes stood by and tossed their heads as if they would like to join in their play.Then the fairy of the garden came to meet them. Her garments were as bright

64、as the sun, and her face was as cheerful as that of a happy mother who is well pleased with her child. She was so young and lovely, and the other pretty maidens who followed her each wore a shining star in their hair. When the East Wind gave her the palm-leaf message from the phoenix, her eyes spark

65、led with pleasure.She took the Prince by his hand and led him into her palace, where the walls had the color of a perfect tulip petal held up to the sun. The ceiling was made of one great shining flower, and the longer one looked up the deeper did the cup of it seem to be. The Prince went to the window. As he glanced out through one of the panes he saw the Tree of Knowledge, with the serpent, and Adam and Eve sta