酷兔英语

章节正文




Then she laid her head on the bird's breast, but was very much startled, for it was just as if
something inside was going "Thump! thump!" It was the bird's heart. The bird was not really dead, it had been in a swoon, and when the warmth stole over it life began to return. In the autumn the swa
llows fly away to warmer lands, but if there be one that is late and gets left behind, it gets so cold that it falls down as if dead, and the cold snow comes and buries it.
Thumbelina trembled, so frightened was she,
for really the bird was a big creature, compared with herself; but she plucked up her courage, wrapped the cotton-wool more closely round the poor swallow, and brought a leaf, which had served her as a counterpane, and placed it over the bird's head.
The following night she again crept down to it, and there it was quite alive, but so weak that it could only open its eye for a second and look at Thumbelina, who stood there with a little piece of touchwood in her hand,
for she had no other light.
"Many thanks, you pretty little child!" said the sick swallow. "I am so nice and warm now. I shall soon get back my strength, and be able to fly away i
nto the warm sunshine."
"Oh, not yet!" said she, "it is so cold outside, it is snowing and freezing! Keep in your warm bed, and I will nurse you!" She brought the swallow water in
a leaf, and when it had drunk it told her how it had torn one of its wings on a thorn bush, and therefore could not fly so strongly as the other swallows, when they flew away to the warm lands.



于是她把头贴在鸟儿的胸膛上,却立即又惊恐起来,因为他身体里面好象有什么东西在跳动。 这就是鸟儿的心。 原来鸟儿并没有死,只不过是冷得失去知觉罢了!现在他得到了温暖,又活起来了。 在秋天,所有的燕子都向温暖的国度飞去,不过,如果有一只脱队,他就会遇到冷风,并冻得掉下来像死去一般。他只有躺在落下的那块土地,让冰冷的雪盖满全身。
拇指姑娘真的颤抖得很厉害,因为她是那么惊恐;这鸟儿和只有寸余高的她比起来,真是太巨大了!可是她仍鼓起勇气把棉花紧紧地包裹在可怜的鸟儿身上,并把自己经常当作被盖的薄荷叶拿来,盖在这鸟儿的头上。
第二天夜里,她又偷偷地去看他。现在他已经活过来了,不过还是有点模糊,眼睛只能微微地睁开一会儿,瞧了拇指姑娘一眼。拇指姑娘手里拿着引火柴站着,因为她没有别的灯盏。
「非常的感谢,可爱的小小孩!」这只身体虚弱的燕子对她说。 「我现在真的感到舒服和温暖! 不久体力恢复,就可以在暖和的阳光下飞翔了。」
「啊!不!」她说:「外面是多么冷,雪花片片,遍地都结冰。 还是请你睡在温暖的床上吧!我可以来照顾你呀!」 她用花瓣盛着水拿给燕子。燕子喝了水以后,就告诉她说他的一只翅膀曾经在一个多刺的灌木林中擦伤了,因此不能和别的燕子们飞得一样快,那时他们正在远行,要飞到那遥远的、温暖的国度里去。



章节正文