By Hans Christian Andersen

　　（1835）

　　英漢對照One dark evening， he had not even a penny to buy a candle； then all at once he remembered that there was a piece of candle stuck in the tinder-box， which he had brought from the old tree， into which the witch had helped him.

　　He found the tinder-box， but no sooner had he struck a few sparks from the flint and steel， than the door flew open and the dog with eyes as big as teacups， whom he had seen while down in the tree， stood before him， and said， “What orders， master？”

　　“Hallo，” said the soldier； “well this is a pleasant tinderbox， if it brings me all I wish for.”

　　“Bring me some money，” said he to the dog.

　　He was gone in a moment， and presently returned， carrying a large bag of coppers in his month. The soldier very soon discovered after this the value of the tinder-box. If he struck the flint once， the dog who sat on the chest of copper money made his ； if twice， the dog came from the chest of silver； and if three times， the dog with eyes like towers， who watched over the gold. The soldier had now plenty of money； he returned to his elegant rooms， and reappeared in his fine clothes， so that his friends knew him again directly， and made as much of him as before.

　　After a while he began to think it was very strange that no one could get a look at the princess. “Every one says she is very beautiful，” thought he to himself； “but what is the use of that if she is to be shut up in a copper castle surrounded by so many towers. Can I by any means get to see her. Stop！ where is my tinder-box？” Then he struck a light， and in a moment the dog， with eyes as big as teacups， stood before him.

　　“It is midnight，” said the soldier， “yet I should very much like to see the princess， if only for a moment.”

　　The dog disappeared instantly， and before the soldier could even look round， he returned with the princess. She was lying on the dog's back asleep， and looked so lovely， that every one who saw her would know she was a real princess. The soldier could not help kissing her， true soldier as he was. Then the dog ran back with the princess； but in the morning， while at breakfast with the king and queen， she told them what a singular dream she had had during the night， of a dog and a soldier， that she had ridden on the dog's back， and been kissed by the soldier.

　　“That is a very pretty story， indeed，” said the queen. So the next night one of the old ladies of the court was set to watch by the princess's bed， to discover whether it really was a dream， or what else it might be.

　　The soldier longed very much to see the princess once more， so he sent for the dog again in the night to fetch her， and to run with her as fast as ever he could. But the old lady put on water boots， and ran after him as quickly as he did， and found that he carried the princess into a large house. She thought it would help her to remember the place if she made a large cross on the door with a piece of chalk. Then she went home to bed， and the dog presently returned with the princess. But when he saw that a cross had been made on the door of the house， where the soldier lived， he took another piece of chalk and made crosses on all the doors in the town， so that the lady-in-waiting might not be able to find out the right door.

　　Early the next morning the king and queen accompanied the lady and all the officers of the household， to see where the princess had been.

　　“Here it is，” said the king， when they came to the first door with a cross on it.

　　“No， my dear husband， it must be that one，” said the queen， pointing to a second door having a cross also.

　　“And here is one， and there is another！” they all exclaimed； for there were crosses on all the doors in every direction.

　　So they felt it would be useless to search any farther. But the queen was a very clever woman； she could do a great deal more than merely ride in a carriage. She took her large gold scissors， cut a piece of silk into squares， and made a neat little bag. This bag she filled with buckwheat flour， and tied it round the princess's neck； and then she cut a small hole in the bag， so that the flour might be scattered on the ground as the princess went along. During the night， the dog came again and carried the princess on his back， and ran with her to the soldier， who loved her very much， and wished that he had been a prince， so that he might have her for a wife. The dog did not observe how the flour ran out of the bag all the way from the castle wall to the soldier's house， and even up to the window， where he had climbed with the princess. Therefore in the morning the king and queen found out where their daughter had been， and the soldier was taken up and put in prison. Oh， how dark and disagreeable it was as he sat there， and the people said to him， “To-morrow you will be hanged.” It was not very pleasant news， and besides， he had left the tinder-box at the inn. In the morning he could see through the iron grating of the little window how the people were hastening out of the town to see him hanged； he heard the drums beating， and saw the soldiers marching. Every one ran out to look at them. and a shoemaker's boy， with a leather apron and slippers on， galloped by so fast， that one of his slippers flew off and struck against the wall where the soldier sat looking through the iron grating. “Hallo， you shoemaker's boy， you need not be in such a hurry，” cried the soldier to him. “There will be nothing to see till I come； but if you will run to the house where I have been living， and bring me my tinder-box， you shall have four shillings， but you must put your best foot foremost.”

　　The shoemaker's boy liked the idea of getting the four shillings， so he ran very fast and fetched the tinder-box， and gave it to the soldier. And now we shall see what happened. Outside the town a large gibbet had been erected， round which stood the soldiers and several thousands of people. The king and the queen sat on splendid thrones opposite to the judges and the whole council. The soldier already stood on the ladder； but as they were about to place the rope around his neck， he said that an innocent request was often granted to a poor criminal before he suffered death. He wished very much to smoke a pipe， as it would be the last pipe he should ever smoke in the world. The king could not refuse this request， so the soldier took his tinder-box， and struck fire， once， twice， thrice，― and there in a moment stood all the dogs；―the one with eyes as big as teacups， the one with eyes as large as mill-wheels， and the third， whose eyes were like towers. “Help me now， that I may not be hanged，” cried the soldier.

　　And the dogs fell upon the judges and all the councilors； seized one by the legs， and another by the nose， and tossed them many feet high in the air， so that they fell down and were dashed to pieces.

　　“I will not be touched，” said the king. But the largest dog seized him， as well as the queen， and threw them after the others. Then the soldiers and all the people were afraid， and cried， “Good soldier， you shall be our king， and you shall marry the beautiful princess.”

　　So they placed the soldier in the king's carriage， and the three dogs ran on in front and cried “Hurrah！” and the little boys whistled through their fingers， and the soldiers presented arms. The princess came out of the copper castle， and became queen， which was very pleasing to her. The wedding festivities lasted a whole week， and the dogs sat at the table， and stared with all their eyes.

　　I. Translation for Reference（參考譯文）

　　打火匣（2）

　　有一天晚上天很黑。他連一根蠟燭也買不起。這時(shí)他忽然記起，自己還有一根蠟燭頭裝在那個(gè)打火匣里――巫婆幫助他到那空樹底下取出來的那個(gè)打火匣。他把那個(gè)打火匣和蠟燭頭取出來。當(dāng)他在火石上擦了一下，火星一冒出來的時(shí)候，房門忽然自動(dòng)地開了，他在樹底下所看到的那條眼睛有茶杯大的狗兒就在他面前出現(xiàn)了。它說：

　　“我的主人，有什么吩咐？”

　　“這是怎么一回事兒？”兵土說。“這真是一個(gè)滑稽的打火匣。如果我能這樣得到我想要的東西才好呢！替我弄幾個(gè)錢來吧！”他對狗兒說。于是“噓”的一聲，狗兒就不見了。

　　一會(huì)兒，又是“噓”的一聲，狗兒嘴里銜著一大口袋的錢回來了。

　　現(xiàn)在士兵才知道這是一個(gè)多么美妙的打火匣。只要他把它擦一下，那只狗兒就來了，坐在盛有銅錢的箱子上。要是他擦它兩下，那只有銀子的狗兒就來了。要是他擦三下，那只有金子的狗兒就出現(xiàn)了。現(xiàn)在這個(gè)兵士又搬到那幾間華美的房間里去住，又穿起漂亮的衣服來了。他所有的朋友馬上又認(rèn)得他了，并且還非常關(guān)心他起來。

　　有一次他心中想：“人們不能去看那位公主，也可算是一樁怪事。大家都說她很美；不過，假如她老是獨(dú)住在那有許多塔樓的銅宮里，那有什么意思呢？難道我就看不到她一眼嗎？――我的打火匣在什么地方？”他擦出火星，馬上“噓”的一聲，那只眼睛像茶杯一樣的狗兒就跳出來了。

　　“現(xiàn)在是半夜了，一點(diǎn)也不錯(cuò)，”兵士說。“不過我倒很想看一下那位公主哩，哪怕一忽兒也好。”

　　狗兒立刻就跑到門外去了。出乎這士兵的意料之外，它一會(huì)兒就領(lǐng)著公主回來了。她躺在狗的背上，已經(jīng)睡著了。誰都可以看出她是一個(gè)真正的公主，因?yàn)樗浅：每础＿@個(gè)兵士忍不住要吻她一下，因?yàn)樗且粋€(gè)不折不扣的丘八呀。

　　狗兒又帶著公主回去了。但是天亮以后，當(dāng)國王和王后正在飲茶的時(shí)候，公主說她在晚上做了一個(gè)很奇怪的夢，夢見一只狗和一個(gè)兵，她自己騎在狗身上，那個(gè)兵吻了她一下。“這倒是一個(gè)很好玩的故事呢！”王后說。

　　因此第二天夜里有一個(gè)老宮女就得守在公主的床邊，來看看這究竟是夢呢，還是什么別的東西。

　　那個(gè)兵士非常想再一次看到這位可愛的公主。因此狗兒晚上又來了，背起她，盡快地跑走了。那個(gè)老宮女立刻穿上套鞋，以同樣的速度在后面追趕。當(dāng)她看到他們跑進(jìn)一幢大房子里去的時(shí)候，她想：“我現(xiàn)在可知道這塊地方了。”她就在這門上用白粉筆畫了一個(gè)大十字。隨后她就回去睡覺了，不久狗兒把公主送回來了。不過當(dāng)它看見兵士住的那幢房子的門上畫著一個(gè)十字的時(shí)候，它也取一支粉筆來，在城里所有的門上都畫了一個(gè)十字。這件事做得很聰明，因?yàn)樗械拈T上都有了十字，那個(gè)老宮女就找不到正確的地方了。

　　早晨，國王、王后、那個(gè)老宮女以及所有的官員很早就都來了，要去看看公主所到過的地方。

　　當(dāng)國王看到第一個(gè)畫有十字的門的時(shí)候，他就說：“就在這兒！”

　　但是王后發(fā)現(xiàn)另一個(gè)門上也有個(gè)十字，所以她說：“親愛的丈夫，不是在這兒呀？”

　　這時(shí)大家都齊聲說：“那兒有一個(gè)！那兒有一個(gè)！”因?yàn)樗麄儫o論朝什么地方看，都發(fā)現(xiàn)門上畫有十字。所以他們覺得，如果再找下去，也不會(huì)得到什么結(jié)果。

　　不過王后是一個(gè)非常聰明的女人。她不僅只會(huì)坐四輪馬車，而且還能做一些別的事情。

　　她取出一把金剪刀，把一塊綢子剪成幾片，縫了一個(gè)很精致的小袋，在袋里裝滿了很細(xì)的蕎麥粉。她把這小袋系在公主的背上。這樣布置好了以后，她就在袋子上剪了一個(gè)小口，好叫公主走過的路上，都撒上細(xì)粉。

　　晚間狗兒又來了。它把公主背到背上，帶著她跑到兵士那兒去。這個(gè)兵士現(xiàn)在非常愛她；他倒很想成為一位王子，和她結(jié)婚呢。

　　狗兒完全沒有注意到，面粉已經(jīng)從王宮那兒一直撒到兵士那間屋子的窗上――它就是在這兒背著公主沿著墻爬進(jìn)去的。早晨，國王和王后已經(jīng)看得很清楚，知道他們的女兒曾經(jīng)到什么地方去過。他們把那個(gè)兵士抓來，關(guān)進(jìn)牢里去。

　　他現(xiàn)在坐在牢里了。嗨，那里面可夠黑暗和悶人啦！人們對他說：“明天你就要上絞架了。”這句話聽起來可真不是好玩的，而且他把打火匣也忘掉在旅館里。第二天早晨，他從小窗的鐵欄桿里望見許多人涌出城來看他上絞架。他聽到鼓聲，看到兵士們開步走。所有的人都在向外面跑。在這些人中間有一個(gè)鞋匠的學(xué)徒。他還穿著破圍裙和一雙拖鞋。他跑得那么快，連他的一雙拖鞋也飛走了，撞到一堵墻上。那個(gè)兵士就坐在那兒，在鐵欄桿后面朝外望。

　　“喂，你這個(gè)鞋匠的小鬼！你不要這么急呀！”兵士對他說。“在我沒有到場以前，沒有什么好看的呀。不過，假如你跑到我住的那個(gè)地方去，把我的打火匣取來，我可以給你四塊錢。但是你得使勁地跑一下才行。”這個(gè)鞋匠的學(xué)徒很想得到那四塊錢，所以提起腳就跑，把那個(gè)打火匣取來，交給這兵士，同時(shí)――唔，我們馬上就可以知道事情起了什么變化。

　　在城外面，一架高大的絞架已經(jīng)豎起來了。它的周圍站著許多兵士和成千成萬的老百姓。國王和王后，面對著審判官和全部陪審的人員，坐在一個(gè)華麗的王座上面。

　　那個(gè)兵士已經(jīng)站到梯子上來了。不過，當(dāng)人們正要把絞索套到他脖子上的時(shí)候，他說，一個(gè)罪人在接受他的裁判以前，可以有一個(gè)無罪的要求，人們應(yīng)該讓他得到滿足：他非常想抽一口煙，而且這可以說是他在這世界上最后抽的一口煙了。

　　對于這要求，國王不愿意說一個(gè)“不”字。所以兵士就取出了他的打火匣，擦了幾下火。一――二――三！忽然三只狗兒都跳出來了――一只有茶杯那么大的眼睛，一只有水車輪那么大的眼睛――還有一只的眼睛簡直有“圓塔”那么大。

　　“請幫助我，不要叫我被絞死吧！”兵士說。

　　這時(shí)這幾只狗兒就向法官和全體審判的人員撲來，拖著這個(gè)人的腿子，咬著那個(gè)人的鼻子，把他們?nèi)酉蚩罩杏泻脦渍筛撸麄兟湎聛頃r(shí)都跌成了肉醬。

　　“不準(zhǔn)這樣對付我！”國王說。不過最大的那只狗兒還是拖住他和他的王后，把他們跟其余的人一起亂扔，所有的士兵都害怕起來，老百姓也都叫起來：“小兵，你做咱們的國王吧！你跟那位美麗的公主結(jié)婚吧！”

　　這么著，大家就把這個(gè)兵士擁進(jìn)國王的四輪馬車?yán)锶ァＤ侨还穬壕驮谒媲疤鴣硖ィ瑫r(shí)高呼：“萬歲！”小孩子用手指吹起口哨來；士兵們敬起禮來。那位公主走出她的銅宮，做了王后，感到非常滿意。結(jié)婚典禮舉行了足足八天。那三只狗兒也上桌子坐了，把眼睛睜得比什么時(shí)候都大。

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