A shoemaker, through no fault of his own, had become so poor that he had only leather enough for a single pair of shoes. He cut them out one evening, then went to bed, intending to finish them the next morning. Having a clear conscience, he went to bed peacefully, commended himself to God, and fell asleep.
從前有個(gè)平凡的鞋匠，家里窮得只剩做一雙鞋子用的皮革了。晚上他把皮革裁剪好，就去睡覺了，打算第二天一早做完它們。他在床上懷著一顆純潔而寧靜的心祈求完上帝便睡著了。

The next morning, after saying his prayers, he was about to return to his work when he found the shoes on his workbench, completely finished. Amazed, he did not know what to say. He picked up the shoes in order to examine them more closely. They were so well made that not a single stitch was out of place, just as if they were intended as a masterpiece. A customer soon came by, and he liked the shoes so much that he paid more than the usual price for them.
第二天早上他做完禱告,打算繼續(xù)工作,但他發(fā)現(xiàn).在工作臺(tái)上的那雙鞋子已經(jīng)做好了.天啦!鞋匠驚訝得說不出話來. 他把鞋子拿起來檢查了一下,做工非常棒,縫接處沒有絲毫偏差.就在這時(shí)，一位顧客進(jìn)來了,他非常喜歡這雙鞋并用高價(jià)買下了它們.

The shoemaker now had enough money to buy leather for two pairs of shoes. That evening he cut them out, intending to continue his work the next morning with good cheer. But he did not need to do so, because when he got up they were already finished. Customers soon bought them, paying him enough that he now could buy leather for four pairs of shoes. Early the next morning he found the four pairs finished. And so it continued; whatever he cut out in the evening was always finished the following morning. He now had a respectable income and with time became a wealthy man.
鞋匠現(xiàn)在有足夠的錢買做兩雙鞋的皮革了.晚上他興高彩烈地裁剪好,打算第二天早上做好它們.但是他起床的時(shí)候鞋已經(jīng)做好了.很快又有顧客買走了,并付給他很多錢,這下，鞋匠可以買做四雙鞋子的皮革了。而且和以前一樣，第二天早晨他發(fā)現(xiàn)鞋子已經(jīng)做好了。這樣過了一段時(shí)間，隨著越來越多的鞋子做好了，賣出去，鞋匠很快就富了起來。

One evening shortly before Christmas, just before going to bed, and having already cut out a number of shoes, he said to his wife, "Why don't we stay up tonight and see who is giving us this helping hand."
圣誕節(jié)前的某天晚上，鞋匠一邊忙著裁剪皮革，一邊對(duì)妻子說:“不如我們整夜不睡，看看究竟是誰在幫助我們？”

His wife agreed to this and lit a candle. Then they hid themselves behind some clothes that were hanging in a corner of the room. At midnight two cute little naked men appeared. Sitting down at the workbench, they picked up the cut-out pieces and worked so unbelievable quickly and nimbly that the amazed shoemaker could not take his eyes from them. They did not stop until they had finished everything. They placed the completed shoes on the workbench, then quickly ran away.
他的妻子非常贊同,于是他們點(diǎn)了一根蠟燭，悄悄地藏在房間衣服的后面。半夜時(shí)分，兩個(gè)小小的光著身子的小精靈出現(xiàn)了。他們坐在工作臺(tái)上撿起裁剪好的皮革飛快的做了起來,鞋匠簡直不敢相信自己的眼睛。它們直到全部做好才停下來把鞋放在工作臺(tái)上,然后迅速跑走了.

The next morning the wife said, "The little men have made us wealthy. We must show them our thanks. They are running around with nothing on, freezing. Do you know what? I want to sew some shirts, jackets, undershirts, and trousers for them, and knit a pair of stockings for each of them, and you should make a pair of shoes for each of them."
第二天早上，鞋匠的妻子:“這些小精靈讓我們生活這么富裕。我們應(yīng)該報(bào)答他們,他們光著身子?xùn)|奔西跑一定很冷。知道嗎?我可以縫制一些襯衫,短外套,汗衫,還有褲子和長襪,而你可以給他們做一雙鞋子.”

The husband said, "I agree," and that evening, when everything was finished, they set the presents out instead of the unfinished work. Then they hid themselves in order to see what the little men would do. At midnight they came skipping up, intending to start work immediately. When they saw the little clothes instead of the cut-out leather, they at first seemed puzzled, but then delighted. They quickly put them on, then stroking the beautiful clothes on their bodies they sang:
Sind wir nicht Knaben glatt und fein? Was sollen wir linger Schuster sein! Are we not boys, neat and fine? No longer cobblers shall we be!
鞋匠說: "完全同意,"那天晚上，　鞋匠夫婦沒有把裁剪好的皮革放在工作臺(tái)上，而是把做好的小禮物放在上面。然后，他們又悄悄的躲了起來看小人會(huì)做什么.半夜里，小精靈們來了,并立刻準(zhǔn)備把東西騰空開始工作,但他們剛看見那些小衣服的時(shí)候很迷惑，然后馬上欣喜的把它們穿在身上,用手摸著漂亮的衣服唱起歌來:
“快來看看我，我是多么漂亮！我是一個(gè)英俊瀟灑的帥小伙，沒有比干制鞋的活更使我們快樂。”

Then they hopped and danced about, jumping over chairs and benches. Finally they danced out of the house. They never returned, but the shoemaker prospered, succeeding in everything that he did.
他們神氣活現(xiàn)地蹦著、舞著、跳過椅子和長凳，最后跳出了房子再也沒有回來。但是鞋匠仍然生意興隆,萬事如意。

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