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小埃迪是富人家的孩子，仗着家里的财富，无所事事，也不学习。相反，小吉米的父母很穷,但他却喜欢学习，学会了编篮子。 —天，埃迪在海边钓鱼玩。而吉米割了 一捆小柳条，正打算回家。 突然，树林里跑出一伙海盗,把两个孩子拖到了船上。随后，他们将会被卖为奴隶。 在一场暴风雨中，轮船左摇右晃,撞到了岩石上，很快就在水里随风漂荡了，只有两个男孩侥幸逃生。他们来到一个陌生的岛上，那儿住着些残忍的野蛮人。 吉米想凭自己的手艺,感动他们发发善心。他从口袋里拿出一把刀，割了 一些小柳条，开始编漂亮的篮子。那里的很多人围着他好奇地观看。 编完之后，他就把它当作礼物献给岛上最受尊重的人。但是所有其他人都想要一个这样的篮子。他们给他准备了一个小屋，小屋在许多水果树的荫凉下，这样他可以安静地工作，饿的时候也总有吃的。 他们也要埃迪给他们做篮子，但是他对这样的活一窍不通。他们就狠狠地打他，要不是吉米替他说好话，他们就把他杀死了。首领命令埃迪把他漂亮的外套给吉米，自己穿一个旧外套，还给吉米当仆人，必要的时候给他递柳条。他们编完篮子后，才获释回了家。 The Little Basket Maker Little Eddy was the son of well-to-do people and relying on their riches he did nothing and did not even want to study. Little Jimmy, on the other hand, had very poor parents, but he was always eager to study and had learned basket-making. One day Eddy was at the sea shore and was trying his hand at fishing. Jimmy, meanwhile, had cut a bunch of small willow branches and was about to return home when some pirates suddenly appeared from the woods and dragged the two boys to their ship. Later on they would be sold as slaves. The ship，tossed about by a violent storm and knocked against the rocks, was soon floundering and only the two boys survived. They found themselves on a strange island which was inhabited by savage and cruel people Jimmy thought that with his trade he could move them to pity. He pulled a knife out of his pocket, cut off some small willow branches and began to work on a beautiful basket. Many of the people came around and looked at him curiously. When he had finished the work, he offered it as a gift to the most respectful man on the island. But all the others desired to possess such a basket. They prepared a hut for him, which was under the shadow of numerous fruit trees, so that he could work in peace and when he was hungry he always had enough to eat. Then they wanted Eddy also to make baskets and when they found that he knew nothing about such work, they beat him cruelly and would have probably killed him if Jimmy had not put in a good word for him. The chief ordered Eddy to give Jimmy his elegant coat to wear an old one and to be a servant to Jimmy and to give him the necessary branches whenever he needed them. At last, when the baskets were made, the boys were set free and went home. |
