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很久以前，有位国王发布命令,准许某一座城市的全体居民放假一天。 御花园的园丁心想：“在那个城市，我所有的朋友将度过一天假期。要是那天我不必呆在御花园里浇花浇树，我就可以去那里拜访朋友，跟他们痛痛快快玩一天。我想可以这么办:到那天就让猴子帮我灌溉花木。”那时候,御花园里养着一群猴子。 于是,园丁找到猴王，对他说：“你们能住在御花园里真是万分幸运。这里有最好的地方供你们玩耍，有最好的食物供你们享用——有美味的坚果、可口的水果，还有鲜美的树芽。你们也不必劳动，可以天天尽情玩耍。今天我另一个城市的朋友们放假一天，我要找他们好好玩一天。我离开以后你们愿意帮我在园子里浇花浇木吗？” “噢，当然愿意！"猴王一口答应下来，我们很乐意为效劳！” "一定记住:要在太阳落山以后浇树，确保给每棵树浇足量的水，但不也能浇得太多了。”园丁说着，还给他们指了指放喷壶的地方,然后才离开。 太阳落山以后，猴子们拿起喷壶开始给小树浇水。“要保证给每棵树浇足量的水。’'猴王吩咐群猴说。 “我们怎么才能知道一棵树有没有喝足了水呢？”猴子们问猴王。猴王也给不出一个很好的答案，就说道:"你们把每棵小树拔出来，看看它的根有多长。根长的树要多浇水,根短的树只浇少量的水就行了。" 这群愚蠢的猴子说干就干，把所有的树都连根拔起，看看哪些树的根长，哪些树的根短。 第二天园丁回来的时候,可怜的小树全都死掉了。 The Stupid Monkeys Once upon a time a king gave a holiday to all the people in one of his cities. The king’s gardener thought to himself, "All my friends are having a holiday in the city. I could go into the city and enjoy myself with them if I did not have to water the trees here in this garden. I know what I will do. I will get the Monkeys to water the young trees for me.” In those days, a tribe of Monkeys lived in the king’s garden. So the gardener went to the Chief of the Monkeys, and said, “You are lucky Monkeys to be living in the king's garden. You have a fine place to play in. You have the best of food—nuts, fruit, and the young shoots of trees to eat. You have no work at all to do. You can play all day, every day. Today my friends are having a holiday in the city, and I want to enjoy myself with them. Will you water the young trees so that I can go away?” “〇h，yes!” said the Chief of the Monkeys. “We shall be glad to do that.” “Do not forget to water the trees when the sun goes down. See they have plenty of water, but not too much,” said the gardener. Then he showed them where the watering- pots were kept, and went away. When the sun went down the Monkeys took the watering-pots, and began to water the young trees. “See that each tree has enough water，，’ said the Chief of the Monkeys. “How shall we know when each tree has enough?” they asked. The Chief of the Monkeys had no good answer, so he said, 44Pull up each young tree and look at the length of its roots. Give a great deal of water to those with long roots, but only a little to those trees that have short roots. ’， Then those stupid Monkeys pulled up all the young trees to see which trees had long roots and which had short roots. When the gardener came back the next day, the poor young trees were all dead. |
