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很久很久以前有一个贫苦的男孩，名叫迪克•惠廷顿。他没有父母，经常没有东西吃。一天，他听说一个名叫伦敦的大城市，人人都说那儿连街道也是用金子铺成的。迪克就决定去伦敦碰碰运气。 伦敦是一个繁忙的大城市，既有富人，也有穷人。但是他却找不到用金子铺的街道。他又累又冷又饿,就在一座大房子的台阶上睡着了。这座房子是菲茨沃伦先生的，他是一个有钱的商人，也是一个慷慨大方的好心人。他把迪克带回家，给了他一份工作，让他在厨房里做帮工。 迪克有一间属于自己的小屋子，要是没有老鼠的话，他本可以高兴地住在那里的。可是夜里他躺在床上,老鼠就在他身上乱跑，让他不能睡觉。一天，迪克为一位绅士擦皮鞋赚了一便士，就用它买了一只猫。之后，他的生活就变得轻松多了，猫吓跑了所有的老鼠，夜里他就可以安静地睡觉了。 一天，菲茨沃伦先生把家里所有的仆人都叫到了一起，因为他的船要拉着货物去遥远的地方做贸易。菲茨沃伦先生就对仆人们说，如果他们愿意的话就把他们自己的东西送到船上，或许可以换点金子或是钱币。迪克只有一只猫，就悲伤送了去。 迪克继续为菲茨沃伦先生做帮工，菲茨沃伦先生对他也很好。大家都对迪克很好，只有那个厨师例外,他让迪克的生活变得糟糕。一天，迪克决定跑掉。他几乎跑到了城市的尽头，这时他听到圣玛丽•勒•博教堂的钟响了,他转过身，回到了菲茨沃伦先生家里。 他回去时发现菲茨沃伦先生的船已经回来了，他把猫以高价卖给了巴巴利国王，因为他的宫殿里到处是老鼠。迪克得到了很多钱，变成了一个富人。 很快，迪克就从菲茨沃伦先生那里学会了做买卖，又娶了他的女儿爱丽丝。最后，他当了三届伦敦市的市长。 注:巴巴里:北非一地区,濒地中海海岸，在埃及与大西洋之间。公元前2000年时柏柏尔人定居于此。公元7世纪时被阿拉伯人占领。从!6至!9世纪成为海盗的据点„海盗们在地中海上洗劫船只,并从在此地区从事贸易的欧洲列强那里勒索钱财。 Dick Whittington and His Cat A long, long time ago there lived a poor boy called Dick Whittington. He had no mother and no father, and often nothing to eat. One day he heard of the great city of London, where, said everyone, even the streets were paved with gold. Dick decided to go to London to seek his fortune. London was a big and busy city, full of people both rich and poor. But Dick could not find any streets that were paved with gold. Tired, cold and hungry, he fell asleep on the steps of a great house. This house belonged to Mr. Fitzwarren, a rich merchant, who was also a good and generous man. He took Dick into his house, and gave him work as a scullery boy. Dick had a little room of his own where he could have been very happy if it had not been for the rats. They would run all over him as he lay on his bed at night and would not let him sleep. One day Dick earned a penny by shining shoes for a gentleman, and with it he bought a cat. After that Dick's life became easier — the cat frightened away all the rats, and Dick could sleep in peace at night. One day Mr. Fitzwarren called all the servants of the house together. One of his ships was leaving for a far-off land with goods to trade. Mr. Fitzwarren asked his servants to send something of their own in the ship if they so desired, something which could perhaps be traded for a bit of gold or money. Dick had only his cat to send — which he did with a sad heart. Dick continued to work as a scullery boy for Mr. Fitzwarren, who was very kind tohim. So was everyone else except the Cook who made Dick，s life so miserable that one day Dick decided to run away. He had reached almost the end of the city when he heard the Bow Bells ring out. "Turn again Whittington, thrice Lord Mayor of London" chimed the bells. Dick was astonished, but he did as the bells said and went back to Mr. Fitzwarren. When he returned he found that Mr. Fitzwarren's ship had returned, and that his cat had been sold for a great fortune to the King of Barbary whose palace had been overrun with mice. Dick had become a rich man. He soon learnt the business from Mr. Fitzwarren, married his daughter Alice, and in time became the Lord Mayor of London three times, just as the bells had said. |
