Sang Kancil和鳄鱼

老老虎

The Old Tiger

很久以前，在一片靠近宽阔棕色河流的绿森林里，住着一只小鼷鹿。他的名字叫Sang Kancil。他并不比一只猫大，但他却是整片森林里最聪明的动物。

Long ago, in a green forest near a wide brown river, there lived a small mouse-deer. His name was Sang Kancil. He was no bigger than a cat, but he was the cleverest animal in the whole forest.

在森林中间有一片舔盐地。每天动物们都来这里舔咸咸的泥土。但是一只老老虎也来到这里，而且每天他都会抓走他们中的一只。

In the middle of the forest there was a salt-lick. Every day the animals came there to lick the salty earth. But an old tiger came there too, and every day he caught one of them.

动物们非常害怕。“我们能做什么呢？”鹿问。“没有人比老虎更强壮，”野猪伤心地回答。

The animals were very afraid. “What can we do?” asked the deer. “Nobody is stronger than the tiger,” answered the wild pig sadly.

Sang Kancil想了很久。然后他走向老虎，并且鞠了一个躬。

Sang Kancil thought for a long time. Then he walked to the tiger and bowed.

“伟大的老虎，”他说，“您为什么为了食物这么辛苦地工作呢？我可以每天给您带来一只动物。然后您就可以在树荫下休息了。”老虎喜欢这个想法，于是他答应了。

“Great Tiger,” he said, “why do you work so hard for your food? I can bring you one animal every day. Then you can rest in the shade.” The tiger liked this idea, and he said yes.

但是当然没有动物想去老虎那里。三天后，Sang Kancil回到了舔盐地。只有一只小小的鼯鼠和他一起来。

But of course no animal wanted to go to the tiger. After three days, Sang Kancil went back to the salt-lick. Only a tiny flying squirrel came with him.

“我的晚餐在哪里？”老虎大叫。“非常对不起，”Sang Kancil说。“另一只老虎在路上拦住了我们。他又胖又老，而且有一只鼯鼠坐在他的鼻子上。”

“Where is my dinner?” the tiger shouted. “I’m very sorry,” said Sang Kancil. “Another tiger stopped us on the way. He is fat and old, and a flying squirrel sits on his nose.”

老虎非常生气。“我的森林里有另一只老虎？带我去见他！”于是他们去找他。鼯鼠坐在老虎的鼻子上，Sang Kancil骑在他的背上。

The tiger was very angry. “Another tiger in my forest? Show him to me!” So they went to look for him. The flying squirrel sat on the tiger’s nose, and Sang Kancil rode on his back.

到了河边，Sang Kancil指着水面。“看！他在那里！”他喊道。“那里就是那只又胖又老的老虎，鼻子上还有一只鼯鼠！”

At the river, Sang Kancil pointed at the water. “Look! There he is!” he shouted. “There is the fat old tiger, with a flying squirrel on his nose!”

老虎向下看，在水里看到了一只生气的老虎。他吼叫着扑向它。扑通！在同一时刻，Sang Kancil和鼯鼠飞快地跳到了岸上。

The tiger looked down and saw an angry tiger in the water. He roared and jumped at it. Splash! At the same moment, Sang Kancil and the squirrel jumped quickly onto the bank.

湍急的河水把老虎带到了很远的下游。他再也没有回到舔盐地。动物们安全了，他们唱了许多天关于Sang Kancil的歌。

The fast water carried the tiger far away down the river. He never came back to the salt-lick. The animals were safe, and they sang songs about Sang Kancil for many days.

但是河里还有其他饥饿的动物，而且他们比任何老虎都可怕得多。

But the river had other hungry animals in it, and they were much worse than any tiger.