哈梅林的花衣吹笛人

老鼠成灾的小镇

A Town Full of Rats

1284年，哈梅林是德国北部一座漂亮的小镇。它古老的石墙坐落在威悉河畔，河水又深又宽。大多数时候，这里都是一个宜居的好地方。

In the year 1284, Hamelin was a pretty little town in the north of Germany. Its old stone walls stood beside the river Weser, which was deep and wide. Most of the time, it was a pleasant place to live.

但是那个夏天，哈梅林遇到了一个可怕的大麻烦。老鼠！到处都是老鼠。

But that summer, Hamelin had a terrible problem. Rats! There were rats everywhere.

它们跟狗打架，追赶猫咪。它们吃光厨房里的奶酪，还舔光厨师勺子里的汤。它们甚至在男人们周日才戴的最好帽子里做窝。

They fought the dogs and chased the cats. They ate the cheese in the kitchens and licked the soup from the cooks’ spoons. They even built nests in the men’s best Sunday hats.

到了晚上，它们在床上跑来跑去。白天，它们叫得那么响，女人们连彼此说话都听不清。

At night they ran over the beds. During the day they squeaked so loudly that the women couldn’t hear each other talk.

哈梅林人想尽了一切办法。他们买了更多的猫，下了捕鼠夹，还放了毒药，但一点用都没有。每个星期，老鼠似乎都比以前更多了。

The people of Hamelin had tried everything. They had bought more cats, set traps and put out poison, but nothing had worked. Every week there seemed to be more rats than before.

最后，人们再也忍不住了。一大群愤怒的居民走向市政厅，这时镇长和议员们正围坐在长桌旁。

At last the people lost their patience. A large, angry crowd marched to the Town Hall, where the Mayor and the council were sitting at their long table.

“我们的镇长是个傻瓜！”有人大喊，“议员们也好不到哪儿去！我们出钱给你们买漂亮的皮袍子，你们为我们做了什么？什么都没做！”

“Our Mayor is a fool!” someone shouted. “And the council is no better! We pay for your fine fur robes, and what do you do for us? Nothing!”

“想办法把这些老鼠弄走，”另一个人大喊，“不然我们就把你们全都赶出市政厅！”

“Find a way to get rid of these rats,” another man shouted, “or we’ll throw you all out of the Town Hall!”

镇长和议员们脸色发白，在椅子上直发抖。他们根本不知道该怎么办。

The Mayor and the councillors went pale and shook in their chairs. They had no idea what to do.