Loe raamatut: «Золушка / Cinderella», lehekülg 3

The Little Mermaid

Far out in the ocean, where the water is blue and very, very deep, lived the Sea King and his subjects. His castle stood in the deepest spot of the ocean. Its walls were built of coral, and the long windows were of the clearest amber. The roof was made of shells that opened and closed as the water flowed over them.

The Sea King had six beautiful children; but the youngest was the prettiest of them all. Her skin was as clear and delicate as a roseleaf, and her eyes as blue as the deepest sea. Like all the others, she had no feet, and her body ended in a fish’s tail⁴⁸. All day long she played with her sisters in the great halls of the castle. Outside the castle there was a beautiful garden, in which grew bright red and dark blue flowers, and blossoms like flames of fire⁴⁹. Over everything shined a beautiful blue light. Each of the young princesses had a little plot of ground⁵⁰ in the garden, where they planted different flowers. One arranged her flower-bed into the shape of a whale; another made hers look like the figure of a mermaid. The youngest sister made hers round like the sun, with red flowers. She was a quiet child. Her sisters liked to find different wonderful things at the wrecks of vessels, but she cared for nothing but her flowers and one beautiful marble statue. It was a statue of a handsome boy, carved out of pure white stone, which had fallen to the bottom of the sea from a wreck. She planted a rose-colored weeping willow by the statue. It grew fast, and very soon hung its fresh branches over the statue. She also loved to hear stories about the world above the sea. To her it seemed most wonderful and beautiful⁵¹ to hear that the flowers of the land had fragrance; that the trees of the forest were green; and that the fish among the trees could sing so sweetly, that it was quite a pleasure to hear them.

Once the princesses reached their fifteenth year, they would be allowed to rise up out of the sea and see the world above. But the youngest would have to wait five years before it was her turn to rise to the surface.

Each princess promised to tell the others what she saw on her first visit, and what she thought the most beautiful⁵². As soon as the eldest was fifteen, she was allowed to rise to the surface of the ocean. When she came back, she had hundreds of things to talk about; but the most beautiful, she said, was to lie in the moonlight, on a sandbank, in the quiet sea, near the coast, and to gaze on a large town nearby, where the lights were twinkling like hundreds of stars; to listen to the sounds of the music, the noise of carriages, and the voices of humans.

In another year the second sister rose to the surface of the water. It was at sunset, and this, she said, was the most beautiful sight of all. The sky was full of gold, while, violet and rose-colored clouds, which she could not describe. Above her flew a large flock of wild swans. She swam towards the sun; but it sunk into the waves, and the rosy color faded from the clouds and from the sea.

The third sister’s turn followed. She was the boldest of them all, and she swam up a broad river that emptied itself into the sea⁵³. On the banks she saw green hills covered with beautiful vines. There were palaces and castles amid the trees of the forest; she heard the birds singing, and the rays of the sun were so powerful that she had to dive down under the water a few times to cool her burning face. She said she should never forget the beautiful forest and the green hills.

The fourth sister was more timid. She remained in the midst of the sea, but she said it was quite as beautiful there as nearer the land. She could see for so many miles around her, and the sky above looked like a bell of glass⁵⁴. She saw ships, but at such a great distance that they looked like seagulls.

The fifth sister’s birthday was in the winter, so she saw what the others could not see the first time they went up. The sea looked green, and large icebergs were floating about. They glittered like diamonds. Towards the evening, as the sun went down, dark clouds covered the sky, the thunder rolled and the lightning flashed, while she sat calmly on the floating iceberg.

When the sisters grew up, they became indifferent about the surface⁵⁵. Now they said it was much more beautiful down below, at home. Yet often, in the evening hours, they all would swim to the surface to sing, for they all had beautiful voices.

At last the youngest sister reached her fifteenth year and rose to the surface of the water. The sun had just set; the clouds were tinted with red and gold. The sea was calm, and the air was mild and fresh. A large ship was slowly sailing nearby. There was music and songs on board; and, as darkness came on, a hundred colored lanterns were lighted⁵⁶. The little mermaid swam close to the cabin windows. Now and then, she could look in and see a number of well-dressed people within. Among them was a young prince, the most beautiful of all. He was sixteen years of age, and it was his birthday.

It was very late; yet the little mermaid could not take her eyes from the ship, or from the beautiful prince. The sea became restless; still the little mermaid remained by the cabin window. The ship continued sailing; but soon the waves rose higher, the clouds became darker, and lightning appeared in the distance. A storm was approaching; the waves rose mountains high⁵⁷. The main mast snapped and the ship turned to its side. The water rushed in. The little mermaid saw that the crew was in danger; she could see everyone on board, except the prince. In the next moment, she saw him sink into the deep waves. She swam to the young prince. He was tired and almost dead, but she held his head above the water, and let the waves drift them away.

In the morning the storm was gone. The sun rose up. Prince’s eyes remained closed. The mermaid kissed his forehead, and stroked back his wet hair. He looked like the marble statue in her little garden. Then she saw land; the sea here formed a little bay, in which the water was still, but very deep. She swam with the prince to the beach. Then bells sounded in the large white building nearby. The little mermaid swam out farther from the shore⁵⁸ and hid behind some high rocks. She saw one of the girls approach the spot where the prince lay. She seemed frightened at first, but only for a moment; then she called more people. The prince came to life again, and smiled at the people around him. He didn’t know that the mermaid saved him. This made her very unhappy.

When the little mermaid returned home, she was very quiet. Her sisters asked her about the surface, but she told them nothing.

Many times she swam to the place where she left the prince. But she never saw him again. So she would sit in her garden near the beautiful marble statue which looked like him; but she gave up tending her flowers⁵⁹, and that the whole place became dark and gloomy. Then, she could not bear it any longer and told one of her sisters all about it. Then the others heard the secret. Soon it became known to a mermaid that knew who the prince was.

Her sisters took the little mermaid to his palace. It was built of bright yellow stone, with long flights of marble steps, one of which reached down to the sea. It was very beautiful. Now that the mermaid knew where he lived, she spent many evenings and nights near the palace. She would swim much nearer the shore than any of the others. Here she would sit and watch the young prince. She grew more and more fond of humans, and wished more and more to be able to walk among them.

One day, there was a ball at the palace of the Sea King. Mermaids danced and sang to the music. The little mermaid sang more sweetly than them all. The whole court applauded her. For a moment she felt happy. But she soon thought again of the world above her, and the charming prince. She thought: “My wishes depend on him and I will be happy with him. I will go to the sea witch and ask her for help.”

And then the little mermaid went out from her garden, and took the road to the witches’ house. She had never been that way before⁶⁰. The house stood in the centre of a strange forest. The little mermaid was scared and wanted to go back. But then she thought of the prince and her courage returned.