HERE was once a woman who wished very much to have a little child, but she could not obtain her wish. At last she went

to a fairy, and said, “I should so very much like to have a little child; can you tell me where I can find one?”

“Oh, that can be easily managed,” said the fairy. “Here is a barleycorn of a different kind to those which grow in the

farmer’s fields, and which the chickens eat; put it into a flower-pot, and see what will happen.”

“Thank you,” said the woman, and she gave the fairy twelve shillings, which was the price of the barleycorn. Then she

went home and planted it, and immediately there grew up a large handsome flower, something like a tulip in appearance, but

with its leaves tightly closed as if it were still a bud. “It is a beautiful flower,” said the woman, and she kissed the

red and golden-colored leaves, and while she did so the flower opened, and she could see that it was a real tulip. Within the

flower, upon the green velvet stamens, sat a very delicate and graceful little maiden. She was scarcely half as long as a

thumb, and they gave her the name of “Thumbelina,” or Tiny, because she was so small. A walnut-shell, elegantly polished,

served her for a cradle; her bed was formed of blue violet-leaves, with a rose-leaf for a counterpane. Here she slept at

night, but during the day she amused herself on a table, where the woman had placed a plateful of water. Round this plate

were wreaths of flowers with their stems in the water, and upon it floated a large tulip-leaf, which served Tiny for a boat.

Here the little maiden sat and rowed herself from side to side, with two oars made of white horse-hair. It really was a very

pretty sight. Tiny could, also, sing so softly and sweetly that nothing like her singing had ever before been heard. One

night, while she lay in her pretty bed, a large, ugly, wet toad crept through a broken pane of glass in the window, and

leaped right upon the table where Tiny lay sleeping under her rose-leaf quilt. “What a pretty little wife this would make

for my son,” said the toad, and she took up the walnut-shell in which little Tiny lay asleep, and jumped through the window

with it into the garden.

In the swampy margin of a broad stream in the garden lived the toad, with her son. He was uglier even than his mother,

and when he saw the pretty little maiden in her elegant bed, he could only cry, “Croak, croak, croak.”

“Don’t speak so loud, or she will wake,” said the toad, “and then she might run away, for she is as light as swan’s

down. We will place her on one of the water-lily leaves out in the stream; it will be like an island to her, she is so light

and small, and then she cannot escape; and, while she is away, we will make haste and prepare the state-room under the marsh,

in which you are to live when you are married.”

Far out in the stream grew a number of water-lilies, with broad green leaves, which seemed to float on the top of the

water. The largest of these leaves appeared farther off than the rest, and the old toad swam out to it with the walnut-shell,

in which little Tiny lay still asleep. The tiny little creature woke very early in the morning, and began to cry bitterly

when she found where she was, for she could see nothing but water on every side of the large green leaf, and no way of

reaching the land. Meanwhile the old toad was very busy under the marsh, decking her room with rushes and wild yellow

flowers, to make it look pretty for her new daughter-in-law. Then she swam out with her ugly son to the leaf on which she had

placed poor little Tiny. She wanted to fetch the pretty bed, that she might put it in the bridal chamber to be ready for her.

The old toad bowed low to her in the water, and said, “Here is my son, he will be your husband, and you will live happily in

the marsh by the stream.”

“Croak, croak, croak,” was all her son could say for himself; so the toad took up the elegant little bed, and swam away

with it, leaving Tiny all alone on the green leaf, where she sat and wept. She could not bear to think of living with the old

toad, and having her ugly son for a husband. The little fishes, who swam about in the water beneath, had seen the toad, and

heard what she said, so they lifted their heads above the water to look at the little maiden. As soon as they caught sight of

her, they saw she was very pretty, and it made them very sorry to think that she must go and live with the ugly toads. “No,

it must never be!” so they assembled together in the water, round the green stalk which held the leaf on which the little

maiden stood, and gnawed it away at the root with their teeth. Then the leaf floated down the stream, carrying Tiny far away

out of reach of land. 

Tiny sailed past many towns, and the little birds in the bushes saw her, and sang, “What a lovely little creature;” so

the leaf swam away with her farther and farther, till it brought her to other lands. A graceful little white butterfly

constantly fluttered round her, and at last alighted on the leaf. Tiny pleased him, and she was glad of it, for now the toad

could not possibly reach her, and the country through which she sailed was beautiful, and the sun shone upon the water, till

it glittered like liquid gold. She took off her girdle and tied one end of it round the butterfly, and the other end of the

ribbon she fastened to the leaf, which now glided on much faster than ever, taking little Tiny with it as she stood.

Presently a large cockchafer flew by; the moment he caught sight of her, he seized her round her delicate waist with his

claws, and flew with her into a tree. The green leaf floated away on the brook, and the butterfly flew with it, for he was

fastened to it, and could not get away. #p#

Oh, how frightened little Tiny felt when the cockchafer flew with her to the tree! But especially was she sorry for the

beautiful white butterfly which she had fastened to the leaf, for if he could not free himself he would die of hunger. But

the cockchafer did not trouble himself at all about the matter. He seated himself by her side on a large green leaf, gave her

some honey from the flowers to eat, and told her she was very pretty, though not in the least like a cockchafer. After a

time, all the cockchafers turned up their feelers, and said, “She has only two legs! how ugly that looks.” “She has no

feelers,” said another. “Her waist is quite slim. Pooh! she is like a human being.”
“Oh! she is ugly,” said all the lady cockchafers, although Tiny was very pretty. Then the cockchafer who had run away

with her, believed all the others when they said she was ugly, and would have nothing more to say to her, and told her she

might go where she liked. Then he flew down with her from the tree, and placed her on a daisy, and she wept at the thought

that she was so ugly that even the cockchafers would have nothing to say to her. And all the while she was really the

loveliest creature that one could imagine, and as tender and delicate as a beautiful rose-leaf. During the whole summer poor

little Tiny lived quite alone in the wide forest. She wove herself a bed with blades of grass, and hung it up under a broad

leaf, to protect herself from the rain. She sucked the honey from the flowers for food, and drank the dew from their leaves

every morning. So passed away the summer and the autumn, and then came the winter,— the long, cold winter. All the birds who

had sung to her so sweetly were flown away, and the trees and the flowers had withered. The large clover leaf under the

shelter of which she had lived, was now rolled together and shrivelled up, nothing remained but a yellow withered stalk. She

felt dreadfully cold, for her clothes were torn, and she was herself so frail and delicate, that poor little Tiny was nearly

frozen to death. It began to snow too; and the snow-flakes, as they fell upon her, were like a whole shovelful falling upon

one of us, for we are tall, but she was only an inch high. Then she wrapped herself up in a dry leaf, but it cracked in the

middle and could not keep her warm, and she shivered with cold. Near the wood in which she had been living lay a corn-field,

but the corn had been cut a long time; nothing remained but the bare dry stubble standing up out of the frozen ground. It was

to her like struggling through a large wood. Oh! how she shivered with the cold. She came at last to the door of a field-

mouse, who had a little den under the corn-stubble. There dwelt the field-mouse in warmth and comfort, with a whole roomful

of corn, a kitchen, and a beautiful dining room. Poor little Tiny stood before the door just like a little beggar-girl, and

begged for a small piece of barley-corn, for she had been without a morsel to eat for two days.
“You poor little creature,” said the field-mouse, who was really a good old field-mouse, “come into my warm room and dine

with me.” She was very pleased with Tiny, so she said, “You are quite welcome to stay with me all the winter, if you like;

but you must keep my rooms clean and neat, and tell me stories, for I shall like to hear them very much.” And Tiny did all

the field-mouse asked her, and found herself very comfortable.

“We shall have a visitor soon,” said the field-mouse one day; “my neighbor pays me a visit once a week. He is better

off than I am; he has large rooms, and wears a beautiful black velvet coat. If you could only have him for a husband, you

would be well provided for indeed. But he is blind, so you must tell him some of your prettiest stories.”

But Tiny did not feel at all interested about this neighbor, for he was a mole. However, he came and paid his visit

dressed in his black velvet coat.

“He is very rich and learned, and his house is twenty times larger than mine,” said the field-mouse.

He was rich and learned, no doubt, but he always spoke slightingly of the sun and the pretty flowers, because he had

never seen them. Tiny was obliged to sing to him, “Lady-bird, lady-bird, fly away home,” and many other pretty songs. And

the mole fell in love with her because she had such a sweet voice; but he said nothing yet, for he was very cautious. A short

time before, the mole had dug a long passage under the earth, which led from the dwelling of the field-mouse to his own, and

here she had permission to walk with Tiny whenever she liked. But he warned them not to be alarmed at the sight of a dead

bird which lay in the passage. It was a perfect bird, with a beak and feathers, and could not have been dead long, and was

lying just where the mole had made his passage. The mole took a piece of phosphorescent wood in his mouth, and it glittered

like fire in the dark; then he went before them to light them through the long, dark passage. When they came to the spot

where lay the dead bird, the mole pushed his broad nose through the ceiling, the earth gave way, so that there was a large

hole, and the daylight shone into the passage. In the middle of the floor lay a dead swallow, his beautiful wings pulled

close to his sides, his feet and his head drawn up under his feathers; the poor bird had evidently died of the cold. It made

little Tiny very sad to see it, she did so love the little birds; all the summer they had sung and twittered for her so

beautifully. But the mole pushed it aside with his crooked legs, and said, “He will sing no more now. How miserable it must

be to be born a little bird! I am thankful that none of my children will ever be birds, for they can do nothing but cry,

‘Tweet, tweet,’ and always die of hunger in the winter.”

“Yes, you may well say that, as a clever man!” exclaimed the field-mouse, “What is the use of his twittering, for when

winter comes he must either starve or be frozen to death. Still birds are very high bred.”

Tiny said nothing; but when the two others had turned their backs on the bird, she stooped down and stroked aside the

soft feathers which covered the head, and kissed the closed eyelids. “Perhaps this was the one who sang to me so sweetly in

the summer,” she said; “and how much pleasure it gave me, you dear, pretty bird.”

The mole now stopped up the hole through which the daylight shone, and then accompanied the lady home. But during the

night Tiny could not sleep; so she got out of bed and wove a large, beautiful carpet of hay; then she carried it to the dead

bird, and spread it over him; with some down from the flowers which she had found in the field-mouse’s room. It was as soft

as wool, and she spread some of it on each side of the bird, so that he might lie warmly in the cold earth. “Farewell, you

pretty little bird,” said she, “farewell; thank you for your delightful singing during the summer, when all the trees were

green, and the warm sun shone upon us.” Then she laid her head on the bird’s breast, but she was alarmed immediately, for

it seemed as if something inside the bird went “thump, thump.” It was the bird’s heart; he was not really dead, only

benumbed with the cold, and the warmth had restored him to life. In autumn, all the swallows fly away into warm countries,

but if one happens to linger, the cold seizes it, it becomes frozen, and falls down as if dead; it remains where it fell, and

the cold snow covers it. Tiny trembled very much; she was quite frightened, for the bird was large, a great deal larger than

herself,—she was only an inch high. But she took courage, laid the wool more thickly over the poor swallow, and then took a

leaf which she had used for her own counterpane, and laid it over the head of the poor bird. The next morning she again stole

out to see him. He was alive but very weak; he could only open his eyes for a moment to look at Tiny, who stood by holding a

piece of decayed wood in her hand, for she had no other lantern. “Thank you, pretty little maiden,” said the sick swallow;

“I have been so nicely warmed, that I shall soon regain my strength, and be able to fly about again in the warm sunshine.”

“Oh,” said she, “it is cold out of doors now; it snows and freezes. Stay in your warm bed; I will take care of you.” #p#

Then she brought the swallow some water in a flower-leaf, and after he had drank, he told her that he had wounded one of

his wings in a thorn-bush, and could not fly as fast as the others, who were soon far away on their journey to warm

countries. Then at last he had fallen to the earth, and could remember no more, nor how he came to be where she had found

him. The whole winter the swallow remained underground, and Tiny nursed him with care and love. Neither the mole nor the

field-mouse knew anything about it, for they did not like swallows. Very soon the spring time came, and the sun warmed the

earth. Then the swallow bade farewell to Tiny, and she opened the hole in the ceiling which the mole had made. The sun shone

in upon them so beautifully, that the swallow asked her if she would go with him; she could sit on his back, he said, and he

would fly away with her into the green woods. But Tiny knew it would make the field-mouse very grieved if she left her in

that manner, so she said, “No, I cannot.”
“Farewell, then, farewell, you good, pretty little maiden,” said the swallow; and he flew out into the sunshine.

Tiny looked after him, and the tears rose in her eyes. She was very fond of the poor swallow.

“Tweet, tweet,” sang the bird, as he flew out into the green woods, and Tiny felt very sad. She was not allowed to go

out into the warm sunshine. The corn which had been sown in the field over the house of the field-mouse had grown up high

into the air, and formed a thick wood to Tiny, who was only an inch in height.

“You are going to be married, Tiny,” said the field-mouse. “My neighbor has asked for you. What good fortune for a

poor child like you. Now we will prepare your wedding clothes. They must be both woollen and linen. Nothing must be wanting

when you are the mole’s wife.”

Tiny had to turn the spindle, and the field-mouse hired four spiders, who were to weave day and night. Every evening the

mole visited her, and was continually speaking of the time when the summer would be over. Then he would keep his wedding-day

with Tiny; but now the heat of the sun was so great that it burned the earth, and made it quite hard, like a stone. As soon,

as the summer was over, the wedding should take place. But Tiny was not at all pleased; for she did not like the tiresome

mole. Every morning when the sun rose, and every evening when it went down, she would creep out at the door, and as the wind

blew aside the ears of corn, so that she could see the blue sky, she thought how beautiful and bright it seemed out there,

and wished so much to see her dear swallow again. But he never returned; for by this time he had flown far away into the

lovely green forest.

When autumn arrived, Tiny had her outfit quite ready; and the field-mouse said to her, “In four weeks the wedding must

take place.”

Then Tiny wept, and said she would not marry the disagreeable mole.

“Nonsense,” replied the field-mouse. “Now don’t be obstinate, or I shall bite you with my white teeth. He is a very

handsome mole; the queen herself does not wear more beautiful velvets and furs. His kitchen and cellars are quite full. You

ought to be very thankful for such good fortune.”

So the wedding-day was fixed, on which the mole was to fetch Tiny away to live with him, deep under the earth, and never

again to see the warm sun, because he did not like it. The poor child was very unhappy at the thought of saying farewell to

the beautiful sun, and as the field-mouse had given her permission to stand at the door, she went to look at it once more.

“Farewell bright sun,” she cried, stretching out her arm towards it; and then she walked a short distance from the

house; for the corn had been cut, and only the dry stubble remained in the fields. “Farewell, farewell,” she repeated,

twining her arm round a little red flower that grew just by her side. “Greet the little swallow from me, if you should see

him again.”

“Tweet, tweet,” sounded over her head suddenly. She looked up, and there was the swallow himself flying close by. As

soon as he spied Tiny, he was delighted; and then she told him how unwilling she felt to marry the ugly mole, and to live

always beneath the earth, and never to see the bright sun any more. And as she told him she wept.

“Cold winter is coming,” said the swallow, “and I am going to fly away into warmer countries. Will you go with me? You

can sit on my back, and fasten yourself on with your sash. Then we can fly away from the ugly mole and his gloomy rooms,—far

away, over the mountains, into warmer countries, where the sun shines more brightly—than here; where it is always summer,

and the flowers bloom in greater beauty. Fly now with me, dear little Tiny; you saved my life when I lay frozen in that dark

passage.”

“Yes, I will go with you,” said Tiny; and she seated herself on the bird’s back, with her feet on his outstretched

wings, and tied her girdle to one of his strongest feathers.

Then the swallow rose in the air, and flew over forest and over sea, high above the highest mountains, covered with

eternal snow. Tiny would have been frozen in the cold air, but she crept under the bird’s warm feathers, keeping her little

head uncovered, so that she might admire the beautiful lands over which they passed. At length they reached the warm

countries, where the sun shines brightly, and the sky seems so much higher above the earth. Here, on the hedges, and by the

wayside, grew purple, green, and white grapes; lemons and oranges hung from trees in the woods; and the air was fragrant with

myrtles and orange blossoms. Beautiful children ran along the country lanes, playing with large gay butterflies; and as the

swallow flew farther and farther, every place appeared still more lovely.

At last they came to a blue lake, and by the side of it, shaded by trees of the deepest green, stood a palace of dazzling

white marble, built in the olden times. Vines clustered round its lofty pillars, and at the top were many swallows’ nests,

and one of these was the home of the swallow who carried Tiny.

“This is my house,” said the swallow; “but it would not do for you to live there—you would not be comfortable. You

must choose for yourself one of those lovely flowers, and I will put you down upon it, and then you shall have everything

that you can wish to make you happy.”

“That will be delightful,” she said, and clapped her little hands for joy.

A large marble pillar lay on the ground, which, in falling, had been broken into three pieces. Between these pieces grew

the most beautiful large white flowers; so the swallow flew down with Tiny, and placed her on one of the broad leaves. But

how surprised she was to see in the middle of the flower, a tiny little man, as white and transparent as if he had been made

of crystal! He had a gold crown on his head, and delicate wings at his shoulders, and was not much larger than Tiny herself.

He was the angel of the flower; for a tiny man and a tiny woman dwell in every flower; and this was the king of them all.

“Oh, how beautiful he is!” whispered Tiny to the swallow. 

The little prince was at first quite frightened at the bird, who was like a giant, compared to such a delicate little

creature as himself; but when he saw Tiny, he was delighted, and thought her the prettiest little maiden he had ever seen. He

took the gold crown from his head, and placed it on hers, and asked her name, and if she would be his wife, and queen over

all the flowers.

This certainly was a very different sort of husband to the son of a toad, or the mole, with my black velvet and fur; so

she said, “Yes,” to the handsome prince. Then all the flowers opened, and out of each came a little lady or a tiny lord,

all so pretty it was quite a pleasure to look at them. Each of them brought Tiny a present; but the best gift was a pair of

beautiful wings, which had belonged to a large white fly and they fastened them to Tiny’s shoulders, so that she might fly

from flower to flower. Then there was much rejoicing, and the little swallow who sat above them, in his nest, was asked to

sing a wedding song, which he did as well as he could; but in his heart he felt sad for he was very fond of Tiny, and would

have liked never to part from her again.

“You must not be called Tiny any more,” said the spirit of the flowers to her. “It is an ugly name, and you are so

very pretty. We will call you Maia.”

“Farewell, farewell,” said the swallow, with a heavy heart as he left the warm countries to fly back into Denmark.

There he had a nest over the window of a house in which dwelt the writer of fairy tales. The swallow sang, “Tweet, tweet,”

and from his song came the whole story.
从前有一个女人，她非常希望有一个丁点儿小的孩子。但是她不知道从什么地方可以得到。因此她就去请教一位巫婆。她对巫婆说：

“我非常想要有一个小小的孩子！你能告诉我什么地方可以得到一个吗？”

“嗨！这容易得很！”巫婆说。“你把这颗大麦粒拿去吧。它可不是乡下人的田里长的那种大麦粒，也不是鸡吃的那种大麦粒啦。你把它

埋在一个花盆里。不久你就可以看到你所要看的东西了。”

“谢谢您，”女人说。她给了巫婆三个银币。于是她就回到家来，种下那颗大麦粒。不久以后，一朵美丽的大红花就长出来了。它看起来

很像一朵郁金香，不过它的叶子紧紧地包在一起，好像仍旧是一个花苞似的。

“这是一朵很美的花，”女人说，同时在那美丽的、黄而带红的花瓣上吻了一下。不过，当她正在吻的时候，花儿忽然劈啪一声，开放了

。人们现在可以看出，这是一朵真正的郁金香。但是在这朵花的正中央，在那根绿色的雌蕊上面，坐着一位娇小的姑娘，她看起来又白嫩，又

可爱。她还没有大拇指的一半长，因此人们就将她叫做拇指姑娘。

拇指姑娘的摇篮是一个光得发亮的漂亮胡桃壳，她的垫子是蓝色紫罗兰的花瓣，她的被子是玫瑰的花瓣。这就是她晚上睡觉的地方。但是

白天她在桌子上玩耍——在这桌子上，那个女人放了一个盘子，上面又放了一圈花儿，花的枝干浸在水里。水上浮着一起很大的郁金香花瓣。

拇指姑娘可以坐在这花瓣上，用两根白马尾作桨，从盘子这一边划到那一边。这样儿真是美丽啦！她还能唱歌，而且唱得那么温柔和甜蜜，从

前没有任何人听到过。

一天晚上，当她正在她漂亮的床上睡觉的时候，一个难看的癞蛤蟆从窗子外面跳进来了，因为窗子上有一块玻璃已经破了。这癞蛤蟆又丑

又大，而且是粘糊糊的。她一直跳到桌子上。拇指姑娘正睡在桌子上鲜红的玫瑰花瓣下面。

“这姑娘倒可以做我儿子的漂亮妻子哩，”癞蛤蟆说。于是她一把抓住拇指姑娘正睡着的那个胡桃壳，背着它跳出了窗子，一直跳到花园

里去。#p#

花园里有一条很宽的小溪在流着。但是它的两岸又低又潮湿。癞蛤蟆和她的儿子就住在这儿。哎呀！他跟他的妈妈简直是一个模子铸出来

的，也长得奇丑不堪。“阁阁！阁阁！呱！呱！呱！”当他看到胡桃壳里的这位美丽小姑娘时，他只能讲出这样的话来。

“讲话不要那么大声啦，要不你就把她吵醒了，”老癞蛤蟆说。“她还可以从我们这儿逃走，因为她轻得像一起天鹅的羽毛！我们得把她

放在溪水里睡莲的一起宽叶子上面。她既然是这么娇小和轻巧，那片叶子对她说来可以算做是一个岛了。她在那上面是没有办法逃走的。在这

期间我们就可以把泥巴底下的那间好房子修理好——你们俩以后就可以在那儿住下来过日子。”

小溪里长着许多叶子宽大的绿色睡莲。它们好像是浮在水面上似的。浮在最远的那片叶子也就是最大的一起叶子。老癞蛤蟆向它游过去，

把胡桃壳和睡在里面的拇指姑娘放在它上面。

这个可怜的、丁点小的姑娘大清早就醒来了。当她看见自己现在在什么地方的时候，就不禁伤心地哭起来，因为这片宽大的绿叶子的周围

全都是水，她一点也没有办法回到陆地上去。

老癞蛤蟆坐在泥里，用灯芯草和黄睡莲把房间装饰了一番——有新媳妇住在里面，当然应该收拾得漂亮一点才对。随后她就和她的丑儿子

向那片托着拇指姑娘的叶子游去。他们要在她没有来以前，先把她的那张美丽的床搬走，安放在洞房里面。这个老癞蛤蟆在水里向她深深地鞠

了一躬，同时说：“这是我的儿子；他就是你未来的丈夫。你们俩在泥巴里将会生活得很幸福的。”

“阁！阁！呱！呱！呱！”这位少爷所能讲出的话，就只有这一点。

他们搬着这张漂亮的小床，在水里游走了。拇指姑娘独自坐在绿叶上，不禁大哭起来，因为她不喜欢跟一个讨厌的癞蛤蟆住在一起，也不

喜欢有那一个丑少爷做自己的丈夫。在水里游着的一些小鱼曾经看到过癞蛤蟆，同时也听到过她所说的话。因此它们都伸出头来，想瞧瞧这个

小小的姑娘。它们一眼看到她，就觉得她非常美丽，因而它们非常不满意，觉得这样一个人儿却要下嫁给一个丑癞蛤蟆，那可不成！这样的事

情决不能让它发生！它们在水里一起集合到托着那片绿叶的梗子的周围——小姑娘就住在那上面。它们用牙齿把叶梗子咬断了，使得这片叶子

顺着水流走了，带着拇指姑娘流走了，流得非常远，流到癞蛤蟆完全没有办法达到的地方去。

拇指姑娘流过了许许多多的地方。住在一些灌木林里的小鸟儿看到她，都唱道：“多么美丽的一位小姑娘啊！”

叶子托着她漂流，越流越远；最后拇指姑娘就漂流到外国去了。

一只很可爱的白蝴蝶不停地环绕着她飞，最后就落到叶子上来，因为它是那么喜欢拇指姑娘；而她呢，她也非常高兴，因为癞蛤蟆现在再

也找不着她了。同时她现在所流过的这个地带是那么美丽——太阳照在水上，正像最亮的金子。她解下腰带，把一端系在蝴蝶身上，把另一端

紧紧地系在叶子上。叶子带着拇指姑娘一起很快地在水上流走了，因为她就站在叶子的上面。

这时有一只很大的金龟子飞来了。他看到了她。他立刻用他的爪子抓住她纤细的腰，带着她一起飞到树上去了。但是那片绿叶继续顺着溪

流游去，那只蝴蝶也跟着在一起游，因为他是系在叶子上的，没有办法飞开。

天啦！当金龟子带着她飞进树林里去的时候，可怜的拇指姑娘该是多么害怕啊！不过她更为那只美丽的白蝴蝶难过。她已经把他紧紧地系

在那*?叶子上，如果他没有办法摆脱的话，就一定会饿死的。但是金龟子一点也不理会这情况，他和她一块儿坐在树上最大的一张绿叶子上，

把花里的蜜糖拿出来给她吃，同时说她是多么漂亮，虽然她一点也不像金龟子。不多久，住在树林里的那些金龟子全都来拜访了。他们打量着

拇指姑娘。金龟子小姐们耸了耸触须，说：

“嗨，她不过只有两条腿罢了！这是怪难看的。”

“她连触须都没有！”她们说。

“她的腰太细了——呸！她完全像一个人——她是多么丑啊！”所有的女金龟子们齐声说。

然而拇指姑娘确是非常美丽的。甚至劫持她的那只金龟子也不免要这样想。不过当大家都说她是很难看的时候，他最后也只好相信这话了

，他也不愿意要她了！她现在可以随便到什么地方去。他们带着她从树上一起飞下来，把她放在一朵雏菊上面。她在那上面哭得怪伤心的，因

为她长得那么丑，连金龟子也不要她了。可是她仍然是人们所想象不到的一个最美丽的人儿，那么娇嫩，那么明朗，像一起最纯洁的玫瑰花瓣

。

整个夏天，可怜的拇指姑娘单独住在这个巨大的树林里。她用草叶为自己编了一张小床，把它挂在一起大牛蒡叶底下，她使得雨不致淋到

她身上。她从花里取出蜜来作为食物，她的饮料是每天早晨凝结在叶子上的露珠。夏天和秋天就这么过去了。现在，冬天——那又冷又长的冬

天——来了。那些为她唱着甜蜜的歌的鸟儿现在都飞走了。树和花凋零了。那片大的牛蒡叶——她一直是在它下面住着的——也卷起来了，只

剩下一根枯黄的梗子。她感到十分寒冷。因为她的衣服都破了，而她的身体又是那么瘦削和纤细——可怜的拇指姑娘啊！她一定会冻死的。雪

也开始下降，每朵雪花落到她身上，就好像一个人把满铲子的雪块打到我们身上一样，因为我们高大，而她不过只有一寸来长。她只好把自己

裹在一片干枯的叶子里，可是这并不温暖——她冻得发抖。
　在她现在来到的这个树林的附近，有一块很大的麦田；不过田里的麦子早已经收割了。冻结的地上只留下一些光赤的麦茬儿。对她说来，在

它们中间走过去，简直等于穿过一起广大的森林。啊！她冻得发抖，抖得多厉害啊！最后她来到了一只田鼠的门口。这就是一棵麦茬下面的一

个小洞。田鼠住在那里面，又温暖，又舒服。她藏有整整一房间的麦子，她还有一间漂亮的厨房和一个饭厅。可怜的拇指姑娘站在门里，像一

个讨饭的穷苦女孩子。她请求施舍一颗大麦粒给她，因为她已经两天没有吃过一丁点儿东西。

“你这个可怜的小人儿，”田鼠说——因为她本来是一个好心肠的老田鼠——“到我温暖的房子里来，和我一起吃点东西吧。”来源：考

试大

因为她现在很喜欢拇指姑娘，所以她说：“你可以跟我住在一块，度过这个冬天，不过你得把我的房间弄得干净整齐，同时讲些故事给我

听，因为我就是喜欢听故事。”

这个和善的老田鼠所要求的事情，拇指姑娘都一一答应了。她在那儿住得非常快乐。

“不久我们就要有一个客人来，”田鼠说。“我的这位邻居经常每个星起来看我一次，他住的比我舒服得多，他有宽大的房间，他穿着非

常美丽的黑天鹅绒袍子。只要你能够得到他做你的丈夫，那么你一辈子可就享用不尽了。不过他的眼睛看不见东西。你得讲一些你所知道的、

最美的故事给他听。”

拇指姑娘对于这事没有什么兴趣。她不愿意跟这位邻居结婚，因为他是一只鼹鼠。他穿着黑天鹅绒袍子来拜访了。田鼠说，他是怎样有钱

和有学问，他的家也要比田鼠的大２０倍；他有很高深的知识，不过他不喜欢太阳和美丽的花儿；而且他还喜欢说这些东西的坏话，因为他自

己从来没有看见过它们。

拇指姑娘得为他唱一曲歌儿。她唱了《金龟子呀，飞走吧！》，又唱了《牧师走上草原》。因为她的声音是那么美丽，鼹鼠就不禁爱上她

了。不过他没有表示出来，因为他是一个很谨慎的人。

最近他从自己房子里挖了一条长长的地道，通到她们的这座房子里来。他请田鼠和拇指姑娘到这条地道里来散步，而且只要她们愿意，随

时都可以来。不过他忠告她们不要害怕一只躺在地道里的死鸟。他是一只完整的鸟儿，有翅膀，也有嘴。没有疑问，他是不久以前、在冬天开

始的时候死去的。

他现在被埋葬的这块地方，恰恰被鼹鼠打穿了成为地道。鼹鼠嘴里衔着一根引火柴——它在黑暗中可以发出闪光。他走在前面，为她们把

这条又长又黑的地道照明。当她们来到那只死鸟躺着的地方时，鼹鼠就用他的大鼻子顶着天花板，朝上面拱着土，拱出一个大洞来。阳光就通

过这洞口射进来。在地上的正中央躺着一只死了的燕子，他的美丽的翅膀紧紧地贴着身体，小腿和头缩到羽毛里面：这只可怜的鸟儿无疑地是

冻死了。这使得拇指姑娘感到非常难过，因为她非常喜爱一切鸟儿。的确，他们整个夏天对她唱着美妙的歌，对她喃喃地讲着话。不过鼹鼠用

他的短腿子一推，说：“他现在再也不能唱什么了！生来就是一只小鸟——这该是一件多么可怜的事儿！谢天谢地，我的孩子们将不会是这样

。像这样的一只鸟儿，什么事也不能做，只会唧唧喳喳地叫，到了冬天就不得不饿死了！”

“是的，你是一个聪明人，说得有道理，”田鼠说。“冬天一到，这些‘唧唧喳喳’的歌声对于一只雀子有什么用呢？他只有挨饿和受冻

的一条路。不过我想这就是大家所谓的了不起的事情吧！”

拇指姑娘一句话也不说。不过当他们两个人把背掉向这燕子的时候，她就弯下腰来，把盖在他头上的那一簇羽毛温柔地向旁边拂了几下，

同时在他闭着的双眼上轻轻地接了一个吻。

　“在夏天对我唱出那么美丽的歌的人也许就是他了，”她想。“他不知给了我多少快乐——他，这只亲爱的、美丽的鸟儿！”

鼹鼠现在把那个透进阳光的洞口又封闭住了；然后他就陪着这两位小姐回家。但是这天晚上拇指姑娘一忽儿也睡不着。她爬起床来，用草

编成了一张宽大的、美丽的毯子。她拿着它到那只死了的燕子的身边去，把他的全身盖好。她同时还把她在田鼠的房间里所寻到的一些软棉花

裹在燕子的身上，好使他在这寒冷的地上能够睡得温暖。

“再会吧，你这美丽的小鸟儿！”她说。“再会吧！在夏天，当所有的树儿都变绿了的时候，当太阳光温暖地照着我们的时候，你唱出美

丽的歌声——我要为这感谢你！”于是她把头贴在这鸟儿的胸膛上。她马上惊恐起来，因为他身体里面好像有件什么东西在跳动，这就是鸟儿

的一颗心。这鸟儿并没有死，他只不过是躺在那儿冻得失去了知觉罢了。现在他得到了温暖，所以又活了起来。

在秋天，所有的燕子都向温暖的国度飞去。不过，假如有一只掉了队，他就会遇到寒冷，于是他就会冻得落下来，像死了一样；他只有躺

在他落下的那块地上，让冰冻的雪花把他全身盖满。

拇指姑娘真是抖得厉害，因为她是那么惊恐；这鸟儿，跟只有寸把高的她比起来，真是太庞大了。可是她鼓起勇气来。她把棉花紧紧地裹

在这只可怜的鸟儿的身上；同时她把自己常常当作被盖的那张薄荷叶拿来，覆在这鸟儿的头上。

第二天夜里，她又偷偷地去看他。他现在已经活了，不过还是有点昏迷。他只能把眼睛微微地睁开一忽儿，望了拇指姑娘一下。拇指姑娘

手里拿着一块引火柴站着，因为她没有别的灯盏。

“我感谢你——你，可爱的小宝宝！”这只身体不太好的燕子对她说，“我现在真是舒服和温暖！不久就可以恢复体力，又可以飞了，在

暖和的阳光中飞了。”

“啊，”她说。“外面是多么冷啊。雪花在飞舞，遍地都在结冰。还是请你睡在你温暖的床上吧，我可以来照料你呀。”

她用花瓣盛着水送给燕子。燕子喝了水以后，就告诉她说，他有一个翅膀曾经在一个多刺的灌木林上擦伤了，因此不能跟别的燕子们飞得

一样快；那时他们正在远行，飞到那辽远的、温暖的国度里去。最后他落到地上来了，可是其余的事情他现在就记不起来了。他完全不知道自

己怎样来到了这块地方的。#p#

燕子在这儿住了一整个冬天。拇指姑娘待他很好，非常喜欢他，鼹鼠和田鼠一点儿也不知道这事，因为他们不喜欢这只可怜的、孤独的燕

子。
当春天一到来，太阳把大地照得很温暖的时候，燕子就向拇指姑娘告别了。她把鼹鼠在顶上挖的那个洞打开。太阳非常明亮地照着他们。于是

燕子就问拇指姑娘愿意不愿意跟他一起离开：她可以骑在他的背上，这样他们就可以远远地飞走，飞向绿色的树林里去。不过拇指姑娘知道，

如果她这样离开的话，田鼠就会感到痛苦的。

“不成，我不能离开！”拇指姑娘说。

“那么再会吧，再会吧，你这善良的、可爱的姑娘！”燕子说。于是他就向太阳飞去。拇指姑娘在后面望着他，她的两眼里闪着泪珠，因

为她是那么喜爱这只可怜的燕子。

“滴丽！滴丽！”燕子唱着歌，向一个绿色的森林飞去。

拇指姑娘感到非常难过。田鼠不许她走到温暖的太阳光中去。在田鼠屋顶上的田野里，麦子已经长得很高了。对于这个可怜的小女孩子说

来，这麦子简直是一起浓密的森林，因为她究竟不过只有一寸来高呀。

“在这个夏天，你得把你的新嫁衣缝好！”田鼠对她说，因为她的那个讨厌的邻居——那个穿着黑天鹅绒袍子的鼹鼠——已经向她求婚了

。“你得准备好毛衣和棉衣。当你做了鼹鼠太太以后，你应该有坐着穿的衣服和睡着穿的衣服呀。”

拇指姑娘现在得摇起纺车来。鼹鼠聘请了四位蜘蛛，日夜为她纺纱和织布。每天晚上鼹鼠来拜访她一次。鼹鼠老是在咕噜地说：等到夏天

快要完的时候，太阳就不会这么热了；现在太阳把地面烤得像石头一样硬。是的，等夏天过去以后，他就要跟拇指姑娘结婚了。不过她一点也

不感到高兴，因为她的确不喜欢这位讨厌的鼹鼠。每天早晨，当太阳升起的时候，每天黄昏，当太阳落下的时候，她就偷偷地走到门那儿去。

当风儿把麦穗吹向两边，使得她能够看到蔚蓝色的天空的时候，她就想象外面是非常光明和美丽的，于是她就热烈地希望再见到她的亲爱的燕

子。可是这燕子不再回来了，无疑地，他已经飞向很远很远的、美丽的、青翠的树林里去了。现在是秋天了，拇指姑娘的全部嫁衣也准备好了

。

“四个星期以后，你的婚礼就要举行了，”田鼠对她说。但是拇指姑娘哭了起来，说她不愿意和这讨厌的鼹鼠结婚。

“胡说！”田鼠说，“你不要固执；不然的话，我就要用我的白牙齿来咬你！他是一个很可爱的人，你得和他结婚！就是皇后也没有他那

样好的黑天鹅绒袍子哩！他的厨房和储藏室里都藏满了东西。你得到这样一个丈夫，应该感谢上帝！”

现在婚礼要举行了。鼹鼠已经来了，他亲自来迎接拇指姑娘。她得跟他生活在一起，住在深深的地底下，永远也不能到温暖的太阳光中来

，因为他不喜欢太阳。这个可怜的小姑娘现在感到非常难过，因为她现在不得不向那光耀的太阳告别——这太阳，当她跟田鼠住在一的时候，

她还能得到许可在门口望一眼。

“再会吧，您，光明的太阳！”她说着，同时向空中伸出双手，并且向田鼠的屋子外面走了几步——因为现在大麦已经收割了，这儿只剩

下干枯的茬子。“再会吧，再会吧！”她又重复地说，同时用双臂抱住一朵还在开着的小红花。“假如你看到了那只小燕子的话，我请求你代

我向他问候一声。”

“滴丽！滴丽！”在这时候，一个声音忽然在她的头上叫起来。她抬头一看，这正是那只小燕子刚刚在飞过。他一看到拇指姑娘，就显得

非常高兴。她告诉他说，她多么不愿意要那个丑恶的鼹鼠做她的丈夫啊；她还说，她得住在深深的地底下，太阳将永远照不进来。一想到这点

，她就忍不住哭起来了。

“寒冷的冬天现在要到来了，”小燕子说。“我要飞得很远，飞到温暖的国度里去。你愿意跟我一块儿去吗？你可以骑在我的背上！你用

腰带紧紧地把你自己系牢。这样我们就可以离开这丑恶的鼹鼠，从他黑暗的房子飞走——远远地、远远地飞过高山，飞到温暖的国度里去：那

儿的太阳光比这儿更美丽，那儿永远只有夏天，那儿永远开着美丽的花朵。跟我一起飞吧，你，甜蜜的小拇指姑娘；当我在那个阴惨的地洞里

冻得僵直的时候，你救了我的生命！”

“是的，我将和你一块儿去！”拇指姑娘说。她坐在这鸟儿的背上，把脚搁在他展开的双翼上，同时把自己用腰带紧紧地系在他最结实的

一根羽毛上。这么着，燕子就飞向空中，飞过森林，飞过大海，高高地飞过常年积雪的大山。在这寒冷的高空中，拇指姑娘冻得抖起来。但是

这时她就钻进这鸟儿温暖的羽毛里去。她只是把她的小脑袋伸出来，欣赏她下面的美丽风景。

最后他们来到了温暖的国度。那儿的太阳比在我们这里照得光耀多了，天似乎也是加倍地高。田沟里，篱笆上，都生满了最美丽的绿葡萄

和蓝葡萄。树林里处处悬挂着柠檬和橙子。空气里飘着桃金娘和麝香的香气；许多非常可爱的小孩子在路上跑来跑去，跟一些颜色鲜艳的大蝴

蝶儿一块儿嬉戏。可是燕子越飞越远，而风景也越来越美丽。在一个碧蓝色的湖旁有一丛最可爱的绿树，它们里面有一幢白得放亮的、大理石

砌成的、古代的宫殿。葡萄藤围着许多高大的圆柱丛生着。它们的顶上有许多燕子窠。其中有一个窠就是现在带着拇指姑娘飞行的这只燕子的

住所。

“这儿就是我的房子，”燕子说。“不过，下面长着许多美丽的花，你可以选择其中的一朵；我可以把你放在它上面。那么你要想住得怎

样舒服，就可以怎样舒服了。”

“那好极了，”她说，拍着她的一双小手。

那儿有一根巨大的大理石柱。它已经倒在地上，并且跌成了三段。不过在它们中间生出一朵最美丽的白色鲜花。燕子带着拇指姑娘飞下来

，把她放在它的一起宽阔的花瓣上面。这个小姑娘感到多么惊奇啊！在那朵花的中央坐着一个小小的男子！——他是那么白皙和透明，好像是

玻璃做成的。他头上戴着一顶最华丽的金制王冠，他肩上生着一双发亮的翅膀，而他本身并不比拇指姑娘高大。他就是花中的安琪儿。（注：

安琪儿就是天使。在西方文艺中，天使的形象一般是长着一对翅膀的小孩子。）每一朵花里都住着这么一个小小的男子或妇人。不过这一位却

是他们大家的国王。

“我的天啦！他是多么美啊！”拇指姑娘对燕子低声说。这位小小的王子非常害怕这只燕子，因为他是那么细小和柔嫩，对他说来，燕子

简直是一只庞大的鸟儿。不过当他看到拇指姑娘的时候，他马上就变得高兴起来：她是他一生中所看到的一位最美丽的姑娘。因此他从头上取

下金王冠，把它戴到她的头上。他问了她的姓名，问她愿不愿意做他的夫人——这样她就可以做一切花儿的皇后了。这位王子才真配称为她的

丈夫呢，他比*?癞蛤蟆的儿子和那只穿大黑天鹅绒袍子的鼹鼠来，完全不同！因此她就对这位逗她喜欢的王子说：“我愿意。”这时每一朵花

里走出一位小姐或一位男子来。他们是那么可爱，就是看他们一眼也是幸福的。他们每人送了拇指姑娘一件礼物，但是其中最好的礼物是从一

只大白蝇身上取下的一对翅膀。他们把这对翅膀安到拇指姑娘的背上，这么着，她现在就可以在花朵之间飞来飞去了。这时大家都欢乐起来。

燕子坐在上面自己的窠里，为他们唱他最好的歌曲。然后在他的心里，他感到有些悲哀，因为他是那么喜欢拇指姑娘，他的确希望永远不要和

她离开。

“你现在不应该再叫拇指姑娘了！”花的安琪儿对她说。“这是一个很丑的名字，而你是那么美丽！从今以后，我们要把你叫玛娅（注：

在希腊神话里，玛娅(Ｍａｊａ)是顶天的巨神阿特拉斯(Ａｔｌａｓ)和平勒俄涅(Ｐｌｅｉｏｎｅ)所生的七位女儿中最大的一位，也是最美的

一位。这七位姊妹和她们的父母一起代表金牛宫(Ｔａｕｒｕｓ)中九颗最明亮的星星。它们在五月间(收获时期)出现，在１０月间(第二次播种

时期)隐藏起来。）。”

“再会吧！再会吧！”那只小燕子说。他又从这温暖的国度飞走了，飞回到很远很远的丹麦去。在丹麦，他在一个会写童话的人的窗子上

筑了个小窠。他对这个人唱：“滴丽！滴丽！”我们这整个故事就是从他那儿听来的。（１８３５年）

这篇童话发表于１８３５年哥本哈根出版的《讲给孩子们听的故事》里。它既是童话，又是诗，因为它的情节美丽动人，同时又有很浓厚

的诗意。拇指姑娘虽然身材小得微不足道，生活环境也很艰苦，但她却具有伟大高超的理想：她向往光明和自由。此外，她还有一颗非常善良

的心。田鼠和鼹鼠的生活可算很不错了，吃不完，用不尽，对在阴暗的地洞里的生活他们非常满足。但拇指姑娘讨厌在这种庸俗的、自私的、

没有阳光的泥巴底下过日子，在非常困难的条件下还尽量关心别人。她尽一切力量救活了生命垂危的燕子。最后她终于能和燕子一道，飞到一

个自由、美丽的国度里去，过着幸福的生活。