“Yes, if you can tell me as nearly as possible how deep is the gutter in the little street where you go to school.”

“就到我高筒靴的一半那麼高，” 男孩回答說，“不過那得是我站在最深的水坑裡的時候。”

“Just half as high as my top-boots,” replied the boy; “but then I must stand in the deepest holes.”

“瞧，現在我們知道你的腳是在哪兒弄溼的了，” 老人說。

“there, now we know where you got your wet feet,” said the old man.

“我是該給你講個故事，可糟糕的是，我再也想不出新的來了。”

“I ought to tell you a story, but the worst of it is, I do not know any more.”

“你可以編一個呀，” 小男孩說。

“You can make one up,” said the little boy.

“媽媽說，你看著或摸著任何東西都能編出一個童話故事來。”

“mother says you can tell a fairy tale about anything you look at or touch.”

“那倒不錯，可那樣編出來的故事或童話沒什麼價值！不，真正的故事是自己找上門來，然後敲著我的額頭說：‘我來啦。’”

“that is all very well, but such tales or stories are worth nothing! No, the right ones e by themselves and knock at my forehead saying: ‘here I am.’”

“很快就不會有一個來敲門嗎？” 男孩問道；媽媽一邊微笑著，一邊把接骨木花放進茶壺，再往裡面倒上開水。

“will not one knock soon?” asked the boy; and the mother smiled while she put elder-tree blossoms into the teapot and poured boiling water over them.

“求求你，給我講個故事吧。”

“pray, tell me a story.”

“好的，要是故事能自己找上門來就好了；它們可驕傲了，只在它們樂意的時候才來。

—— 不過等等，” 他突然說，“有一個。 看看這茶壺；現在裡面就有一個故事。”

“Yes, if stories came by themselves; they are very proud, they only e when they please. — but wait,” he said suddenly, “there is one. Look at the teapot; there is a story in it now.”

小男孩看著茶壺；壺蓋