fin hill, grand pany, too; but who they are the earth-worm would not say, or, perhaps, he really did not know. All the will-o’-the-wisps are ordered to be there to hold a torch dance, as it is called. the silver and gold which is plentiful in the hill will be polished and placed out in the moonlight.”

“這些陌生人會是誰呢？” 蜥蜴們問道，“到底是怎麼回事呢？ 聽，那嗡嗡聲、哼哼聲多響啊！”

“who can the strangers be?” asked the lizards; “what can the matter be? hark, what a buzzing and humming there is!”

就在這時，小精靈山丘開啟了，一位後背凹陷的老精靈少女輕快地走了出來；她是老精靈王的管家，也是這個家族的遠親；因此她在額頭正中央戴著一顆琥珀色的心形飾物。

Just at this moment the elfin hill opened, and an old elfin maiden, hollow behind, came tripping out; she was the old elf king’s housekeeper, and a distant relative of the family; therefore she wore an amber heart on the middle of her forehead.

她的腳步移動得很快，“嗒嗒，嗒嗒”；天哪，她能一路輕快地走到海邊去找夜鴉。

her feet moved very fast, “trip, trip;” good gracious, how she could trip right down to the sea to the night-raven.

“今晚你被邀請到小精靈山丘來，” 她說，“但你能幫我個大忙，負責送請帖嗎？你應該做點事，因為你不像我有管家的活兒要忙。我們要來一些非常重要的人物，魔法師們，他們總是有話要說；因此老精靈王想好好炫耀一番。”

“You are invited to the elf hill for this evening,” said she; “but will you do me a great favor and undertake the invitations? you ought to do something, for you have no housekeeping to attend to as I have. we are going to have some very grand people, conjurors, who have always something to say; and therefore the old elf king wishes to make a great display.”

“要邀請誰呢？” 夜鴉問道。

“who is to