The grasshopper and the owl 蚂蚱和猫头鹰

An owl¹, who lived in a hollow tree, was in the habit of feeding by night and sleeping by day, but her slumbers² were greatly disturbed by the chirping³ of a grasshopper⁴, who had taken up his abode⁵ in the branches. She begged him repeatedly to have some consideration for her comfort, but the grasshopper, if anything, only chirped⁶ the louder. At last the owl could stand it no longer, but determined⁷ to rid herself of the pest by means of a trick. Addressing herself to the grasshopper, she said in her pleasantest manner, "As I cannot sleep for your song, which, believe me, is as sweet as the notes of Apollo's lyr., I have a mind to taste some nectar, which Minerva gave me the other day. Won't you come in and join me?" The grasshopper was flattered by the praise of his song, and his mouth, too, watered at the mention of the delicious drink, so he said he would be delighted. No sooner had he got inside the hollow where the owl was sitting than she pounced⁸ upon him and ate him up.

 

栖息在一棵树上的猫头鹰，习惯于晚上觅食，白天睡觉。可是，她白天却也睡不好，一只早已在树丛间坐窝的蚂蚱总发出啁啾声，吵得她无法入睡。猫头鹰不断地请求蚂蚱考虑一下她的情况，可蚂蚱却仍然大声叫个不停。最后，猫头鹰再也受不了了，决定设计除掉蚂蚱。于是，猫头鹰装出一副高兴样，对蚂蚱说：“尽管我被你的歌声惊扰，睡不着觉，但是请相信我，你的歌声如同阿波罗神的七弦琴一样动听。我正想喝一杯美味琼浆，这可是密涅瓦送给我的。你要不要上来和我一起享用呢？”蚂蚱正得意于猫头鹰对自己歌声的奉承，一听到有琼浆玉液，嘴巴里就开始流口水了，所以，他很高兴地接受了邀请，待他刚一飞上去，猫头鹰就从树洞中冲出来，扑过去抓住蚂蚱，吃掉了他。

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