The Cobbler and the Banker
拉 · 封丹 / La Fontaine
First listen and then answer the questions.
1.What did the banker give the cobbler?
2.Why did the author say that the cobbler burried the happiness with the money together?
A cobbler passed his time in singing from morning till night; it was wonderful to see, wonderful to hear him; he was more contented in making shoes than was any of the seven sages. His neighbor, on the contrary, who was rolling in wealth, sung but little, and sleepless. He was a banker; when by chance he fell into a doze at day-break, the cobbler awoke him with his song. The banker complained sadly that Providence had not made sleep a saleable commodity, like edibles or drinkables. Having at length sent for the songster, he said to him, “How much a year do you earn, Master Gregory?”
“How much a year, sir?” said the merry cobbler laughing, “I never reckon in that way, living as I do from one day to another; somehow I manage to reach the end of the year; each day brings its meal.”
“Well then! How much a day do you earn, my friend?”
“Sometimes more, sometimes less; but the worst of it is, and, without that our earnings would be very tolerable, a number of days occur in the year on which we are forbidden to work; and the curate, moreover, is constantly adding some new saint to the list.”
The banker, laughing at his simplicity, said, “In the future I shall place you above want. Take this hundred crowns, preserve them carefully, and make use of them in time of need.”
The cobbler fancied he beheld all the wealth which the earth had produced in the past century for the use of mankind. Returning home, he buried his money and his happiness at the same time. No more singing; he lost his voice, the moment he acquired that which is the source of so much grief. Sleep quitted his dwelling; and cares, suspicions, and false alarms took its place. All day, his eye wandered in the direction of the treasure; and at night, if some stray cat made a noise, the cat was robbing him. At length the poor man ran to the house of his rich neighbor; “Give me back,” said he, “sleep and my voice, and take your hundred crowns.”
一个皮匠以歌自娱，在歌声中度过每一天。每一个见到他，或听到他歌声的人都甚感愉快。他安于自己的制鞋工作，甚至觉得比做希腊七圣还满足。他的邻居是一个家财万贯的银行家，与他相反，银行家很少唱歌，睡眠也不好，偶尔在天快亮时才打个盹，又被皮匠的歌声吵醒了。他痛苦地抱怨上帝没有把睡眠也变成商品，他多想睡眠也像食品和饮料那样能随意购买啊。最后，银行家把这个歌唱者请过来，对他说：“格雷戈里师傅，您一年能赚多少钱啊？”
“一年赚多少钱吗，先生？”快乐的皮匠笑道，“我可从来没有统计过，我天天如此，每天挣足三餐，总能撑到年底。”
“啊，朋友，那么，你一天挣多少呢？”
“有时候挣得多，有时又少点，我们的收入还可以。最难过的日子就是每年总有些时候不让我们工作，而牧师又常吸纳新的圣徒。”
银行家被皮匠的直率逗乐了，他说：“今后，我将满足你的一切需求，你把这一百枚钱拿去存好，需要时就拿出来用。”
皮匠觉得自己好像看到了几个世纪以来，大地为人类所需创造出来的所有财富。他回家后，把这笔钱埋了起来，同时，也埋葬了他的欢乐。从此，他不再唱歌。在他得到钱这个痛苦根源的那刻起，就失去了歌喉。担心、怀疑、虚惊让他不能安稳入睡。他的目光整天游移在藏钱的地方。晚上，就是野猫弄出点声响，他也会以为有人来抢他的宝贝。最后，这个可怜的人跑到他富有的邻居那里，“还我睡眠和歌喉吧，把你的一百枚钱币拿回去。”
心灵小语
很多时候，人的烦恼是因心中的贪欲产生的。其实，快乐并非是用财富堆砌而成的。简简单单的生活，才能体会一种虽然平凡却幸福无比的滋味。
Learning for Better Understanding
Keywords and expressions
1. reckon
作动词：测算，估计
词组：reckon with 处理；对付；和…算帐；预料到
reckon on 指望；依赖
reckon in 把……计算在内
reckon up 计算；合计
例：I reckon that he is old enough.
我认为他的年龄已经够大了。
2. stray
作形容词：迷路的；离群的
例：Perhaps, I thought, a stray ambulance would pick her up.
我心里想，也许一辆过路的救护车会把她带走。
Practicing for Better Learning
Do the following statements agree with the information in the reading text?
Write
TRUE if the statement agrees with the information
FALSE if the statement contradicts the information
(1) The banker, appreciating his simplicity, said, “In the future I shall place you above want. Take this hundred crowns, preserve them carefully, and make use of them in time of need.”
(2) His neighbor, on the contrary, who was rolling in wealth, sung but little, and sleepless. He was a banker.
(3) At length the poor man ran to the house of his rich neighbor; “Give me back,” said he, “sleep and my voice, and take your hundred crowns.”
