双语·《伊索寓言》 猿和两个旅行者

THE APES AND THE TWO TRAVELLERS

Two men were travelling together, one of whom never spoke the truth, whereas the other never told a lie: and they came in the course of their travels to the land of Apes. The King of the Apes, hearing of their arrival, ordered them to be brought before him; and by way of impressing them with his magnificence, he received them sitting on a throne, while the Apes, his subjects, were ranged in long rows on either side of him. When the Travellers came into his presence he asked them what they thought of him as a King. The lying Traveller said, “Sire, every one must see that you are a most noble and mighty monarch.” “And what do you think of my subjects?” continued the King. “They,” said the Traveller, “are in every way worthy of their royal master.” The Ape was so delighted with his answer that he gave him a very handsome present. The other Traveller thought that if his companion was rewarded so splendidly for telling a lie, he himself would certainly receive a still greater reward for telling the truth; so, when the Ape turned to him and said, “And what, sir, is your opinion?” he replied, “I think you are a very fine Ape, and all your subjects are fine Apes too.” The King of the Apes was so enraged at his reply that he ordered him to be taken away and clawed to death.

猿和两个旅行者

有两个旅行者一起出门旅行，其中一个从没说过真话，而另一个却从来都不撒谎。他们在旅行途中，来到了猿猴的国度。猿王听说了这两个人，就命令手下带他们过来。为了给旅行者们留下深刻印象，他坐在王座之上接待了他们。而他手下的众多猿猴，排成长长的队伍，分列于两侧。旅行者被带到他面前，他问他们，他这个国王如何。说谎话的旅行者回答：“陛下，每个人都会认为你是最高贵、最强大的君主。”“那我的臣民如何？”猿王继续问道。旅行者回答：“他们与他们高贵的主人十分相配。”听了他的回答，猿王十分开心，热情款待了他。另一个旅行者想，既然他的同伴因为说了假话而受到如此款待，那他讲真话的话，肯定会得到更丰厚的奖赏。于是，当猿王问他：“先生，你觉得如何呢？”他回答说：“我觉得你是一只很好的猿猴，你的臣民也都是很好的猿猴。”猿王听了暴怒，命令手下将他带到一边撕碎处死。