儿童英语小故事：玫瑰公主(5)

　　Round about the castle a thorn hedge began to grow, and every year it became higher, until it finally surrounded and covered the entire castle. Finally nothing at all could be seen of it, not even the flag on the roof.不久，王宫的四周长出了一道蒺藜组成的大篱笆，年复一年，它们越长越高，越长越茂密，最后竟将整座宫殿遮得严严实实，甚至连屋顶和烟囱也看不见了。

　　A legend circulated throughout the land about the beautiful sleeping Little Brier-Rose, for so the princess was called. Legends also told that from time to time princes came, wanting to force their way through the hedge into the castle. However, they did not succeed, for the thorns held firmly together, as though they had hands, and the young men became stuck in them, could not free themselves, and died miserably.於是，关於这个王国流传开了这样一个传说，一个漂亮的正在睡觉的玫瑰公主的传说，人们所说的玫瑰公主其实就是国王的女儿。从那以后，有不少王子来探险，他们披荆斩棘想穿过树篱到王宫里去，但都没有成功，不是被蒺藜缠住就是被树丛跘倒在里面，就像是有无数只手牢牢地抓住他们难以脱身一样，他们最终都痛苦地死去。

　　Many long, long years later, once again a prince came to the country. He heard an old man telling about the thorn hedge. It was said that there was a castle behind it, in which a beautiful princess named Little Brier-Rose had been asleep for a hundred years, and with her the king and the queen and all the royal attendants were sleeping. He also knew from his grandfather that many princes had come and tried to penetrate the thorn hedge, but they had become stuck in it and died a sorrowful death.许多许多年过去了，一天，又有一位王子踏上了这块土地。一位老大爷向他讲起了蒺藜树丛的故事，说树篱之内有一座漂亮的王宫，王宫里有一位仙女般的公主，她的名字叫玫瑰公主，她和整座王宫及里面的人都在沉睡。他还说，他曾听他的爷爷谈起有许许多多的王子来过这儿，他们都想穿过树篱，但都被缠在里面死去了。