There was once an old man and an old woman. The old woman had a hen and the old man had a rooster; the old womans hen laid two eggs a day and she ate a great many, but she would not give the old man a single one. One day the old man lost patience and said: “Listen, old crony, you live as if you were in clover, give me a couple of eggs so that I can at least have a taste of them.”
“No indeed!” replied the old woman, who was very avaricious. “If you want eggs, beat your rooster so that he may lay eggs for you, and then eat them; I flogged my hen, and just see how she lays now.”
The old man, being stingy and greedy, listened to the old womans talk, angrily seized his rooster, gave him a sound thrashing and said: “There, now, lay some eggs for me or else go out of the house, I wont feed you for nothing any longer.” As soon as the rooster escaped from the old mans hands it ran off down the high-road. While thus pursuing its way, lo and behold! It found a little purse with two half-pennies. Taking it in its beak, the bird turned and went back toward the old mans house. On the road it met a carriage containing a gentleman and several ladies. The gentleman looked at the rooster, saw a purse in its bill, and said to the driver: “Get down and see what this rooster has in its beak.”
The driver hastily jumped from his box, took the little purse from the roosters bill, and gave it to his master. The gentleman put it in his pocket and drove on. The rooster was very angry and ran after the carriage, repeating continually: “Kikeriki, sir, Kikerikak, to me the little purse give back.”
The enraged gentleman said to the coachman as they passed a well: “Take that impudent rooster and throw it into the well.”The coachman seized the rooster, and flung it down the well. The rooster began to swallow the water, and drank and drank till it had swallowed all the water in the well. Then it flew out and again ran after the carriage, calling: “Kikeriki, sir, Kikerikak, to me the little purse give back.” When the gentleman saw this, he was perfectly amazed. When he reached home he told the cook to take the rooster, throw it on the coals burning upon the hearth, and push a big stone in front of the opening in the chimney. When the rooster saw this new injustice, it began to spit out the water it had swallowed till it had poured all the water from the well upon the burning coals. Then the rooster gave the stone a push, came out safe and sound, ran to the gentlemans window, screaming: “Kikeriki, sir, Kikerikak, to me the little purse give back.”
“Heaven knows that Ive got a torment in this monster of a rooster,” said the gentleman. “Driver, rid me of it, toss it into the middle of the herds of cows and oxen; perhaps some bull will stick its horns through it and relieve us.” You ought to have seen the roosters delight. It swallowed bulls, oxen, cows, and calves, till it had devoured the whole herd and its stomach had grown as big as a mountain. Then it went to the window again, spread out its wings before the sun so that it darkened the gentlemans room, and once more began:“Kikeriki, sir, Kikerikak, to me the little purse give back.”
When the gentleman saw this he was ready to burst with rage and did not know what to do to get rid of the rooster. At last an idea entered his head: “Ill lock it up in the treasurechamber. Perhaps if it tries to swallow the ducats one will stick in its throat, and I shall get rid of the bird.” The rooster swallowed all the money and left the chests empty. Then it escaped from the room, went to the gentlemans window, and again began: “Kikeriki, sir, Kikerikak, to me the little purse give back.”
As the gentleman saw that there was nothing else to be done he tossed the purse out. The rooster picked it up, went about its own business, and left the gentleman in peace. All the poultry ran after the rooster so that it really looked like a wedding.
When the old man heard the roosters voice he ran out joyfully to meet the bird. His rooster had become a terrible object. An elephant beside it would have seemed like a flea; and following behind came countless flocks of birds, each one more beautiful and brilliant than the other. “Master,” said the bird, “spread a sheet here in the middle of the yard.”
The rooster took its stand upon it, spread its wings, and instantly the whole yard was filled with birds and herds of cattle, but it shook out on the sheet a pile of ducats that flashed in the sun till they dazzled the eyes. When the old man beheld this vast treasure, he did not know what to do in his delight. He hugged and kissed the rooster.
But all at once the old woman saw this marvelous spectacle her eyes glittered in her head, and she was ready to burst with wrath.“Dear old friend,” she said, “give me a few ducats.”
“Pine away with longing for them, old woman; when I begged you for some eggs, you know what you answered. Now flog your hen that it may bring you ducats. I beat my rooster, and you see what it has fetched me.”
The old woman went to the hen-coop, shook the hen, took it by the tail, and gave it such a drubbing that it was enough to make one weep for pity. When the poor hen escaped from the old womans hands it fled to the highway. While walking along it found a bead, swallowed it, hurried back home as fast as possible, and began to cackle at the gate. The old woman welcomed it joyfully. The old woman hastened to see what the hen had laid. A little glass bead! When the old woman saw that the hen had fooled her, she began to beat it, and beat till she flogged it to death. So the stupid old soul remained as poor as a church-mouse.
But the old man was very rich; he built great houses, laid out beautiful gardens, and lived luxuriously. He made the old woman his poultry-maid, the rooster he took about with him everywhere, dressed in a gold collar, yellow boots, and spurs on its heels, so that one might have thought it was one of the Three Kings from the Christmas play instead of a mere ordinary rooster.
從前有一位老爺爺和一位老奶奶。老奶奶有一只母雞,老爺爺有一只公雞;老奶奶的母雞每天下兩個雞蛋,她吃了很多雞蛋,但她從沒給過老爺爺一個雞蛋。一天,老爺爺不再耐心,向她說道:“聽著,老友,你看上去衣食無憂的,給我?guī)讉€雞蛋吧,讓我至少嘗嘗那味道。”
“不行!”這位異常貪婪的老奶奶回答道?!澳阆胍u蛋就打你的公雞,也許它就會給你下蛋,然后你就可以吃了,我就是這樣鞭打母雞的,看看它現(xiàn)在多會下蛋?!?/p>
老爺爺出于貧窮和貪心,聽信了老奶奶的話,他憤怒地抓住公雞,暴打了一頓,說道:“好了,現(xiàn)在給我下幾個蛋,要不你就滾出去,我不會再白養(yǎng)你了?!惫u從老爺爺那兒逃離出去,跑到了公路上。在路上走著走著,瞧!它發(fā)現(xiàn)了一個裝有兩個半便士的小錢包。公雞用嘴叼著錢包往回走去老爺爺家。在路上,它碰到了一輛載著一位紳士和幾位女士的馬車。那位紳士看著公雞,看見它銜著錢包,便對車夫說:“下去看看這只公雞嘴里銜著的是什么?!?/p>
車夫急忙跳下座位,從公雞嘴里拿走小錢包,遞給他的主人。紳士把錢包放進口袋后繼續(xù)上路。公雞很生氣并邊追著馬車邊不停地說:“咯咯咯,先生,咯咯咯,還我錢包。”
經(jīng)過一口井時,惱火的紳士對車夫說:“把這只放肆的公雞扔進井里。”車夫抓住公雞并把它扔下井里。公雞開始喝井水,直到把井水都喝光。然后它飛出井,繼續(xù)追馬車,叫著:“咯咯咯,先生,咯咯咯,還我錢包?!奔澥靠吹胶蠓浅3泽@。他回家后對廚師說,把公雞放在爐灶里燒著的煤上,并在煙囪的出口處放一塊大石頭。公雞看到這新惡行后,它開始把吞下的井水吐在燃燒的煤上。然后公雞推開石頭,安全地逃出來,跑到紳士的窗口外喊道:“咯咯咯,先生,咯咯咯,還我錢包。”
“天知道我竟被這只魔鬼公雞折磨,”紳士說?!败嚪颍o我弄走它,把它扔到奶牛和公牛群里去;要是公牛用角去刺它,我們就解脫了。”你真該看看公雞有多高興。它吞下了公牛、閹牛、奶牛和小牛犢,把整個牛群都吞光了,它的胃撐得像一座山一樣大。然后,它又跑到窗邊,展開翅膀把陽光擋住,使紳士的房間漆黑一片,再次喊道:“咯咯咯,先生,咯咯咯,還我錢包?!?/p>
紳士看到后差點氣瘋了,不知道該如何擺脫公雞。最終,他想到了一個辦法:“我要把它鎖在寶庫。也許它吞下達卡金幣時會噎著,我就可以擺脫它了?!惫u吞下了所有的金幣,箱子全空了。然后它逃出房間,走到紳士的窗邊,又喊:“咯咯咯,先生,咯咯咯,還我錢包?!?/p>
紳士無計可施,唯有把錢包扔出去。公雞撿起錢包就走了,紳士也得以安寧了。所有家禽都跟著公雞,看起來像婚禮一樣隆重。
老人聽到公雞的聲音后高興地跑出去見它。他的公雞變得異常巨大——一頭大象在它旁邊就像一只跳蚤,公雞身后跟著無數(shù)的小鳥,一只比一只漂亮?!爸魅?,”公雞說,“在院子中間鋪一張?zhí)鹤?。?/p>
公雞站在上面,張開翅膀,院子里頓時出現(xiàn)了很多小鳥和牛,它把一堆金幣抖落在毯子中,金幣在陽光下閃閃發(fā)光。老人看到如此大量的財富高興得不知如何是好,不停地擁抱、親吻公雞。
但老奶奶一看到這個壯觀的場景就眼冒金光,惱火沖天。
“親愛的老朋友,”她說,“給我些金幣吧?!?/p>
“老太婆,你只能苦苦盼望著得到金幣,我請求你給我些雞蛋時,你知道你是怎樣回答我的?,F(xiàn)在去鞭打你的母雞,也許它會給你金幣。我打了公雞,你看看它都給我?guī)Я耸裁椿貋怼!?/p>
老奶奶走到雞窩,搖晃著母雞,抓著它的尾巴,使勁地打了它一頓,母雞可憐地哭泣。母雞從老奶奶手中逃跑后走到公路上。走著走著,它發(fā)現(xiàn)了一顆珠子,吞下并趕快回家,對著門咯咯地叫,老奶奶高興地迎接它。她著急地想看看母雞下了什么。一顆小玻璃珠子!老奶奶看到母雞作弄她就開始打它,直到把它打死了。因此這個愚蠢的老太太變得教堂老鼠般一貧如洗。
老爺爺則變得十分富有,他蓋起了大房子,建了美麗的花園,生活奢華。他讓老奶奶給他飼養(yǎng)牲畜,自己則帶著公雞到處游玩,公雞戴著一個金領子,穿著一雙黃色的靴子,雙腳直立行走,別人都認為它不只是一只普通的公雞,而是圣誕劇里三位博士中的一位。