2022年12月28日发(作者：福州托福培训)The Brave Little Tailor
Once upon a time there was a little kingdom which was a happy place to live in. It would have kept on being happy but for one thing-a big, enormous giant moved in and went stamping about the countryside, trampling hous and crops under his great boots. The king himlf had offered a reward for the capture of the giant, dead or alive. Everyone wanted him to be captured, but somehow no one knew how to do it. So the giant went on until the whole kingdom was in a terrible state. Now in the royal city was a little tailor Mickey Mou, the tailor, sat and worked all day. The giant did not bother him. What bothered him was flies! Flies swarmed on the ceiling; flies crawled over the table where Mickey sat and wed; flies zoomed around his no as he tried to work. At last, in a great burst of annoyance, Mickey picked up two swatters and slammed them together as a whole swarm of flies went buzzing by.
Down fell the victims to the floor, and Mickey smiled.
"O boy! Seven at one blow!"
Running to the window, he thrust his head out just as one villager passing by said to another, "Did you ever kill a giant?" "I killed ven at one blow!" cried Mickey, thinking of his swatted flies. "Seven at on blow!" echoed the villagers, picturing a kingdomful of giants laid out at Mickey's feet. Mickey nodded happily, and the villagers rushed away to spread the news. Soon the whole town was buzzing with talk of Mickey's great feet. At last word came to the King himlf and his daughter, Princess Minnie. "The little tailor, Your Majesty, killed ven giants with one blow!" panted a guard. "Seven!" shouted the King. "Bring the tailor here!" So Mickey Mou to his great surpri, found himlf being hustled to the palace of the King.
"Did you kill ven at one blow?" thundered the King, as Mickey was brought before the throne.
"Yes, Your Honor.
I killed ven." said Mickey, gaining courage from Princess Minnie's smile.
"And how!"
"Well," said the King. "How?" Mickey took a deep breath, glanced up at Princess Minnie, and started in.
"I was all alone," he explained. "I heard' em coming.
I looked up and I was surrounded.
They were here, there, everwhere-a whole bunch of 'em.
They came at me from the left, right, left, right-"
The king was hanging on Mickey's every word.
"Yes,yes," he encouraged. "Go on!"
"They were coming clor.
The fight was on.
I swung and misd-I misd and swung.
I swung again and again.
They were right on top of me." Mickey was all excited himlf now. "And then?" said the King. Mickey drew his long tailor's scissors through the air like a sword. "Then," he finished proudly, "I let 'em have it!" "Wow!" said the King. "Brave tailor, I appoint you Royal High Killer of the Giant!" Mickey's smile faded. He almost collapd. "Giant!" he squeaked. "But-but-but Your Majesty-I-I-I-" "And your reward," the King continued, "shall be one million pazoozas!" "Th-thank you, sir," Mickey stammere
d, "but I-I-I couldn't-" "Two million pazoozas!" said the King. "But-I-I-I don't know-, "Mickey tried to explain. Now Princess Minnie tugged at her father's sleeve and whispered in his ear. "Three million pazoozas," smiled the King, "and the hand of the Princess Minnie!" "The Princess!" gasped Mickey. "Gee! I'll cut that giant down to my size!" And away he marched, out of the long throne room, down the palace halls, through the royal city to the great gate in the walls. The streets were filled with cheering people as the hero strode along; banners and handkerchiefs fluttered at windows, and from high in the palace tower, Princess Minnie waved and threw him a kiss. Mickey Mou marched along triumphantly to the gates of the city.
But as he stood alone on the road outside, and the drawbridge clanked up behind him, he suddenly felt very lonely indeed. "Gosh," sighed the brave little tailor to himlf as he sank down upon a stone. "I don't know how to catch a giant." As he sat there, with his head in his hands, Mickey felt the rock beneath him tremble, and a great shadow fell across the ground. "The giant!" Mickey gasped, and he began to run as fast as his legs would carry him.
He ran fast, but the giant's footsteps clomped clor and clor. Soon Mickey came to the shore of a little lake. For a moment he was stopped. But then he spied a rowboat moored near by. Leaping into it, he rowed away at top speed. But his fastest rowing could not save him. The giant splashed into the water behind Mickey, and a great wave from his boot flung the little rowboat up onto the far shore. Mickey jumped out and raced away, but the huge black shadow of the giant spread across the landscape and the thudding footsteps were very clo now. As the giant overtook him, Mickey dove into a cartload of pumpkins and burrowed in among them. He peeked out of his hiding place once, only to e the giant ating himlf on a cottage roof beside him. The cottage crumpled softly beneath the tremendous weight, and the giant grunted a comfortable grunt. Then he spied the load of pumpkins and a hungry smile spread across his face. He reached out and scooped up a great handful of pumpkins-and in the handful was Mickey Mou! Mickey scarcely had time to figure out what was happening. He felt himlf being lifted through the air.
He saw a great dark hole opening before him. It was the giant's mouth, he realized with horror! As the giant flung the pumpkins down his gullet, Mickey managed to catch hold of his great upper lip. From there he swung himlf up to the giant's no. The poor giant twitched uncomfortably, for his no began to tickle, but as he reached up to rub it, Mickey scrambled to his eyebrow.
The giant wrinkled his forehead in a worried frown, and this unexpected motion shook Mickey loo from his hold. Down he plummeted, down through thin air! "This is the end!" Mickey thought grimly. But with a soft thud he landed unhurt on the giant's palm. "What a spot!" Mickey groane
