店主和小偷

A thief hired a room in a tavern and stayed a while in the hope of stealing something that should enable him to pay his reckoning. When he had waited some days in vain, he saw the innkeeper dressed in a new and handsome coat sitting before his door. The thief sat down beside him and talked with him.As the conversation began to flag, the thief yawned terribly and at the same time howled like a wolf. The innkeeper said, "Why do you howl so fearfully?" "I will tell you," said the thief, "but first let me ask you to hold my clothes, or I shall tear them to pieces. I know not,sir,when I got this habit of yawning,nor whether these attacks of howling were inflicted on me as a judgment for my crimes, or for any other cause; but this I do know, that when I yawn for the third time, I actually turn into a wolf and attack men." With this speech he began a second fit of yawning and again howled like a wolf, as he had at first. The innkeeper, hearing his tale and believing what he said, became greatly alarmed and, rising from his seat, attempted to run away. The Thief laid hold of his coat and entreated him to stop,saying,"Please wait, sir, and hold my clothes, or I shall tear them to pieces in my fury, when I turn into a wolf." At the same moment he yawned the third time and set up a terrible howl. The innkeeper,frightened lest he should be attacked, left his new coat in the thief's hand and ran as fast as he could into the inn for safety. The thief made off with the coat and did not return again to the inn.

一个小偷在一家旅馆里租了一间房。在那里住了一段时间，希望能够偷点东西搞点钱花花。他等待了几天，一无所获。就在这时，他看见旅馆老板穿着一件漂亮的新外衣坐在他的门前。小偷便坐在他的旁边开始和他搭讪。谈话变得越来越乏味，就在这个时候小偷怪模怪样地打了一个哈欠，同时像狼一样嚎叫了一声。旅店老板说：“你为什么叫得这么恐怖?”小偷说：“我可以告诉你，但你得帮我拿着衣服，否则我会把它撕成碎片的。先生，我不清楚从什么时候开始我染上这种恶习，也不知道这种嚎叫是不是对我所犯罪行的惩罚，还是有什么其他原因。我只知道我第三次打哈欠的时候，我就会变成一只恶狼攻击人类。”然后他像第一次那样又打了一次哈欠，嚎叫了一声。旅店老板听信了他的鬼话，变得异常紧张，从座位上站起来要逃走。小偷抓住他的长袍，恳求道：“请等一下，先生，拿着我的衣服吧，要不我变成狼后会在暴怒中把它撕碎的。”就在此时，他第三次打哈欠，发出一声可怕的嚎叫。旅店老板害怕被攻击，就把长袍丢在小偷手里，撒腿跑回客房里。小偷拿了长袍后再也没有回来。