奇妙な音楽家


The wonderful musician


昔、不思議な音楽家がいました。この音楽家が、まったく一人で森を通っていろいろなことを考えていましたが、何も考えることが残ってなくなった時、(この森では時間の経つのがいやに遅いなあ。いい連れを見つけよう。)と思いました。それから、背中からバイオリンをとり、ひくと、音が木々の間にこだましました。まもなく一匹の狼が茂みから駆けてきました。「ああ、狼が来るよ。狼は欲しくないな。」と音楽家は言いましたが、狼は近づいて来て、「ああ、音楽家さん、なんてきれいにひくんでしょう。私もそれを習いたいです。」と言いました。「すぐに習えるよ。」音楽家は言いました。「私がいいつける何でもやりさえすればいいんだ。」「まあ、音楽家さん、生徒が先生に従うように、私はあなたに従います。」と狼は言いました。音楽家は狼についてくるように言いました。しばらく道を進んだ時、中にうろがあり真ん中が割れている古い樫の木のところに来ました。「見ろよ、バイオリンを習うなら、前足をこの割れ目に入れろ。」と音楽家は言いました。狼は従いました。しかし、音楽家は素早く石を拾い、ひとうちであっというまに二本の前足をくさびのように押し込んだので、狼は囚われてそこにいるしかなくなりました。「私が戻るまでそこで待ってろ。」と音楽家は言って、道を進みました。
しばらくして、音楽家は、「この森では時間の経つのがいやに遅いなあ。別の連れをこっちへ呼ぼう。」と独り言を言って、バイオリンをとり、また森の中でひきました。まもなく狐が木の間から忍び足でやってきました。「ああ、狐が来るよ。狐は欲しくないな。」と音楽家は言いました。
狐は近づいて来て、「ああ、音楽家さん、なんてきれいにひくんでしょう。私もそれを習いたいです。」と言いました。「すぐに習えるよ。」音楽家は言いました。「私がいいつける何でもやりさえすればいいんだ。」「まあ、音楽家さん、生徒が先生に従うように、私はあなたに従います。」と狐は言いました。「ついてこい」と音楽家は言いました。しばらく道を進むと、両側にやぶが高く伸びている小道に来ました。そこで音楽家は立ち止まり、一方の側から若いはしばみの木のやぶを地面まで曲げ、その木の端に足をのせました。それから反対側からも若い木を折り曲げて、「さあ、狐くん、何か習う気なら、左の前足を出してごらん。」と音楽家は言いました。狐が従うと、音楽家は足を左の枝に縛り、「狐くん、今度は右足をこっちにのばしてごらん。」と言いました。そしてその足を右の枝に結びました。結び目がしっかりしているか調べた後、音楽家は放しました。それで枝はまた上に跳ね上がって、狐をぐいと上にひきあげました。それで狐は空中でもがいてぶらさがりました。「また戻ってくるまでそこで待ってろ。」と音楽家は言って、道をずんずん行きました。
また音楽家は「この森では時間の経つのがいやに遅いなあ。別の連れをこっちへ呼ぼう。」と独り言を言って、バイオリンをとり、音が森中にこだましました。するとうさぎがぴょんぴょん跳ねてやってきました。「ああ、うさぎが来るよ。うさぎは欲しくないな。」と音楽家は言いました。うさぎは、「ああ、音楽家さん、なんてきれいにひくんでしょう。私もそれを習いたいです。」と言いました。「すぐに習えるよ。」音楽家は言いました。「私がいいつける何でもやりさえすればいいんだ。」「まあ、音楽家さん、生徒が先生に従うように、私はあなたに従います。」と狐は言いました。しばらく一緒に道を進むと、森の開けたところにきました。そこにはヤマナラシの木が立っていました。音楽家はうさぎの首に長い紐を結び、もう一方の端をその木に結びました。「さあ、速く、うさぎくん、木のまわりを20回走るんだ。」と音楽家は叫び、うさぎは従いました。20回回ってしまったとき、木の幹に20回紐を巻き、うさぎはからめとられ、引っ張ろうがなんだろうが、ただ紐が柔らかい首にくいこむだけでした。「もどるまでそこで待ってろ。」と音楽家は言って、ずんずん行ってしまいました。
その間、狼は石を押しに押し、かんだりして、長い時間をかけてやっと足を自由にでき、割れ目から抜きました。怒りに燃え、ずたずたに引き裂いてやるぞと、音楽家のあとを急いで追いかけました。狐は狼が走っているのを見て、悲しそうになきながら、「狼あにい、こっちへきて助けてくれよ、音楽家がおれをだましたよ。」と力の限り叫びました。狼は小さな木を引きおろし、綱を二つにかみ切り、狐を自由にしました。それで狐も音楽家に仕返ししようと一緒に行きました。二匹は縛られているうさぎをみつけ、これも救い、それから三匹一緒に敵を探しました。
音楽家は道を進んでいるとき、もう一度バイオリンを弾きました。今度は前より運がよく、音は貧しい木こりの耳に届きました。木こりは、否応なく、すぐに仕事を止め、手斧を脇に抱えて音楽を聴きにやってきました。「とうとうちゃんとした仲間がきたよ。」と音楽家は言いました。「人間を求めていたんだからな。けものではなくてね。」それで音楽家はひき始め、とても美しく楽しい音だったので、貧しい男は魔法にかけられたようにそこに立って、心が喜びで踊り上がっていました。こうして立っていたら、狼と狐とうさぎが近づいてきて、貧しい男はけものたちが悪さをしようとしているのがよくわかりました。それで、音楽家に触ろうとするやつに、気をつけろ、そいつはおれを相手にしなければならないぞ、というかのように、きらきらする斧をもちあげ音楽家の前に立ちました。するとけものたちはおそれをなして、森へ走って戻りました。ところが、音楽家は恩返しのため男にもう一曲ひき、それから去っていきました。
There was once a wonderful musician, who went quite alone through a forest and thought of all manner of things, and when nothing was left for him to think about, he said to himself, "Time is beginning to pass heavily with me here in the forest, I will fetch hither a good companion for myself." Then he took his fiddle from his back, and played so that it echoed through the trees. It was not long before a wolf came trotting through the thicket towards him. "Ah, here is a wolf coming! I have no desire for him!" said the musician; but the wolf came nearer and said to him, "Ah, dear musician, how beautifully thou dost play. I should like to learn that, too." - "It is soon learnt," the musician replied, "thou hast only to do all that I bid thee." - "Oh, musician," said the wolf, "I will obey thee as a scholar obeys his master." The musician bade him follow, and when they had gone part of the way together, they came to an old oak-tree which was hollow inside, and cleft in the middle. "Look," said the musician, "if thou wilt learn to fiddle, put thy fore paws into this crevice." The wolf obeyed, but the musician quickly picked up a stone and with one blow wedged his two paws so fast that he was forced to stay there like a prisoner. "Stay there until I come back again," said the musician, and went his way.
After a while he again said to himself, "Time is beginning to pass heavily with me here in the forest, I will fetch hither another companion," and took his fiddle and again played in the forest. It was not long before a fox came creeping through the trees towards him. "Ah, there's a fox coming!" said the musician. "I have no desire for him." The fox came up to him and said, "Oh, dear musician, how beautifully thou dost play! I should like to learn that too." - "That is soon learnt," said the musician. "Thou hast only to do everything that I bid thee." - "Oh, musician," then said the fox, "I will obey thee as a scholar obeys his master." - "Follow me," said the musician; and when they had walked a part of the way, they came to a footpath, with high bushes on both sides of it. There the musician stood still, and from one side bent a young hazel-bush down to the ground, and put his foot on the top of it, then he bent down a young tree from the other side as well, and said, "Now little fox, if thou wilt learn something, give me thy left front paw." The fox obeyed, and the musician fastened his paw to the left bough. "Little fox," said he, "now reach me thy right paw" and he tied it to the right bough. When he had examined whether they were firm enough, he let go, and the bushes sprang up again, and jerked up the little fox, so that it hung struggling in the air. "Wait there till I come back again," said the musician, and went his way.
Again he said to himself, "Time is beginning to pass heavily with me here in the forest, I will fetch hither another companion," so he took his fiddle, and the sound echoed through the forest. Then a little hare came springing towards him. "Why, a hare is coming," said the musician, "I do not want him." - "Ah, dear musician," said the hare, "how beautifully thou dost fiddle; I too, should like to learn that." - "That is soon learnt," said the musician, "thou hast only to do everything that I bid thee." - "Oh, musician," replied the little hare, "I will obey thee as a scholar obeys his master." They went a part of the way together until they came to an open space in the forest, where stood an aspen tree. The musician tied a long string round the little hare's neck, the other end of which he fastened to the tree. "Now briskly, little hare, run twenty times round the tree!" cried the musician, and the little hare obeyed, and when it had run round twenty times, it had twisted the string twenty times round the trunk of the tree, and the little hare was caught, and let it pull and tug as it liked, it only made the string cut into its tender neck. "Wait there till I come back," said the musician, and went onwards.
The wolf, in the meantime, had pushed and pulled and bitten at the stone, and had worked so long that he had set his feet at liberty and had drawn them once more out of the cleft. Full of anger and rage he hurried after the musician and wanted to tear him to pieces. When the fox saw him running, he began to lament, and cried with all his might, "Brother wolf, come to my help, the musician has betrayed me!" The wolf drew down the little tree, bit the cord in two, and freed the fox, who went with him to take revenge on the musician. They found the tied-up hare, whom likewise they delivered, and then they all sought the enemy together.
The musician had once more played his fiddle as he went on his way, and this time he had been more fortunate. The sound reached the ears of a poor wood-cutter, who instantly, whether he would or no, gave up his work and came with his hatchet under his arm to listen to the music. "At last comes the right companion," said the musician, "for I was seeking a human being, and no wild beast." And he began and played so beautifully and delightfully that the poor man stood there as if bewitched, and his heart leaped with gladness. And as he thus stood, the wolf, the fox, and the hare came up, and he saw well that they had some evil design. So he raised his glittering axe and placed himself before the musician, as if to say, "Whoso wishes to touch him let him beware, for he will have to do with me!" Then the beasts were terrified and ran back into the forest. The musician, however, played once more to the man out of gratitude, and then went onwards.