Sheik Chilli

Sheik Chilli was going to be married, so his mother said: "My son, whatever your wife gives you to eat be content with your nemak panee (literally salt and water, but a native always speaks of his food as his "nemak panee"), and do not grumble, but eat uncomplaining."

シェーク・チッリーが嫁をもらうことになったので、母が言った。「息子よ、お嫁さんが何を食べさせてくれても、ネマク・パーニーで満足して、文句を言わずに黙って食べなさい」(ネマク・パーニーは文字どおりには塩と水のことだが、土地の人はいつも自分の食事を「ネマク・パーニー」と言う)

So when he was married, and his wife placed his food before him, he remembered his mother's warning, and kept repeating, "Nemak panee, nemak panee," till his wife was disgusted, and taking him at his word gave him salt and water to drink.

そこで結婚して、妻が食事を前に置くと、シェーク・チッリーは母の言いつけを思い出して「ネマク・パーニー、ネマク・パーニー」と繰り返してばかりいた。とうとう妻はうんざりして、言葉どおりに受け取り、塩と水を飲ませた。

During the night he felt very hungry, and asked her to give him some food, but she said: "I am not going to get up and cook food for you at this hour of the night, but if you will go into a certain room, you will find some honey in a jar on the shelf, eat a little of that."

夜中にシェーク・チッリーはひどく腹が減って、何か食べ物をくれと妻に頼んだが、妻は言った。「こんな夜中に起きて料理なんかしませんよ。でもあの部屋へ行けば、棚の壺に蜂蜜があるから、それを少しお食べなさい」

Sheik Chilli, in trying to reach the jar of honey, upset it, and it came pouring down upon him, while he kept calling out, "Stop, stop, I've had enough," till at last, surfeited with honey and smeared with it from head to foot, he returned to his wife, and told her what had happened. She advised him to go into the next room, where he would find some wool, and clean himself with it.

シェーク・チッリーは蜂蜜の壺に手を伸ばそうとしてひっくり返してしまい、蜂蜜が頭から流れ落ちてきた。シェーク・チッリーは「やめて、やめて、もうたくさんだ」と叫び続け、とうとう蜂蜜にうんざりして頭から足の先まで蜂蜜まみれになって妻のところへ戻り、何があったかを話した。妻は、隣の部屋へ行けば羊毛があるから、それで体をきれいにしなさいと勧めた。

He tried to do this, but the wool stuck fast to the honey, and covered his body and his hands, so that he looked more like a sheep than a man, and his wife told him that he had better go and sleep with the sheep until morning, when she would prepare some warm water for him to have a wash.

シェーク・チッリーはそうしようとしたが、羊毛が蜂蜜にぴったりくっついて体も手も覆ってしまい、人間というより羊に見えた。妻は、朝までは羊と一緒に寝たほうがいい、朝になったら体を洗うお湯を沸かしてあげるから、と言った。

That night some thieves came to steal the sheep, and in the darkness they felt each one to see which was fattest. Sheik Chilli was fast asleep, and they thought he was a very fine sheep; so they put him into a bag and ran away, taking him with them. When he awoke he kept calling out: "Let me go, let me go." This frightened the robbers, who had never heard a sheep call out before, and so they put down the bag and out dropped Sheik Chilli.

その夜、泥棒たちが羊を盗みに来て、暗闇のなかでどれがいちばん太っているか一頭ずつ触ってみた。シェーク・チッリーはぐっすり眠っていて、泥棒たちはたいそう見事な羊だと思ったので、袋に入れて担いで逃げた。目を覚ますと、シェーク・チッリーは「放して、放して」と叫び続けた。羊が叫ぶのなど聞いたことのなかった盗賊たちは怯えて袋を下ろし、なかからシェーク・チッリーが転がり出た。

The robbers asked him who he was, and said: "You must come with us now, for we are just going to rob the house of a very rich Bunniah; while we gather the spoils, you keep watch that he does not wake."

盗賊たちは、お前は何者だと尋ねて言った。「こうなったからには一緒に来てもらう。これからたいそう金持ちのバニヤ(商人)の家に押し入るところだ。おれたちが獲物を集めているあいだ、バニヤが目を覚まさないよう見張っていろ」

Sheik Chilli waited patiently till he thought the robbers were ready to run away; and then he dropped some hot rice, that was in the cooking pot on the fire, upon the hand of the Bunniah's wife. She awoke with a scream, and the robbers ran away. Then Sheik Chilli explained how he had saved the Bunniah from great loss, and was allowed to go free without any more questions being asked.

シェーク・チッリーは盗賊たちが逃げる支度ができたと思うまでおとなしく待って、それから火にかけた煮鍋のなかの熱い飯を、バニヤの妻の手の上に落とした。女は悲鳴をあげて目を覚まし、盗賊たちは逃げていった。それからシェーク・チッリーは、自分がバニヤを大損から救ったのだと説明し、それ以上何も問われずに放免された。

When he got outside he saw a camel laden with all sorts of treasure. The camel-driver had turned aside for a minute or so, and Sheik Chilli could not see him, so he lead off the camel, made over its pack to his mother, and let it walk away empty.

外へ出ると、あらゆる種類の宝を積んだラクダがいた。ラクダ引きはほんの一分かそこら脇へ離れていて、シェーク・チッリーには見えなかった。そこでシェーク・チッリーはラクダを引いていって、荷を母に渡し、空になったラクダを歩み去らせた。

Next day there was a great fuss made, and the town-crier went round to say that a camel had strayed, and certain valuable goods were lost.

次の日は大騒ぎになり、町の触れ役が、ラクダが一頭迷い出て、値打ちのある品物がなくなったと触れてまわった。

Sheik Chilli's mother heard this, and knowing how simple her son was, she feared he would tell every one where the things were, so she resolved to divert his mind, and that night cooked some goolgoolahs, a very favourite native dish, like fritters, and flung them into the garden; then she woke her son and told him it was "raining goolgoolahs from the sky!"

シェーク・チッリーの母はこれを聞いて、息子がどれほど単純かを知っていたので、あの子は品物のありかを誰にでもしゃべってしまうだろうと心配した。そこで息子の気をそらしてやろうと決めて、その夜、揚げ菓子のような土地の大好物、グルグラーをこしらえて庭にばらまいた。それから息子を起こして、「空からグルグラーが降っているよ!」と言った。

The foolish fellow ran out and called to everybody: "It is raining goolgoolahs! it is raining goolgoolahs!" Everybody thought him a fool, and said: "It is that mad Sheik Chilli; who is going to listen to him?"

愚かな男は外へ駆け出して、みんなに呼びかけた。「グルグラーが降ってるぞ! グルグラーが降ってるぞ!」みな男を愚か者だと思って言った。「あの気のふれたシェーク・チッリーだ。あいつの言うことなんか誰が聞くものか」

Next day Sheik Chilli heard the town-crier calling out about the camel, so he promptly said: "My mother has the things; I myself brought the camel to her."

次の日、シェーク・チッリーは町の触れ役がラクダのことを触れているのを聞くと、すかさず言った。「母さんが品物を持っているよ。おれがラクダを母さんのところへ連れていったんだ」

Then they all crowded to his mother's door, and she asked: "On what day did you bring the camel, my son?"

そこで人々はみな母の家の戸口に押しかけた。母は尋ねた。「息子よ、ラクダを連れてきたのはどの日だったかね」

"The day it rained goolgoolahs, mother."

「グルグラーが降った日だよ、母さん」

So the people walked away disgusted, and said: "What fool's talk is this? Who ever heard of its raining goolgoolahs? The one statement is as false as the other."

そこで人々はうんざりして去っていき、言った。「何という馬鹿げた話だ。グルグラーが降るなんて誰が聞いたことがある。どちらの話も同じくらい嘘っぱちだ」

After this his mother advised him to return to his wife, who must wonder what had become of him. "And mind," she said, "whatever your wife may say, you must agree, and say 'Acchabat'"--or "Quite right," as we English would say "Good!" or "Very good news!"

このあと、母はシェーク・チッリーに、どうしたのかと心配しているにちがいないお嫁さんのところへ帰りなさいと勧めた。「それから、いいかい」と母は言った。「お嫁さんが何を言っても、そのとおりだと言って『アッチャー・バート』と言いなさい」——つまり「まったくそのとおり」、わたしたち英国人なら「いいね!」とか「それはとてもいい知らせだ!」と言うところである。

So he returned to his wife, and the first piece of news she gave him was that her mother had been put into prison, to which he replied, "Acchabat," or "Very good." On this his wife was exceedingly vexed, and turned him out of the house.

そこでシェーク・チッリーが妻のところへ帰ると、妻が最初に知らせたのは、自分の母が牢に入れられたということだったので、シェーク・チッリーは「アッチャー・バート」、つまり「それはいい」と答えた。これに妻はひどく腹を立てて、シェーク・チッリーを家から追い出した。

He returned to his mother, who asked him what had happened. She said: "You are indeed a foolish boy, you should have said, 'Ah ha! Ah ha! this is indeed sad news.' I hope you will remember next time what I have told you."

シェーク・チッリーが母のところへ戻ると、母は何があったのかと尋ねた。母は言った。「ほんとうに愚かな子だね。『ああ、ああ、それはほんとうに悲しい知らせだ』と言うべきだったんだよ。今度はわたしの言ったことを覚えていておくれ」

So Sheik Chilli went back to his wife, who greeted him with the news that his mother-in-law had been released.

そこでシェーク・チッリーが妻のところへ戻ると、妻は、しゅうとめ(妻の母)が釈放されたという知らせで迎えた。

"Ah ha!" said Sheik Chilli, "this is indeed sad news."

「ああ、ああ」とシェーク・チッリーは言った。「それはほんとうに悲しい知らせだ」

The mother-in-law, who overheard him, said: "I have had enough of you: take your wife, and go and live in your own mother's house." So she turned him out.

それを耳にした妻の母は言った。「お前にはもううんざりだ。妻を連れて、自分の母親の家へ行って暮らしなさい」そう言って、シェーク・チッリーを追い出した。