The Elephant and the Tortoise; or, Why the Worms are Blind and Why the Elephant has Small Eyes

When Ambo was king of Calabar, the elephant was not only a very big animal, but he had eyes in proportion to his immense bulk. In those days men and animals were friends, and all mixed together quite freely. At regular intervals King Ambo used to give a feast, and the elephant used to eat more than any one, although the hippopotamus used to do his best; however, not being as big as the elephant, although he was very fat, he was left a long way behind.

アンボがカラバルの王だったころ、象はたいそう大きな獣だったばかりでなく、その巨大な体に見合った大きさの目を持っていた。そのころ人と獣は友だちで、みなたいそう気安く交わっていた。アンボ王は決まった間隔で宴を開き、象は誰よりもたくさん食べた。カバも精いっぱいがんばったのだが、たいそう太ってはいても象ほど大きくはないので、はるかに及ばなかった。

As the elephant ate so much at these feasts, the tortoise, who was small but very cunning, made up his mind to put a stop to the elephant eating more than a fair share of the food provided. He therefore placed some dry kernels and shrimps, of which the elephant was very fond, in his bag, and went to the elephant's house to make an afternoon call.

象がこうした宴であまりにたくさん食べるので、小さいけれどたいそうずる賢い亀は、象が出された食べ物のうち公平な分け前以上を食べるのをやめさせようと決めた。そこで亀は、象の大好きな乾いた椰子の実と小海老を袋に入れて、午後の訪問をしに象の家へ出かけた。

When the tortoise arrived the elephant told him to sit down, so he made himself comfortable, and, having shut one eye, took one palm kernel and a shrimp out of his bag, and commenced to eat them with much relish.

亀が着くと、象は座るよう言った。そこで亀はくつろいで腰を下ろし、片目をつぶって、袋から椰子の実一つと小海老一匹を取り出し、たいそうおいしそうに食べはじめた。

When the elephant saw the tortoise eating, he said, as he was always hungry himself, "You seem to have some good food there; what are you eating?"

象は亀が食べているのを見ると、自分はいつも腹をすかせていたので言った。「うまそうな食べ物を持っているな。何を食べているのだ」

The tortoise replied that the food was "sweet too much," but was rather painful to him, as he was eating one of his own eyeballs; and he lifted up his head, showing one eye closed.

亀は、この食べ物は「うますぎるほど甘い」が、自分の目玉の一つを食べているので、いささか痛いと答えた。そして頭を上げて、片目が閉じているのを見せた。

The elephant then said, "If the food is so good, take out one of my eyes and give me the same food."

すると象は言った。「そんなにうまい食べ物なら、わしの目も一つ取り出して、同じ食べ物をくれ」

The tortoise, who was waiting for this, knowing how greedy the elephant was, had brought a sharp knife with him for that very purpose, and said to the elephant, "I cannot reach your eye, as you are so big."

象がどんなに欲深いか知っていて、これを待っていた亀は、まさにそのために鋭いナイフを持ってきていた。そこで亀は象に言った。「あなたはたいそう大きいので、わたしには目に手が届きません」

The elephant then took the tortoise up in his trunk and lifted him up. As soon as he came near the elephant's eye, with one quick scoop of the sharp knife he had the elephant's right eye out. The elephant trumpeted with pain; but the tortoise gave him some of the dried kernels and shrimps, and they so pleased the elephant's palate that he soon forgot the pain.

そこで象は鼻で亀を持ち上げた。象の目の近くまで来ると、亀は鋭いナイフをさっとひとえぐりして、象の右目をえぐり出した。象は痛みでほえたけれど、亀が乾いた椰子の実と小海老をいくらかやると、それが象の舌をたいそう喜ばせたので、象はまもなく痛みを忘れた。

Very soon the elephant said, "That food is so sweet, I must have some more"; but the tortoise told him that before he could have any the other eye must come out. To this the elephant agreed; so the tortoise quickly got his knife to work, and very soon the elephant's left eye was on the ground, thus leaving the elephant quite blind. The tortoise then slid down the elephant's trunk on to the ground and hid himself. The elephant then began to make a great noise, and started pulling trees down and doing much damage, calling out for the tortoise; but of course he never answered, and the elephant could not find him.

まもなく象は言った。「あの食べ物はたいそう甘い。もっと欲しい」けれども亀は、その前にもう一方の目も取り出さねばならないと言った。象はこれに承知したので、亀はすばやくナイフを働かせ、まもなく象の左目も地面に落ちて、象はすっかり目が見えなくなった。それから亀は象の鼻をすべり降りて地面に着き、身を隠した。それから象は大騒ぎを始め、木を引き倒して大暴れし、亀を呼ばわった。けれどももちろん亀は答えず、象は亀を見つけられなかった。

The next morning, when the elephant heard the people passing, he asked them what the time was, and the bush buck, who was nearest, shouted out, "The sun is now up, and I am going to market to get some yams and fresh leaves for my food."

次の朝、象は人々が通りかかるのを聞いて、今何時かと尋ねた。いちばん近くにいたブッシュバックが大声で答えた。「もう日が昇りました。わたしは市場へヤムイモと食べる新しい葉を買いに行くところです」

Then the elephant perceived that the tortoise had deceived him, and began to ask all the passers-by to lend him a pair of eyes, as he could not see, but every one refused, as they wanted their eyes themselves. At last the worm grovelled past, and seeing the big elephant, greeted him in his humble way. He was much surprised when the king of the forest returned his salutation, and very much flattered also.

そこで象は、亀に欺かれたのだと悟り、通りかかる者みなに、目が見えないので目を一組貸してくれと頼みはじめた。けれども誰もが断った。自分の目は自分に要るからである。とうとうミミズが這って通りかかり、大きな象を見て、その謙虚なやり方で挨拶をした。ミミズは森の王が挨拶を返してくれたのにたいそう驚き、たいそう光栄にも思った。

The elephant said, "Look here, worm, I have mislaid my eyes. Will you lend me yours for a few days? I will return them next market-day."

象は言った。「なあミミズよ、わしは目をどこかに置き忘れてしまった。二、三日、お前の目を貸してくれないか。次の市の日には返すから」

The worm was so flattered at being noticed by the elephant that he gladly consented, and took his eyes out--which, as every one knows, were very small--and gave them to the elephant. When the elephant had put the worm's eyes into his own large eye-sockets, the flesh immediately closed round them so tightly that when the market-day arrived it was impossible for the elephant to get them out again to return to the worm; and although the worm repeatedly made applications to the elephant to return his eyes, the elephant always pretended not to hear, and sometimes used to say in a very loud voice, "If there are any worms about, they had better get out of my way, as they are so small I cannot see them, and if I tread on them they will be squashed into a nasty mess."

ミミズは象に目をかけてもらったのがあまりにうれしくて、喜んで承知し、自分の目を——誰もが知るとおり、たいそう小さな目を——取り出して象にやった。象がミミズの目を自分の大きな眼窩に入れると、肉がたちまちそのまわりをきつく包んでしまったので、市の日が来ても象はそれを取り出してミミズに返すことができなかった。そしてミミズが何度も象に目を返してくれと申し入れても、象はいつも聞こえないふりをし、ときにはたいそう大きな声でこう言うのだった。「このあたりにミミズがいるなら、どいたほうがいいぞ。あまりに小さくて見えないから、踏んだらぐちゃぐちゃに潰れてしまう」

Ever since then the worms have been blind, and for the same reason elephants have such small eyes, quite out of proportion to the size of their huge bodies.

それ以来、ミミズは目が見えないのである。そして同じわけで、象はその巨大な体にまるで釣り合わない、あんなに小さな目をしているのである。