五一劳动节的由来英语故事( 三 )


"Ah, good-for-nothing hussy!" cried the housewife, as she refilled the pan herself, "you would ruin the richest with your carelessness! There's a whole quart of good milk wasted at once!"
"And that's twopence!" cried a voice that seemed to come from the chimney, in a whining tone, like some discontented old body going over her grievances.
The housewife had not left the saucepan for two minutes, when the milk boiled over, and it was all burnt and smoked as before.
"The pan must be dirty," muttered the good woman in vexation, "and there are two full quarts of milk as good as thrown to the dogs."
"And that's fourpence!" added the voice in the chimney.
After a thorough cleaning the saucepan was once more filled and set on the fire, but with no better success. The milk boiled over again, and was hopelessly spoiled. The housewife shed tears of anger at the waste and cried: "Never before did such a thing befall me since I kept house! Three quarts of new milk burnt for one meal."
"And that 's sixpence!" cried the voice in the chimney. "You did n't save the tinkering after all, mother!"
With that the Hillman himself came tumbling down from the chimney, and went off laughing through the door.
But from then on the saucepan was as good as any other.

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