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快乐王子因为看到人间疾苦而伤心哭泣。燕子为他做信使，将他剑上的红宝石带给一位裁缝妈妈，她的儿子高烧不退却只能喝河水。这次燕子又会帮助王子干什么呢？
When day broke he flew down to the river and had a bath. "What a remarkable phenomenon," said the Professor of Ornithology（鸟类学） as he was passing over the bridge.
"A swallow in winter!" And he wrote a long letter about it to the local newspaper. Every one quoted it, it was full of so many words that they could not understand.
‘To-night I go to Egypt,’ said the Swallow, and he was in high spirits at the prospect. He visited all the public monuments and sat a long time on top of the church steeple.
Wherever he went the Sparrows chirruped, and said to each other, ‘What a distinguished stranger!’ so he enjoyed himself very much.
But his happiness was tinged with regret that he should have to leave his friend, the Happy Prince. What would he do without him?
The Swallow flew up to the Happy Prince to tell him goodbye, for he was about to leave for a place where the weather is warmer.
"Swallow, Swallow, little Swallow," said the Prince, "will you not stay with me one night longer?"
"I am waited for in Egypt," answered the Swallow. "To-morrow my friends will fly up to the second great waterfall. The river-horse sits there among the bulrushes（灯心草）, and on a great granite throne sits the God Memnon（门农神）.
All night long he watches the stars, and when the morning star shines he utters（发出声音） one cry of joy, and then he is silent.
At noon the yellow lions come down to the water's edge to drink. They have eyes like green beryl stones（绿玉）, and their roar is louder than the roar of the waterfall.
"Swallow, Swallow, little Swallow," said the Prince, "far away across the city I see a young man in an attic（阁楼）. He is leaning over a desk covered with papers, and in a glass by his side there is a bunch of withered violets（紫罗兰）.
His hair is brown and crisp, and his lips are red as a pomegranate（石榴）, and he has large and dreamy eyes. He is trying to finish a play for the Director of the Theatre, but he is too cold to write any more. There is no fire in the grate（火炉）, and hunger has made him faint."
"I will wait with you one night longer," said the Swallow, who really had a good heart. "Shall I take him another ruby?"
"Alas! I have no ruby now," said the Prince; "my eyes are all that I have left. They are made of rare sapphires, which were brought out of India a thousand years ago. Pluck out one of them and take it to him. He will sell it to the jeweller, and buy food and firewood, and finish his play."
"Dear Prince," said the Swallow, "I cannot do that"; and he began to weep.
"Swallow, Swallow, little Swallow," said the Prince, "do as I command you."
So the Swallow plucked out the Prince's eye, and flew away to the student's garret（阁楼）. The young man had his head buried in his hands, so he did not hear the flutter of the bird's wings, and when he looked up he found the beautiful sapphire lying on the withered violets.
"I am beginning to be appreciated," he cried; "this is from some great admirer. Now I can finish my play," and he looked quite happy.
The Swallow flew back to the Happy Prince.
"I am come to bid you good-bye," he cried.
"Swallow, Swallow, little Swallow," said the Prince, "will you not stay with me one night longer?"
"It is winter," answered the Swallow, "and the chill snow will soon be here. In Egypt the sun is warm on the green palm-trees（棕搁树）, and the crocodiles（鳄鱼） lie in the mud and look lazily about them.
My companions are building a nest in the Temple of Baalbec（巴尔贝克古城）, and the pink and white doves are watching them, and cooing to each other.
Dear Prince, I must leave you, but I will never forget you, and next spring I will bring you back two beautiful jewels in place of those you have given away. The ruby shall be redder than a red rose, and the sapphire shall be as blue as the great sea."
"In the square below," said the Happy Prince, "there stands a little girl selling matches. She has let her matches fall in the gutter, and they are all spoiled.
Her father will beat her if she does not bring home some money, and she is crying. She has no shoes or stockings, and her little head is bare. Pluck out my other eye, and give it to her, and her father will not beat her."
"I will stay with you one night longer," said the Swallow, "but I cannot pluck out your eye. You would be quite blind then."
"Swallow, Swallow, little Swallow," said the Prince, "do as I command you."
So he plucked out the Prince's other eye, and darted（急冲） down with it. He swooped past the match-girl, and slipped the jewel into the palm of her hand. "What a lovely bit of glass," cried the little girl; and she ran home, laughing.
Then the Swallow came back to the Prince. "You are quite blind now," he said, "so I will stay with you always."
"No, little Swallow," said the Happy Prince, "you must go away to Egypt."
"I will stay with you always," said the Swallow, and he slept at the Prince's feet.
（955 words）
今日短语
1. in high spirits 情绪高昂
2. pluck out 拔出
3. look up 抬头
4. in place 在合适的位置
5. give away 赠送
6. bring back 拿回来
7. swoop past 猛飞过
8.stay with sb和某人待在一起
9. go away to 去往
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