黑骏马 Chapter 01

[00:00:00.00]Chapter One
[00:00:01.90]My First Home
[00:00:05.50]I live in a big meadow with a pond and trees around it.
[00:00:10.90]During the day I run in the meadow with my mother 
[00:00:14.80]and at night I sleep next to her.
[00:00:18.40]There are six other colts in the meadow.
[00:00:21.60]I run with them too and have great fun.
[00:00:26.00]But sometimes they kick and bite me.
[00:00:29.80]My mother always says, 'These colts are good but they're not polite.
[00:00:36.90]You come from a family of famous horses.
[00:00:41.40]You must always be good and gentle, and never bite or kick.'
[00:00:49.20]My mother's name is Duchess and she is old and wise.
[00:00:54.90]She is our master's favourite horse 
[00:00:57.90]and she always takes him to town in a small carriage.
[00:01:03.00]Our master is a kind man.
[00:01:06.20]He gives us a lot of oats, a big carrot 
[00:01:10.20]and a warm place to live.
[00:01:13.30]He always says nice things to us.
[00:01:16.80]Sometimes he gives us some sugar.
[00:01:20.30]We all love him.
[00:01:23.30]One day I see a lot of dogs running in another green meadow and they are barking loudly.
[00:01:32.10]'What's happening, mother?' I ask.
[00:01:35.30]'The dogs are running after a hare,' she says. 'There is a hunt.'
[00:01:41.70]The dogs run fast and the hare does, too.
[00:01:46.30]There is a lot of noise.
[00:01:48.90]Finally the dogs catch the poor hare and kill it.
[00:01:54.50]Then another sad thing happens.
[00:01:58.30]Two horses and two men fall to the ground.
[00:02:03.20]One man gets up but the other does not.
[00:02:08.40]The dogs are silent now, 
[00:02:10.90]and everyone is looking at the man and the two horses.
[00:02:15.50]'It's young George Gordon, the landowner's son,' says mother sadly.
[00:02:22.50]The poor young man is dead.'
[00:02:26.40]Only one horse gets up but the other cannot because his leg is broken.
[00:02:33.20]Someone runs to the master's house and gets a gun.
[00:02:38.20]There is a loud shot and the horse is dead.
[00:02:44.90]I am four years old now and I am a handsome colt.
[00:02:50.10]I have a nice black coat and a white star on my forehead.
[00:02:56.40]One day the landowner, Mr Gordon, comes to look at me.
[00:03:01.80]He looks at my eyes, my teeth and my legs.
[00:03:07.80]'When you break him in, I want to see him,' says Mr Gordon.
[00:03:13.90]'Very well, Mr Gordon,' says my master.
[00:03:18.00]He smiles at me and says, 'Tomorrow I must break you in.
[00:03:24.20]I must teach you to wear a saddle and bridle and carry a person on your back.
[00:03:32.50]Then I must teach you to pull a carriage.'
[00:03:38.10]'Tomorrow is an important day,' says mother quietly.
[00:03:44.40]'Remember, you must always listen to your master, and never bite or kick.
[00:03:52.90]And you must never jump when you're happy or stop when you're tired.
[00:03:59.60]Always be a good horse.' 
[00:04:04.30]The next day my master comes and talks to me quietly.
[00:04:09.50]Then he gently puts the bit into my mouth and the bridle on my face.
[00:04:17.00]The bit hurts my mouth and feels terrible, 
[00:04:21.50]but my mother and other adult horses wear it too.
[00:04:27.00]Then my master puts a saddle on my back and says kind words to me.
[00:04:34.20]He slowly gets on the saddle and rides me around the meadow.
[00:04:40.50]I am happy when I carry him.
[00:04:44.30]After some time he takes me to the blacksmith.
[00:04:48.80]The blacksmith puts on horseshoes.
[00:04:52.50]They are very heavy metal shoes and I do not like them.
[00:04:58.60]'Today were going to visit my friend Simon,' my master says.
[00:05:05.10]At Simon's house I stay in a meadow with cows and sheep.
[00:05:10.80]Suddenly a big train goes by and it makes a lot of noise and smoke.
[00:05:18.30]I run to the other side of the meadow because I am afraid, 
[00:05:23.50]but the cows and sheep do not move.
[00:05:28.40]A lot of trains go by, 
[00:05:30.70]but they do not hurt me so I am not afraid of them.
[00:05:36.30]Sometimes I pull the carriage with my mother 
[00:05:40.20]and she teaches me a lot of things.
[00:05:44.20]'There are many kinds of masters,' she says.
[00:05:49.20]Some are good, but others are bad and cruel '.
[00:05:55.00]You must always listen to them, and remember the good name of your family.'
[00:06:03.10]In May, one of Mr Gordon's men comes and takes me away.
[00:06:08.90]My master says, 'Goodbye, my friend.
[00:06:13.40]Be a good horse and always do your best.' 
[00:06:18.50]I cannot say goodbye, so I put my nose in his hand.
[00:06:25.20]My new home at Mr Gordon's is lovely.
[00:06:29.50]There is a big stable and have a comfortable stall.
[00:06:35.90]There is another horse in the next stall.
[00:06:40.10]'Hello, what's your name?' I ask.
[00:06:44.10]My name is Merrylegs,' says the horse.
[00:06:49.30]'I carry the young ladies on my back.
[00:06:53.40]Are you my new neighbour?'
[00:06:55.80]'Yes, I am.'
[00:06:57.80]'Do you bite?' asks Merrylegs.
[00:07:02.40]'No, I don't,' I answer.
[00:07:05.70]'I only bite grass.'
[00:07:08.60]Oh, good, because the horse in the other stall sometimes bites,' says Merrylegs.
[00:07:17.00]'She's a brown horse and her name is Ginger.'