{"id":113653,"date":"2006-05-03T13:27:48","date_gmt":"2006-05-03T13:27:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.filastrocche.it\/contenuti\/the-dreadful-story-of-pauline-and-the-matches\/"},"modified":"2019-04-01T13:29:39","modified_gmt":"2019-04-01T11:29:39","slug":"the-dreadful-story-of-pauline-and-the-matches","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.filastrocche.it\/contenuti\/the-dreadful-story-of-pauline-and-the-matches\/","title":{"rendered":"The Dreadful Story of Pauline and the Matches"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"The<\/a><\/p>\n

Let’s read together: The Dreadful Story of Pauline and the Matches<\/strong> by Heinrich Hoffmann<\/h2>\n

In the translation of Mark Twain<\/em><\/p>\n

Mamma and Nurse went out one day,
\nAnd left Pauline alone at play;
\nAround the room she gayly sprung,
\nClapp’d her hands, and danced, and sung.,
\nNow, on the table close at hand,
\nA box of matches chanced to stand,
\nAnd kind Mamma and Nurse had told her,
\nThat if she touched them they would scold her;
\nBut Pauline said, “Oh, what a pity!
\nFor, when they burn, it is so pretty;
\nThey crackle so, and spit, and flame;
\nAnd Mamma often burns the same.
\nI’ll just light a match or two
\nAs I have often seen my mother do.”<\/p>\n

When Minz and Maunz, the pussy-cats, heard this
\nThey held up their paws and began to hiss. –
\n“Meow!!” they said, “me-ow, me-o!
\nYou’ll burn to death, if you do so,
\nYour parents have forbidden you, you know.”<\/p>\n

But Pauline would not take advice,
\nShe lit a match, it was so nice!
\nIt crackled so, it burned so clear,-
\nExactly like the picture here.
\nShe jumped for joy and ran about,
\nAnd was too pleased to put it out.<\/p>\n

When Minz and Maunz, the little cats, saw this,
\nThey said, “Oh, naughty, naughty Miss!””
\nAnd stretched their claws,
\nAnd raised their paws;
\n“Tis very, very wrong, you know;
\nMe-ow, me-o, me-ow, me-o!
\nYou will be burnt if you do so,
\nour mother has forbidden you, you know. ”<\/p>\n

Now see! oh! see, what a dreadful thing
\nThe fire has caught her apron-string;
\nHer apron burns, her arms, her hair;
\nShe burns all over, everywhere.<\/p>\n

Then how the pussy-cats did mew
\nWhat else, poor pussies, could they do?
\nThey screamed for help, ‘twas all in vain,
\nI So then, they said, “We’ll scream again.
\nMake haste, make haste! me-ow! me-o!
\nShe’ll burn to death,- we told her so.”<\/p>\n

So she was burnt with all her clothes,
\nAnd arms and hands, and eyes and nose;
\nTill she had nothing more to lose
\nExcept her little scarlet shoes;
\nAnd nothing else but these was found
\nAmong her ashes on the ground.<\/p>\n

And when hen the good cats sat beside
\nThe smoking ashes, how they cried!
\n“Me-ow me-o! ! Me-ow, me-oo! !
\nWhat will Mamma and Nursy do?”
\nTheir tears ran down their cheeks so fast.
\nThey made a little pond at last.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Dreadful<\/a><\/p>\n

Other translation<\/em><\/p>\n

It almost makes me cry to tell
\nWhat foolish Harriet befell.
\nMamma and Nurse went out one day
\nAnd left her all alone at play.
\nNow, on the table close at hand,
\nA box of matches chanced to stand;
\nAnd kind Mamma and Nurse had told her,
\nThat, if she touched them, they would scold her.
\nBut Harriet said: “Oh, what a pity!
\nFor, when they burn, it is so pretty;
\nThey crackle so, and spit, and flame:
\nMamma, too, often does the same.”<\/p>\n

The pussy-cats heard this,
\nAnd they began to hiss,
\nAnd stretch their claws,
\nAnd raise their paws;
\n“Me-ow,” they said, “me-ow, me-o,
\nYou’ll burn to death, if you do so.”<\/p>\n

But Harriet would not take advice:
\nShe lit a match, it was so nice!
\nIt crackled so, it burned so clear\u2014
\nExactly like the picture here.
\nShe jumped for joy and ran about
\nAnd was too pleased to put it out.<\/p>\n

The Pussy-cats saw this
\nAnd said: “Oh, naughty, naughty Miss!”
\nAnd stretched their claws,
\nAnd raised their paws:
\n“‘Tis very, very wrong, you know,
\nMe-ow, me-o, me-ow, me-o,
\nYou will be burnt, if you do so.”<\/p>\n

And see! oh, what dreadful thing!
\nThe fire has caught her apron-string;
\nHer apron burns, her arms, her hair\u2014
\nShe burns all over everywhere.<\/p>\n

Then how the pussy-cats did mew\u2014
\nWhat else, poor pussies, could they do?
\nThey screamed for help, ‘twas all in vain!
\nSo then they said: “We’ll scream again;
\nMake haste, make haste, me-ow, me-o,
\nShe’ll burn to death; we told her so.”<\/p>\n

So she was burnt, with all her clothes,
\nAnd arms, and hands, and eyes, and nose;
\nTill she had nothing more to lose
\nExcept her little scarlet shoes;
\nAnd nothing else but these was found
\nAmong her ashes on the ground.<\/p>\n

And when the good cats sat beside
\nThe smoking ashes, how they cried!
\n“Me-ow, me-oo, me-ow, me-oo,
\nWhat will Mamma and Nursey do?”
\nTheir tears ran down their cheeks so fast,
\nThey made a little pond at last.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

To read The Dreadful Story of Pauline and the Matches<\/strong> in other languages<\/h3>\n