At one moment it was so pitch dark that she could not see a single object, but a flash of lightning revealed the whole scene; she could see every one who had been on board excepting the prince; when the ship parted, she had seen him sink into the deep waves, and she was glad, for she thought he would now be with her; and then she remembered that human beings could not live in the water, so that when he got down to her father's palace he would be quite dead.

天空馬上變得漆黑，她什么也看不見。不過當(dāng)閃電掣起來的時候，天空又顯得非常明亮，使她可以看出船上的每一個人?，F(xiàn)在每個人在盡量為自己尋找生路。她特別注意那位王子。當(dāng)這艘船裂開、向海的深處下沉的時候，她看到了他。她馬上變得非常高興起來，因為他現(xiàn)在要落到她這兒來了?？墒撬钟浧鹑祟愂遣荒苌钤谒锏模浅闪怂廊?，是不能進入她父親的官殿的。

But he must not die. So she swam about among the beams and planks which strewed the surface of the sea, forgetting that they could crush her to pieces. Then she dived deeply under the dark waters, rising and falling with the waves, till at length she managed to reach the young prince, who was fast losing the power of swimming in that stormy sea. His limbs were failing him, his beautiful eyes were closed, and he would have died had not the little mermaid come to his assistance. She held his head above the water, and let the waves drift them where they would.

不成，決不能讓他死去！所以她在那些漂著的船梁和木板之間游過去，一點也沒有想到它們可能把她砸死。她深深地沉入水里，接著又在浪濤中高高地浮出來，最后她終于到達了那王子的身邊，在這狂暴的海里，他決沒有力量再浮起來。他的手臂和腿開始支持不住了。他美麗的眼睛已經(jīng)閉起來了。要不是小人魚及時趕來，他一定是會淹死的。她把他的頭托出水面，讓浪濤載著她跟他一起隨便漂流到什么地方去。

In the morning the storm had ceased; but of the ship not a single fragment could be seen. The sun rose up red and glowing from the water, and its beams brought back the hue of health to the prince's cheeks; but his eyes remained closed. The mermaid kissed his high, smooth forehead, and stroked back his wet hair; he seemed to her like the marble statue in her little garden, and she kissed him again, and wished that he might live.

天明時分，風(fēng)暴已經(jīng)過去了。那條船連一塊碎片也沒有。鮮紅的太陽升起來了，在水上光耀地照著。它似乎在這位王子的臉上注入了生命。不過他的眼睛仍然是閉著的。小人魚把他清秀的高額吻了一下，把他透濕的長發(fā)理向腦后。她覺得他的樣子很像她在海底小花園里的那尊大理石像。她又吻了他一下，希望他能蘇醒過來。

Presently they came in sight of land; she saw lofty blue mountains, on which the white snow rested as if a flock of swans were lying upon them. Near the coast were beautiful green forests, and close by stood a large building, whether a church or a convent she could not tell. Orange and citron trees grew in the garden, and before the door stood lofty palms. The sea here formed a little bay, in which the water was quite still, but very deep; so she swam with the handsome prince to the beach, which was covered with fine, white sand, and there she laid him in the warm sunshine, taking care to raise his head higher than his body.

現(xiàn)在她看見她前面展開一片陸地和一群蔚藍色的高山，山頂上閃耀著的白雪看起來像睡著的天鵝。沿著海岸是一片美麗的綠色樹林，林子前面有一個教堂或是修道院——她不知道究竟叫做什么，反正總是一個建筑物罷了。它的花園里長著一些檸檬和橘子樹，門前立著很高的棕櫚。海在這兒形成一個小灣。水是非常平靜的，但是從這兒一直到那積有許多細砂的石崖附近，都是很深的。她托著這位美麗的王子向那兒游去。她把他放到沙上，非常仔細地使他的頭高高地擱在溫暖的太陽光里。

Then bells sounded in the large white building, and a number of young girls came into the garden. The little mermaid swam out farther from the shore and placed herself between some high rocks that rose out of the water; then she covered her head and neck with the foam of the sea so that her little face might not be seen, and watched to see what would become of the poor prince.

鐘聲從那幢雄偉的白色建筑物中響起來了，有許多年輕女子穿過花園走出來。小人魚遠遠地向海里游去，游到冒在海面上的幾座大石頭的后面。她用許多海水的泡沫蓋住了她的頭發(fā)和胸脯，好使得誰也看不見她小小的面孔。她在這兒凝望著，看有誰會來到這個可憐的王子身邊。

She did not wait long before she saw a young girl approach the spot where he lay. She seemed frightened at first, but only for a moment; then she fetched a number of people, and the mermaid saw that the prince came to life again, and smiled upon those who stood round him. But to her he sent no smile; he knew not that she had saved him. This made her very unhappy, and when he was led away into the great building, she dived down sorrowfully into the water, and returned to her father's castle.

不一會兒，一個年輕的女子走過來了。她似乎非常吃驚，不過時間不久，于是她找了許多人來。小人魚看到王子漸漸地蘇醒過來了，并且向周圍的人發(fā)出微笑?？墒撬麤]有對她作出微笑的表情：當(dāng)然，他一點也不知道救他的人就是她。她感到非常難過。因此當(dāng)他被抬進那幢高大的房子里去的時候，她悲傷地跳進海里，回到她父親的宮殿里去。

She had always been silent and thoughtful, and now she was more so than ever. Her sisters asked her what she had seen during her first visit to the surface of the water; but she would tell them nothing.

她一直就是一個沉靜和深思的孩子，現(xiàn)在她變得更是這樣了。她的姐姐們都問她，她第一次升到海面上去究竟看到了一些什么東西，但是她什么也說不出來。