CHAPTER 30

Pinocchio，instead of becoming a boy，runs away to the Land of Toys with his friend，Lamp-Wick．

Coming at last out of the surprise into which the Fairy's words had thrown him，Pinocchio asked for permission to give out the invitations．

“Indeed，you may invite your friends to tomorrow's party．Only remember to return home before dark．Do you understand？”

“I'll be back in one hour without fail，” answered the Marionette．

“Take care，Pinocchio！Boys give promises very easily，but they as easily forget them．”

“But I am not like those others．When I give my word I keep it．”

“We shall see．In case you do disobey，you will be the one to suffer，not anyone else．”

“Why？”

“Because boys who do not listen to their elders always come to grief．”

“I certainly have，” said Pinocchio，“but from now on，I obey．”

“We shall see if you are telling the truth．”

Without adding another word，the Marionette bade the good Fairy good-by，and singing and dancing，he left the house．

In a little more than an hour，all his friends were invited．Some accepted quickly and gladly．Others had to be coaxed，but when they heard that the toast was to be buttered on both sides，they all ended by accepting the invitation with the words，“We'll come to please you．”

Now it must be known that，among all his friends，Pinocchio had one whom he loved most of all．The boy's real name was Romeo，but everyone called him Lamp-Wick，for he was long and thin and had a woebegone look about him．

Lamp-Wick was the laziest boy in the school and the biggest mischief-maker，but Pinocchio loved him dearly．

That day，he went straight to his friend's house to invite him to the party，but Lamp-Wick was not at home．He went a second time，and again a third，but still without success．

Where could he be？Pinocchio searched here and there and everywhere，and finally discovered him hiding near a farmer's wagon．

“What are you doing there？” asked Pinocchio，running up to him．

“I am waiting for midnight to strike to go—”

“Where？”

“Far，far away！”

“And I have gone to your house three times to look for you！”

“What did you want from me？”

“Haven't you heard the news？Don't you know what good luck is mine？”

“What is it？”

“Tomorrow I end my days as a Marionette and become a boy，like you and all my other friends．”

“May it bring you luck！”

“Shall I see you at my party tomorrow？”

“But I'm telling you that I go tonight．”

“At what time？”

“At midnight．”

“And where are you going？”

“To a real country—the best in the world—a wonderful place！”

“What is it called？”

“It is called the Land of Toys．Why don't you come，too？”

“I？Oh，no！”

“You are making a big mistake，Pinocchio．Believe me，if you don't come，you'll be sorry．Where can you find a place that will agree better with you and me？No schools，no teachers，no books！In that blessed place there is no such thing as study．Here，it is only on Saturdays that we have no school．In the Land of Toys，every day，except Sunday，is a Saturday．Vacation begins on the first of January and ends on the last day of December．That is the place for me！All countries should be like it！How happy we should all be！”

“But how does one spend the day in the Land of Toys？”

“Days are spent in play and enjoyment from morn till night．At night one goes to bed，and next morning，the good times begin all over again．What do you think of it？”

“H'm—！” said Pinocchio，nodding his wooden head，as if to say，“It's the kind of life which would agree with me perfectly．”

“Do you want to go with me，then？Yes or no？You must make up your mind．”

“No，no，and again no！I have promised my kind Fairy to become a good boy，and I want to keep my word．Just see：The sun is setting and I must leave you and run．Good-by and good luck to you！”

“Where are you going in such a hurry？”

“Home．My good Fairy wants me to return home before night．”

“Wait two minutes more．”

“It's too late！”

“Only two minutes．”

“And if the Fairy scolds me？”

“Let her scold．After she gets tired，she will stop，” said Lamp-Wick．

“Are you going alone or with others？”

“Alone？There will be more than a hundred of us！”

“Will you walk？”

“At midnight the wagon passes here that is to take us within the boundaries of that marvelous country．”

“How I wish midnight would strike！”

“Why？”

“To see you all set out together．”

“Stay here a while longer and you will see us！”

“No，no．I want to return home．”

“Wait two more minutes．”

“I have waited too long as it is．The Fairy will be worried．”

“Poor Fairy！Is she afraid the bats will eat you up？”

“Listen，Lamp-Wick，” said the Marionette，“are you really sure that there are no schools in the Land of Toys？”

“Not even the shadow of one．”

“Not even one teacher？”

“Not one．”

“And one does not have to study？”

“Never，never，never！”

“What a great land！” said Pinocchio，feeling his mouth water．“What a beautiful land！I have never been there，but I can well imagine it．”

“Why don't you come，too？”

“It is useless for you to tempt me！I told you I promised my good Fairy to behave myself，and I am going to keep my word．”

“Good-by，then，and remember me to the grammar schools，to the high schools，and even to the colleges if you meet them on the way．”

“Good-by，Lamp-Wick．Have a pleasant trip，enjoy yourself，and remember your friends once in a while．”

With these words，the Marionette started on his way home．Turning once more to his friend，he asked him：

“But are you sure that，in that country，each week is composed of six Saturdays and one Sunday？”

“Very sure！”

“And that vacation begins on the first of January and ends on the thirty-first of December？”

“Very，very sure！”

“What a great country！” repeated Pinocchio，puzzled as to what to do．

Then，in sudden determination，he said hurriedly：

“Good-by for the last time，and good luck．”

“Good-by．”

“How soon will you go？”

“Within two hours．”

“What a pity！If it were only one hour，I might wait for you．”

“And the Fairy？”

“By this time I'm late，and one hour more or less makes very little difference．”

“Poor Pinocchio！And if the Fairy scolds you？”

“Oh，I'll let her scold．After she gets tired，she will stop．”

In the meantime，the night became darker and darker．All at once in the distance a small light flickered．A queer sound could be heard，soft as a little bell，and faint and muffled like the buzz of a far-away mosquito．

“There it is！” cried Lamp-Wick，jumping to his feet．

“What？” whispered Pinocchio．

“The wagon which is coming to get me．For the last time，are you coming or not？”

“But is it really true that in that country boys never have to study？”

“Never，never，never！”

“What a wonderful，beautiful，marvelous country！Oh—h—h！！”

第三十章

匹诺曹没有成为男孩子，而是跟他的朋友灯芯一起跑到了玩具国。

一开始仙女的话使匹诺曹感到吃惊，最后他终于不再吃惊，请求仙女允许他发出邀请。

“当然，你可以邀请你的朋友们来参加明天的聚会，只是要记住天黑前就得回家。明白了吗？”

“我一小时后肯定回来。”木偶回答道。

“当心点儿，匹诺曹！男孩子们总是非常容易给予承诺，但也容易忘记。”

“可是，我和那些人不一样，我说到做到。”

“我们看吧。万一你真的不听话，受苦的会是你自己，而不是别人。”

“为什么？”

“因为不听长辈话的男孩子们总会倒霉。”

“我确实曾倒霉过，”匹诺曹说，“但从现在起，我会听话的。”

“我们要看你说的是不是真话。”

木偶二话不说告别了好心的仙女，又唱又跳离开了家。

过了一小时多一点儿，所有的朋友都受到了邀请。有人爽快地接受了邀请，有人还得哄一下，但当听说有两面涂黄油的烤面包时，他们最后都这样说道：“为了让你高兴，我们一定来。”

现在大家要知道，在所有的朋友中，匹诺曹有一个最喜欢的，名字叫罗密欧，但人人都叫他“灯芯”，因为他又高又瘦，一副愁眉苦脸的样子。

灯芯在学校里是最懒惰、最捣蛋的男孩子，但匹诺曹非常喜欢他。

那天，匹诺曹直接去他这个朋友家邀请他参加宴会，但灯芯不在家。他又去了第二次、第三次，但还是没有见他。

他可能会去哪儿呢？匹诺曹找遍了所有地方，最后发现他藏在一个农夫的马车里。

“你在那儿干什么？”匹诺曹跑到他的身边问道。

“我要等半夜出发去——”

“去哪儿？”

“去很远很远的地方！”

“我已经到你家里找你三次了！”

“你找我干什么？”

“难道你没有听到消息？难道你不知道我交的好运？”

“什么好运？”

“明天我就不再是木偶，要变成像你和所有其他朋友一样的男孩子了。”

“祝你好运！”

“我在明天的聚会上可以见到你吗？”

“可我告诉你，我今天夜里就要走了。”

“几点钟？”

“午夜时分。”

“你要去哪儿？”

“去一个真正的国家——世界上最好的国家——一个奇妙的地方！”

“它叫什么名字？”

“它叫‘玩具国’。你干吗不跟我一起去呢？”

“我？噢，不！”

“那你就要犯一个大错了，匹诺曹。相信我，你要是不去，就会后悔的。你能到哪儿找一个更适合你和我的地方呢？那儿没有学校，没有老师，没有书本！在那个福地，根本没有学习这种东西。在那儿，只有星期六，我们不用上学。在玩具国，除了星期天，每天都是星期六。假期从一月一日开始，十二月最后一天结束。那就是我要待的地方！所有的国家都应该像这样！我们大家会多么开心啊！”

“可是，‘玩具国’里的日子是怎么过的啊？”

“日子在玩乐中度过，从早玩到晚。夜里上床睡觉，第二天早晨又开始玩。你觉得怎么样？”

“嗯——！”匹诺曹点了点头，好像是要说：“这种生活完全适合我。”

“那你想跟我一起去吗？想还是不想？你必须做出决定。”

“不，不，不！我已经答应过好心的仙女，要成为一个好孩子，我要说话算数。请看，太阳就要落下去了，我必须离开你，赶快走。再见，祝你好运。”

“你这么急去哪儿呀？”

“家。我的好仙女要我天黑前回家。”

“再等两分钟吧。”

“太晚了！”

“就两分钟。”

“那要是仙女责备我呢？”

“让她责备吧。她累了，就不责备了。”灯芯说。

“你一个人去还是和别人一起去？”

“一个人？我们有一百多人呢！”

“你们要走路去吗？”

“午夜时分，有辆马车会经过这儿，要带我们到那个神奇的国家去。”

“我是多么希望午夜的钟声敲响！”

“为什么？”

“我想看着你们动身。”

“在这儿再待一会儿，你就会看到的！”

“不，不，我要回家。”

“再等两分钟。”

“其实我已经待得太久了，仙女会担心的。”

“可怜的仙女！她是怕蝙蝠会吃了你吗？”

“听着，灯芯，”匹诺曹又说道，“你真的肯定玩具国没有学校吗？”

“连一个学校的影子也没有。”

“连一个老师也没有吗？”

“一个也没有。”

“也不必学习吗？”

“永远，永远，永远不必！”

“多么伟大的国家！”匹诺曹说，垂涎欲滴，“多么美丽的国家啊！我从来没有到过那儿，但我完全可以想象到。”

“那你干吗不也去呢？”

“你引诱我也没用！我告诉过你，我答应过好心的仙女要规规矩矩，我要说话算数。”

“那就再见吧，代我向初级中学、高级中学甚至大学的学生们问好，要是你在路上碰见他们的话。”

“再见，灯芯，一路顺风，祝你过得愉快，偶尔要记起你的朋友们哟。”

说完，木偶就要踏上回家的路。他又一次转向朋友，问道：“你确信那个国家一个星期是由六个星期六和一个星期天组成的吗？”

“完全确信！”

“那假期都是一月一日开始，十二月最后一天结束吗？”

“非常非常确信！”

“多么伟大的国家啊！”匹诺曹又说了一遍，不知道该怎么做。随后，他突然下定决心，匆匆说道：“最后一次再见，祝你好运。”

“再见。”

“你们多久走？”

“不出两个小时。”

“多么可惜啊！要是只有一个小时，我还可以等你。”

“那仙女呢？”

“现在我已经晚了，多一个小时少一个小时没有什么两样。”

“可怜的匹诺曹！要是仙女责备你呢？”

“噢，我让她责备好了。她累了之后就不责备了。”

这时，天越来越黑了。突然，远处一盏小灯闪烁起来。这时传来了一种奇怪的声音，像小铃铛一样轻柔，又像一只遥远的蚊子发出的微弱的嗡嗡声。

“来了！”灯芯跳起来叫道。

“什么？”匹诺曹低声问道。

“是来接我的马车。最后再问一次，你去不去？”

“那个国家的男孩子永远不必学习，的确是真的吗？”

“永远，永远，永远不必！”

“多么奇妙、美丽、奇特的国家呀！噢——！”