A shepherd's dog had a master who took no care of him, but often let him suffer the greatest hunger. At last he could bear it no longer; so he took to his heels, and off he ran in a very sad and sorrowful mood. On the road he met a sparrow that said to him, "Why are you so sad, my friend?" - "Because," said the dog, "I am very very hungry, and have nothing to eat." - "If that be all," answered the sparrow, "come with me into the next town, and I will soon find you plenty of food." So on they went together into the town: and as they passed by a butcher's shop, the sparrow said to the dog, "Stand there a little while till I peck you down a piece of meat." So the sparrow perched upon the shelf: and having first looked carefully about her to see if anyone was watching her, she pecked and scratched at a steak that lay upon the edge of the shelf, till at last down it fell. Then the dog snapped it up, and scrambled² away with it into a corner, where he soon ate it all up. "Well," said the sparrow, "you shall have some more if you will; so come with me to the next shop, and I will peck you down another steak." When the dog had eaten this too, the sparrow said to him, "Well, my good friend, have you had enough now?" - "I have had plenty of meat," answered he, "but I should like to have a piece of bread to eat after it." - "Come with me then," said the sparrow, "and you shall soon have that too." So she took him to a baker's shop, and pecked at two rolls that lay in the window, till they fell down: and as the dog still wished for more, she took him to another shop and pecked down some more for him. When that was eaten, the sparrow asked him whether he had had enough now. "Yes," said he; "and now let us take a walk a little way out of the town."

So they both went out upon the high road; but as the weather was warm, they had not gone far before the dog said, "I am very much tired, I should like to take a nap." - "Very well," answered the sparrow, "do so, and in the meantime I will perch¹ upon that bush." So the dog stretched himself out on the road, and fell fast asleep. Whilst he slept, there came by a carter with a cart drawn³ by three horses, and loaded with two casks of wine. The sparrow, seeing that the carter did not turn out of the way, but would go on in the track in which the dog lay, so as to drive over him, called out, "Stop! Stop! Mr Carter, or it shall be the worse for you." But the carter, grumbling⁴ to himself, "You make it the worse for me, indeed! What can you do?" cracked his whip, and drove his cart over the poor dog, so that the wheels crushed him to death. "There," cried the sparrow, "thou cruel villain⁵, thou hast killed my friend the dog. Now mind what I say. This deed of thine shall cost thee all thou art worth." - "Do your worst, and welcome," said the brute⁶, "what harm can you do me?" and passed on. But the sparrow crept under the tilt⁷ of the cart, and pecked at the bung of one of the casks till she loosened it; and than all the wine ran out, without the carter seeing it. At last he looked round, and saw that the cart was dripping, and the cask quite empty. "What an unlucky wretch⁸ I am!" cried he. "Not wretch enough yet!" said the sparrow, as she alighted upon the head of one of the horses, and pecked at him till he reared up and kicked. When the carter saw this, he drew out his hatchet⁹ and aimed a blow at the sparrow, meaning to kill her; but she flew away, and the blow fell upon the poor horse's head with such force, that he fell down dead. "Unlucky wretch that I am!" cried he. "Not wretch enough yet!" said the sparrow. And as the carter went on with the other two horses, she again crept under the tilt of the cart, and pecked out the bung of the second cask, so that all the wine ran out. When the carter saw this, he again cried out, "Miserable¹⁰ wretch that I am!" But the sparrow answered, "Not wretch enough yet!" and perched on the head of the second horse, and pecked at him too. The carter ran up and struck at her again with his hatchet; but away she flew, and the blow fell upon the second horse and killed him on the spot. "Unlucky wretch that I am!" said he. "Not wretch enough yet!" said the sparrow; and perching upon the third horse, she began to peck him too. The carter was mad with fury; and without looking about him, or caring what he was about, struck again at the sparrow; but killed his third horse as he done the other two. "Alas¹¹! miserable wretch that I am!" cried he. "Not wretch enough yet!" answered the sparrow as she flew away; "now will I plague and punish thee at thy own house."

The carter was forced at last to leave his cart behind him, and to go home overflowing¹² with rage and vexation. "Alas!" said he to his wife, "what ill luck has befallen me! my wine is all spilt, and my horses all three dead." - "Alas! husband," replied she, "and a wicked bird has come into the house, and has brought with her all the birds in the world, I am sure, and they have fallen upon our corn in the loft¹³, and are eating it up at such a rate!" Away ran the husband upstairs, and saw thousands of birds sitting upon the floor eating up his corn, with the sparrow in the midst of them. "Unlucky wretch that I am!" cried the carter; for he saw that the corn was almost all gone. "Not wretch enough yet!" said the sparrow; "thy cruelty shall cost thee they life yet!" and away she flew.

The carter seeing that he had thus lost all that he had, went down into his kitchen; and was still not sorry for what he had done, but sat himself angrily and sulkily in the chimney corner. But the sparrow sat on the outside of the window, and cried "Carter! Thy cruelty shall cost thee thy life!" With that he jumped up in a rage, seized his hatchet, and threw it at the sparrow; but it missed her, and only broke the window. The sparrow now hopped¹⁴ in, perched upon the window- seat, and cried, "Carter! It shall cost thee thy life!" Then he became mad and blind with rage, and struck the window-seat with such force that he cleft¹⁵ it in two: and as the sparrow flew from place to place, the carter and his wife were so furious, that they broke all their furniture, glasses, chairs, benches, the table, and at last the walls, without touching¹⁶ the bird at all. In the end, however, they caught her: and the wife said, "Shall I kill her at once?" - "No," cried he, "that is letting her off too easily: she shall die a much more cruel death; I will eat her." But the sparrow began to flutter about, and stretch out her neck and cried, "Carter! it shall cost thee thy life yet!" With that he could wait no longer: so he gave his wife the hatchet, and cried, "Wife, strike at the bird and kill her in my hand." And the wife struck; but she missed her aim, and hit her husband on the head so that he fell down dead, and the sparrow flew quietly home to her nest.

一只牧羊狗的主人对它一点都不关心，经常让狗挨饿，它无法再忍受下去了，便怀着极为伤感的心情，逃了出去。它走在路上，遇到了一只麻雀，麻雀开口问道："我的好朋友，你为什么这么悲哀呢？"狗回答道："我饿得发昏，又没有东西吃。"麻雀听了说道："要是这样的话，就随我进城去。我会给你找好多好吃的东西的。"于是它们一起进了城。当经过一家肉店时，麻雀对狗说："你在这儿等一会，我去为你啄一块肉下来。"说着，麻雀飞落到案板上，它很仔细地看了看周围是否有人注意到它，接着啄住一块放在案板边上的肉又拉又扯，终于把肉拉了下来。狗马上冲上去衔住肉跑进一个角落里，很快就把肉吃完了。麻雀说："嗨，如果你还想吃的话，就跟着我到另一个肉店去，我再给你啄一块肉下来吃。"等狗吃完第二块肉之后，麻雀说道："怎么样？我的好朋友，你吃饱了吗？"狗回答说："肉是吃得不少了，但我还想吃面包。""那就跟我来吧！"麻雀说道，"你很快就有吃的。"麻雀带着狗到了面包店。它把橱窗里的二个面包啄了一会儿，将它们拖了出来。狗吃了以后还想多吃一点，麻雀便带着狗又到了另一间面包店，它为狗啄下了更多的面包。狗吃完了以后，麻雀问它是否吃饱了。狗拍了拍肚子，很满足地说道："吃饱了，我们现在走小路出城去吧。"

它们两个走出城来到马路上，因为天气比较暖和，风吹过来暖洋洋的，狗又吃得饱饱的，它就觉得昏昏欲睡，所以没走多远，就说："我太困了，很想打个盹。"麻雀很理解它，回答说："好的，你就睡吧。我到那树枝上息着等你。"狗马上舒展身子躺在路上，很快就睡熟了。

狗正躺着睡觉，一个车夫赶着一辆由三匹马拉着的马车急驰过来了，马车上装着两桶酒。麻雀见那车夫并没有拨转缰绳要避开狗的样子，而是直接朝狗驰过去，眼看快要压着狗了，便大叫道："停车！停车！车夫先生，否则你会交上厄运的。"但车夫却嘟哝着自言自语地说道："你能让我交上厄运！我倒要看看你怎样让我交上厄运！"说完"叭叭"挥动马鞭，竟赶着马车从那可怜的狗身上辗了过去。看着狗被车轮辗死了，麻雀哭着喊道："你这个残忍的家伙，你杀死了我的狗朋友，你记着我说的话，你将会为你的所作所为付出全部代价。"听了这话，那蛮横的车夫说道："就凭你这个样子吗？来，来，来！我倒想看你能对我有什么不利！"说罢驾车而去。

麻雀等车夫走过去后，愤怒地飞上去，落在马车后部，钻到车篷下面，使劲地啄一个酒桶的塞子，直到把它啄松掉下来。塞子一落，酒马上流了出来，车夫一点也没有觉察到。等他转过头向车后了望时，才发现马车嘀嘀哒哒不停地滴着酒。他停车一看，酒桶已经空了一个，叫道："呀！我是一个多么不幸的人啊！"麻雀说道："你这个坏家伙，这还不够呢！"它飞上前落在一匹马的头上，使劲地啄起马来，马痛得抬起两条前腿，不停地乱踢。车夫看见这情形，抽出一柄小斧子，对准麻雀就是一斧子，想劈死这只麻雀，但它却飞开了。这一来，车夫使劲劈出的一斧子，就落在了那匹可怜的马的头上，马立即倒在地上死了，车夫一见叫道："呀！我真是一个不幸的人！"麻雀说道："你这个坏家伙，这还不够呢！"

等车夫将另两匹马重新套好，麻雀又飞落在马车后面，钻进车篷下面，啄开了另一个酒桶的塞子，让所有的酒都流光了。车夫发现后，又叫起来："呀！我是一个多么可怜的人啊！"但麻雀却回答道："你这个坏家伙，这还不够呢！"说完飞到第二匹马的头上，对那匹马又猛啄起来。车夫跳上前来，对着麻雀又是一斧子，麻雀又飞开了。这一斧劈在了第二匹马的头上，马倒在地上又死了。他叫道："我是一个多么不幸的人啊！"麻雀应声道："你这坏家伙，这还不够呢。"说完又落到第三匹马的头上啄了起来。车夫狂怒之下，既没有看仔细，也没考虑后果，发疯似地向麻雀劈去，第三匹马又被他劈死了。"哎呀！"他大叫道，"我是一个多么可怜的人啊！"麻雀回答说："你这坏家伙，这还不够呢！"飞走的时候它又说："我现在要闹得你全家都不得安宁。我还要惩罚你本人。"

车夫最后被迫丢下了马车，愤恨、恼怒而又无可奈何地回到了家，进门就对他妻子叫道："哎--，我今天是多么的倒霉，酒漏完了，三匹马都死了。"他妻子一见他也嚷道："哎呀，老公！一只满怀恶意的鸟飞到我家来，把世上所有的鸟都领来了。它们飞到我们阁楼的谷仓里，正大肆啄食我们的粮食呢！"丈夫急忙冲上阁楼，看见成千上万只鸟在楼上叽叽喳喳地吃着小麦，那只麻雀正站在鸟群中间。车夫看着快要吃完的谷仓，叫道："我是一个多不幸的人啊！"麻雀说道："这还不够呢，你这残忍的坏家伙，我还要你的命呢！"说完就飞走了。

车夫看到自己的家损失成这样子，他愤怒地冲下楼跑进厨房，坐在烟囱角落里阴沉着脸想着计策，他仍然没有就自己的行为进行自省。这时，那麻雀站在窗户的外边喊道："车夫，你这残忍的家伙，我要你的命呢！"车夫愤怒地跳起来，抓起一把锄头，对着麻雀扔了过去。麻雀没打着，却把窗子打破了。麻雀正希望他这样，所以它又飞落在窗台上叫道："车夫，我要你的命！"这一来，他愤怒到了极点，完全丧失了理智，对着窗台又用力打去，一下子将窗台砸成了两块。麻雀到处飞来飞去，车夫和他妻子发狂似的追着它打来打去，将屋子里的所有家具、玻璃、镜子、椅子、凳子、桌子都砸烂了。最后连墙壁也砸坏了，可连麻雀的毛都没有碰着。然而他们最终还是抓住了麻雀。

妻子说："我马上把它杀死吗？"丈夫说："不，不能这么轻易地让它死去，要让它死得更惨些，我要把它吃下去。"麻雀拚命地拍打着翅膀，伸着脖子叫道："车夫，我将要你的命呢！"车夫再也等不及了，把锄头递给他妻子叫道："老婆，对着这鸟砍，把它砍死在我的手里。"妻子使劲一锄砍去，但气愤之下她没有砍着麻雀，却砍在了自己丈夫的头上，丈夫倒下去死了。麻雀趁机悄悄地飞走，回到自己的巢穴里去了。