English Original
Once upon a time, a forester went into the woods to hunt. He heard a sound like a child crying and followed it to a tall tree. At the top sat a little child. The child's mother had fallen asleep under the tree, and a bird of prey had taken the child from her arms and placed him high in the branches.
The forester climbed the tree, brought the child down, and decided to take him home to raise with his own daughter, Lenchen. The foundling was named Foundling-Bird because a bird had carried him away. The two children grew up together and loved each other dearly; they were sad whenever apart.
The forester had an old cook. One evening, Lenchen saw the cook fetching many buckets of water. When asked why, the cook made Lenchen promise secrecy, then revealed her plan: the next morning, while the forester was hunting, she would boil water and throw Foundling-Bird into the kettle to cook him.
Lenchen warned Foundling-Bird, and they vowed never to leave each other. They quickly dressed and ran away together.
When the cook went to get Foundling-Bird, she found the children gone. Frightened, she sent three servants after them. Seeing the servants approach, Lenchen told Foundling-Bird, "Never leave me, and I will never leave you." He agreed, "Never, ever." Lenchen then said, "You, turn into a rosebush, and I to a rose on it." When the servants arrived, they saw only a rosebush with a single rose and returned empty-handed.
The cook scolded them, saying they should have cut the bush and taken the rose. They went out again. The children saw them coming and repeated their vow. This time, Lenchen said, "You, turn into a church, and I to the chandelier in it." The servants found only a church with a chandelier and went back.
The cook, furious, asked why they didn't destroy the church and bring the chandelier. She then went after the children herself, with the three servants.
Seeing them approach, the children vowed once more. Lenchen said, "Turn into a pond, and I to a duck upon it." When the cook reached the pond, she leaned over to drink it up. The duck swam quickly, grabbed her head with its beak, and pulled her into the water, where the old witch drowned.
The children returned home together, very happy, and if they have not died, they are still alive.
中文翻译
从前，一位护林员去森林里打猎。他听到一阵像孩子哭泣的声音，便循声来到一棵大树下。树顶上坐着一个小孩子。孩子的母亲在树下睡着了，一只猛禽从她怀中叼走了孩子，将他放在了高高的树枝上。
护林员爬上树，把孩子带了下来，决定带他回家，与自己的女儿莱恩琴一起抚养。这个弃儿因为被鸟带走，所以被取名为“鸟弃儿”。两个孩子一起长大，彼此深爱；只要分开，他们就感到难过。
护林员有一位老厨娘。一天晚上，莱恩琴看见厨娘提了许多桶水。被问及原因时，厨娘让莱恩琴保证保密，然后说出了她的计划：第二天早上，趁护林员外出打猎时，她会烧开水，把鸟弃儿扔进锅里煮了。
莱恩琴警告了鸟弃儿，他们发誓永不分离。他们迅速穿好衣服，一起逃走了。
厨娘去找鸟弃儿时，发现孩子们不见了。她害怕极了，派了三个仆人去追他们。看到仆人靠近，莱恩琴对鸟弃儿说：“永远不要离开我，我也永远不会离开你。”他回答：“永远，永远。”莱恩琴接着说：“你变成一株玫瑰丛，我变成上面的一朵玫瑰。”仆人们赶到时，只看到一株带着一朵玫瑰的玫瑰丛，便空手而归。
厨娘责骂他们，说他们应该砍掉玫瑰丛，摘下玫瑰。他们再次出发。孩子们看到他们来了，又重复了誓言。这次，莱恩琴说：“你变成一座教堂，我变成里面的枝形吊灯。”仆人们只找到一座带有吊灯的教堂，又回去了。
厨娘勃然大怒，质问他们为什么不拆了教堂，把吊灯带回来。于是，她亲自带着三个仆人去追孩子们。
看到他们靠近，孩子们再次发誓。莱恩琴说：“变成一座池塘，我变成上面的一只鸭子。”厨娘来到池塘边，俯身想把水喝干。鸭子迅速游过来，用嘴咬住她的头，把她拖进水里，老巫婆就这样淹死了。
孩子们一起回到了家，非常快乐。如果他们没有死去，那么至今仍然活着。