English Original
THERE was a miller who left no more estate to the three sons he had than his mill, his ass, and his cat. The partition was soon made. Neither scrivener nor attorney was sent for. They would soon have eaten up all the poor patrimony. The eldest had the mill, the second the ass, and the youngest nothing but the cat. The poor young fellow was quite comfortless at having so poor a lot.
"My brothers," said he, "may get their living handsomely enough by joining their stocks together; but for my part, when I have eaten up my cat, and made me a muff of his skin, I must die of hunger."
The Cat, who heard all this, but made as if he did not, said to him with a grave and serious air:
"Do not thus afflict yourself, my good master. You have nothing else to do but to give me a bag and get a pair of boots made for me that I may scamper through the dirt and the brambles, and you shall see that you have not so bad a portion in me as you imagine."
The Cat's master did not build very much upon what he said. He had often seen him play a great many cunning tricks to catch rats and mice, as when he used to hang by the heels, or hide himself in the meal, and make as if he were dead; so that he did not altogether despair of his affording him some help in his miserable condition. When the Cat had what he asked for he booted himself very gallantly, and putting his bag about his neck, he held the strings of it in his two forepaws and went into a warren where was great abundance of rabbits. He put bran and sow-thistle into his bag, and stretching out at length, as if he had been dead, he waited for some young rabbits, not yet acquainted with the deceits of the world, to come and rummage his bag for what he had put into it.
Scarce was he lain down but he had what he wanted. A rash and foolish young rabbit jumped into his bag, and Monsieur Puss, immediately drawing close the strings, took and killed him without pity. Proud of his prey, he went with it to the palace and asked to speak with his majesty. He was shown upstairs into the King's apartment, and, making a low reverence, said to him:
"I have brought you, sir, a rabbit of the warren, which my noble lord the Marquis of Carabas" (for that was the title which puss was pleased to give his master) "has commanded me to present to your majesty from him."
"Tell thy master," said the king, "that I thank him and that he does me a great deal of pleasure."
Another time he went and hid himself among some standing corn, holding still his bag open, and when a brace of partridges ran into it he drew the strings and so caught them both. He went and made a present of these to the king, as he had done before of the rabbit which he took in the warren. The king, in like manner, received the partridges with great pleasure, and ordered him some money for drink.
The Cat continued for two or three months thus to carry his Majesty, from time to time, game of his master's taking. One day in particular, when he knew for certain that he was to take the air along the river-side, with his daughter, the most beautiful princess in the world, he said to his master:
"If you will follow my advice your fortune is made. You have nothing else to do but go and wash yourself in the river, in that part I shall show you, and leave the rest to me."
The Marquis of Carabas did what the Cat advised him to, without knowing why or wherefore. While he was washing the King passed by, and the Cat began to cry out:
"Help! help! My Lord Marquis of Carabas is going to be drowned."
At this noise the King put his head out of the coach- window, and, finding it was the Cat who had so often brought him such good game, he commanded his guards to run immediately to the assistance of his Lordship the Marquis of Carabas. While they were drawing the poor Marquis out of the river, the Cat came up to the coach and told the King that, while his master was washing, there came by some rogues, who went off with his clothes, though he had cried out: "Thieves! thieves!" several times, as loud as he could.
This cunning Cat had hidden them under a great stone. The King immediately commanded the officers of his wardrobe to run and fetch one of his best suits for the Lord Marquis of Carabas.
The King caressed him after a very extraordinary manner, and as the fine clothes he had given him extremely set off his good mien (for he was well made and very handsome in his person), the King's daughter took a secret inclination to him, and the Marquis of Carabas had no sooner cast two or three respectful and somewhat tender glances but she fell in love with him to distraction. The King would needs have him come into the coach and take part of the airing. The Cat, quite overjoyed to see his project begin to succeed, marched on before, and, meeting with some countrymen, who were mowing a meadow, he said to them:
"Good people, you who are mowing, if you do not tell the King that the meadow you mow belongs to my Lord Marquis of Carabas, you shall be chopped as small as herbs for the pot."
The King did not fail asking of the mowers to whom the meadow they were mowing belonged.
"To my Lord Marquis of Carabas," answered they altogether, for the Cat's threats had made them terribly afraid.
"You see, sir," said the Marquis, "this is a meadow which never fails to yield a plentiful harvest every year."
The Master Cat, who went still on before, met with some reapers, and said to them:
"Good people, you who are reaping, if you do not tell the King that all this corn belongs to the Marquis of Carabas, you shall be chopped as small as herbs for the pot."
The King, who passed by a moment after, would needs know to whom all that corn, which he then saw, did belong.
"To my Lord Marquis of Carabas," replied the reapers, and the King was very well pleased with it, as well as the Marquis, whom he congratulated thereupon. The Master Cat, who went always before, said the same words to all he met, and the King was astonished at the vast estates of my Lord Marquis of Carabas.
Monsieur Puss came at last to a stately castle, the master of which was an ogre, the richest had ever been known; for all the lands which the King had then gone over belonged to this castle. The Cat, who had taken care to inform himself who this ogre was and what he could do, asked to speak with him, saying he could not pass so near his castle without having the honor of paying his respects to him.
The ogre received him as civilly as an ogre could do, and made him sit down.
"I have been assured," said the Cat, "that you have the gift of being able to change yourself into all sorts of creatures you have a mind to; you can, for example, transform yourself into a lion, or elephant, and the like."
"That is true," answered the ogre very briskly; "and to convince you, you shall see me now become a lion."
Puss was so sadly terrified at the sight of a lion so near him that he immediately got into the gutter, not without abundance of trouble and danger, because of his boots, which were of no use at all to him in walking upon the tiles. A little while after, when Puss saw that the ogre had resumed his natural form, he came down, and owned he had been very much frightened.
"I have been, moreover, informed," said the Cat, "but I know not how to believe it, that you have also the power to take on you the shape of the smallest animals; for example, to change yourself into a rat or a mouse; but I must own to you I take this to be impossible."
"Impossible!" cried the ogre; "you shall see that presently."
And at the same time he changed himself into a mouse, and began to run about the floor. Puss no sooner perceived this but he fell upon him and ate him up.
Meanwhile the King, who saw, as he passed, this fine castle of the ogre's, had a mind to go into it. Puss, who heard the noise of his Majesty's coach running over the draw-bridge, ran out, and said to the King:
"Your Majesty is welcome to this castle of my Lord Marquis of Carabas."
"What! my Lord Marquis," cried the King, "and does this castle also belong to you? There can be nothing finer than this court and all the stately buildings which surround it; let us go into it, if you please."
The Marquis gave his hand to the Princess, and followed the King, who went first. They passed into a spacious hall, where they found a magnificent collation, which the ogre had prepared for his friends, who were that very day to visit him, but dared not to enter, knowing the King was there. His Majesty was perfectly charmed with the good qualities of my Lord Marquis of Carabas, as was his daughter, who had fallen violently in love with him, and, seeing the vast estate he possessed, said to him, after having drunk five or six glasses:
"It will be owing to yourself only, my Lord Marquis, if you are not my son-in-law."
The Marquis, making several low bows, accepted the honor which his Majesty conferred upon him, and forthwith, that very same day, married the Princess.
Puss became a great lord, and never ran after mice any more but only for his diversion.
中文翻译
从前，有个磨坊主，他去世后留给三个儿子的全部家当只有一座磨坊、一头驴和一只猫。遗产很快就被分掉了。既没有请公证人，也没有请律师，因为他们很快就会把这点可怜的遗产吃光。老大分到了磨坊，老二分到了驴，而老三只分到了那只猫。这个可怜的年轻人对分到这么点东西感到非常沮丧。
他说：“我的哥哥们把他们的财产合在一起，可以体面地谋生了；但对我来说，等我吃掉我的猫，用它的皮做个手笼后，我就只能饿死了。”
猫听到了这一切，却装作没听见，它用严肃认真的语气对主人说：
“我的好主人，请不要这样苦恼。你只需给我一个袋子，再给我做一双靴子，让我能在泥泞和荆棘中奔跑，你就会看到，你分到的我并没有你想象的那么糟糕。”
猫的主人并没有太把这话当真。但他经常看到这只猫用许多狡猾的把戏捉老鼠，比如倒挂着，或者藏在面粉里装死；所以，他并没有完全绝望，觉得猫或许能在他悲惨的境况中提供一些帮助。猫得到了它要的东西后，神气地穿上靴子，把袋子挂在脖子上，用两只前爪抓住袋口的绳子，走进了一个兔子很多的养兔场。它在袋子里放了些麸皮和苦苣菜，然后伸直身子躺下，装成死的样子，等待一些还不谙世事的年轻兔子来袋子里翻找它放进去的东西。
它刚躺下不久，就得到了想要的东西。一只鲁莽愚蠢的小兔子跳进了它的袋子，穿靴子的猫先生立刻收紧袋口，毫不留情地抓住并杀死了它。猫为自己的猎物感到自豪，带着它去了王宫，请求觐见国王陛下。它被领到楼上的国王房间，深深地鞠了一躬，对国王说：
“陛下，我给您带来了一只养兔场的兔子，这是我的主人卡拉巴斯侯爵（这是猫乐于给主人起的头衔）命令我献给您的。”
国王说：“告诉你的主人，我感谢他，他让我非常高兴。”
另一次，它藏在一片庄稼地里，仍然把袋子敞开着，当一对鹧鸪跑进去时，它拉紧绳子，抓住了它们俩。它像之前献兔子一样，把这对鹧鸪作为礼物献给了国王。国王同样非常高兴地收下了鹧鸪，并赏了它一些酒钱。
这只猫就这样持续了两三个月，时不时地给国王陛下送去它主人“猎获”的野味。有一天，当它确切知道国王要和他那世界上最美丽的公主沿着河边兜风时，它对主人说：
“如果你听从我的建议，你的好运就来了。你只需去河里洗个澡，在我指给你的地方，剩下的交给我。”
卡拉巴斯侯爵照着猫的建议做了，虽然不知道为什么。当他正在洗澡时，国王经过，猫开始大喊：
“救命！救命！卡拉巴斯侯爵大人要淹死了！”
听到这喊声，国王从马车窗户探出头来，发现是那只经常给他送来上好野味的猫，便命令卫兵立刻跑去救助卡拉巴斯侯爵大人。当卫兵们把可怜的侯爵从河里拉出来时，猫走到马车旁告诉国王，它的主人在洗澡时，来了一些流氓，把他的衣服都拿走了，尽管他大声喊了好几次“抓贼！抓贼！”。
这只狡猾的猫其实把衣服藏在一块大石头下面了。国王立刻命令他的衣橱官员跑去取一套他最好的衣服给卡拉巴斯侯爵大人穿上。
国王以非常特别的方式爱抚了他，而且那身华服极大地衬托了他的好仪表（因为他身材匀称，相貌英俊），国王的女儿暗暗对他产生了好感。卡拉巴斯侯爵刚投去两三个恭敬而略带温柔的眼神，公主就疯狂地爱上了他。国王执意要他上马车，一起兜风。猫看到计划开始成功，非常高兴，它走在前面，遇到一些正在割草的乡下人，便对他们说：
“善良的人们，你们这些割草的人，如果你们不告诉国王你们割的这片草地属于卡拉巴斯侯爵大人，你们就会被剁得像炖锅里的香草一样碎。”
国王果然问那些割草人，他们正在割的草地是谁的。
“是卡拉巴斯侯爵大人的。”他们齐声回答，因为猫的威胁让他们非常害怕。
“陛下，您看，”侯爵说，“这是一片每年都能丰收的草地。”
猫师傅继续往前走，遇到一些收割庄稼的人，便对他们说：
“善良的人们，你们这些收割的人，如果你们不告诉国王所有这些庄稼都属于卡拉巴斯侯爵，你们就会被剁得像炖锅里的香草一样碎。”
国王过了一会儿经过时，执意要知道他看到的所有这些庄稼是谁的。
“是卡拉巴斯侯爵大人的。”收割者们回答。国王对此非常满意，侯爵也向他表示祝贺。猫师傅一直走在前面，对所有遇到的人都说了同样的话，国王对卡拉巴斯侯爵大人广袤的产业感到惊讶。
猫先生最后来到一座宏伟的城堡，城堡的主人是一个食人魔，是已知最富有的食人魔；因为国王刚才经过的所有土地都属于这座城堡。猫事先已经打听清楚这个食人魔是谁以及他有什么本事，它请求与他见面，说既然经过他的城堡附近，不能不荣幸地向他致敬。
食人魔尽可能礼貌地接待了它，并请它坐下。
猫说：“我听说您有天赋，能随心所欲地变成各种生物；例如，您可以变成狮子、大象之类的。”
“没错，”食人魔非常轻快地回答，“为了让你相信，你现在就能看到我变成狮子。”
猫看到一头狮子离自己这么近，吓得要命，立刻跳进了排水沟，这过程充满了麻烦和危险，因为它的靴子在瓦片上行走毫无用处。过了一会儿，当猫看到食人魔恢复了原形，它才下来，承认自己刚才吓坏了。
猫又说：“此外，我还听说——但我不知道该如何相信——您还有能力变成最小的动物；例如，变成一只老鼠；但我必须向您承认，我认为这是不可能的。”
“不可能！”食人魔叫道，“你马上就能看到。”
话音刚落，他就把自己变成了一只老鼠，开始在地板上跑来跑去。猫一看到这个，就扑上去把他吃掉了。
与此同时，国王路过时看到了食人魔这座漂亮的城堡，很想进去看看。猫听到国王陛下的马车驶过吊桥的声音，跑出来对国王说：
“欢迎陛下光临我的主人卡拉巴斯侯爵的城堡。”
“什么！侯爵大人，”国王喊道，“这座城堡也属于您吗？再没有比这个庭院和周围这些宏伟建筑更气派的了；如果您愿意，我们进去看看吧。”
侯爵把手递给公主，跟在先行的国王后面。他们走进一个宽敞的大厅，发现那里有一顿丰盛的便餐，那是食人魔为当天要来访的朋友们准备的，但朋友们知道国王在那里，不敢进来。国王陛下完全被卡拉巴斯侯爵大人的优秀品质迷住了，他的女儿也疯狂地爱上了他。看到侯爵拥有如此庞大的产业，国王在喝了五六杯酒后对他说：
“侯爵大人，如果您不做我的女婿，那只能是您自己的原因了。”
侯爵深深地鞠了几躬，接受了陛下赐予他的这份荣耀，并且就在当天，立刻娶了公主。
猫成了一位大老爷，从此再也不为生计去追老鼠，只是为了消遣才偶尔为之。