Todays story is called "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. It is about
something strange that happed long ago in a valley called "Sleepy
Hollow". It was written by Washington Irving. The story is told by Doug
Johnson.
Narrator: The valley known as Sleepy Hollow hides from
the world in the high hills of New York state. There are many stories
told about the quiet valley. But the story that people believe most is
about a man who rides a horse at night. The story says the man died many
years ago during the American revolutionary war. His head was shot off.
Every night he rises from his burial place, jumps on his horse and
rides through the valley looking for his lost head.
Near Sleepy
Hollow is a village called Tarry Town. It was settled many years ago by
people from Holland. The village had a small school. And one teacher,
named Ichabod Crane. Ichabod Crane was a good name for him, because he
looked like a tall bird, a crane. He was tall and thin like a crane. His
shoulders were small, joined two long arms. His head was small, too,
and flat on top. He had big ears, large glassy green eyes and a long
nose.
Ichabod did not make much money as a teacher. And although
he was tall and thin, he ate like a fat man. To help him pay for his
food he earned extra money teaching young people to sing. Every Sunday
after church Ichabod taught singing.
Among the ladies Ichabod
taught was one Katrina Van Tassel. She was the only daughter of a rich
Dutch farmer. She was a girl in bloom…much like a round red, rosy apple.
Ichabod had a soft and foolish heart for the ladies, and soon found
himself interested in Miss Van Tassel.
Ichabods eyes opened wide
when he saw the riches of Katrinas farm: the miles of apple trees and
wheat fields, and hundreds of fat farm animals. He saw himself as master
of the Van Tassel farm with Katrina as his wife.
But there were
many problems blocking the road to Katrinas heart. One was a strong
young man named Brom Van Brunt. Brom was a hero to all the young
ladies. His shoulders were big. His back was wide. And his hair was
short and curly. He always won the horse races in Tarry Town and earned
many prizes. Brom was never seen without a horse.
Sometimes late
at night Brom and his friends would rush through town shouting loudly
from the backs of their horses. Tired old ladies would awaken from their
sleep and say: "Why, there goes Brom Van Brunt leading his wild group
again!"
Such was the enemy Ichabod had to defeat for Katrinas heart.
Stronger
and wiser men would not have tried. But Ichabod had a plan. He could
not fight his enemy in the open. So he did it silently and secretly. He
made many visits to Katrinas farm and made her think he was helping her
to sing better.
Time passed, and the town people thought Ichabod
was winning. Broms horse was never seen at Katrinas house on Sunday
nights anymore.
One day in autumn Ichabod was asked to come to a
big party at the Van Tassel home. He dressed in his best clothes. A
farmer loaned him an old horse for the long trip to the party.
The
house was filled with farmers and their wives, red-faced daughters and
clean, washed sons. The tables were filled with different things to eat.
Wine filled many glasses.
Brom Van Brunt rode to the party on his
fastest horse called Daredevil. All the young ladies smiled happily
when they saw him. Soon music filled the rooms and everyone began to
dance and sing.
Ichabod was happy dancing with Katrina as Brom
looked at them with a jealous heart. The night passed. The music
stopped, and the young people sat together to tell stories about the
revolutionary war.
Soon stories about Sleepy Hollow were told. The
most feared story was about the rider looking for his lost head. One
farmer told how he raced the headless man on a horse. The farmer ran his
horse faster and faster. The horseman followed over bush and stone
until they came to the end of the valley. There the headless horseman
suddenly stopped. Gone were his clothes and his skin. All that was left
was a man with white bones shining in the moonlight.
The stories
ended and time came to leave the party. Ichabod seemed very happy until
he said goodnight to Katrina. Was she ending their romance? He left
feeling very sad. Had Katrina been seeing Ichabod just to make Brom Van
Brunt jealous so he would marry her?
Well, Ichabod began his long
ride home on the hills that surround Tarry Town. He had never felt so
lonely in his life. He began to whistle as he came close to the tree
where a man had been killed years ago by rebels.
He thought he saw
something white move in the tree. But no, it was only the moonlight
shining and moving on the tree. Then he heard a noise. His body shook.
He kicked his horse faster. The old horse tried to run, but almost fell
in the river, instead. Ichabod hit the horse again. The horse ran fast
and then suddenly stopped, almost throwing Ichabod forward to the
ground.
There, in the dark woods on the side of the river where
the bushes grow low, stood an ugly thing. Big and black. It did not
move, but seemed ready to jump like a giant monster.
Ichabods hair
stood straight up. It was too late to run, and in his fear, he did the
only thing he could. His shaking voice broke the silent valley.
"Who
are you?" The thing did not answer. Ichabod asked again. Still no
answer. Ichabods old horse began to move forward. The black thing began
to move along the side of Ichabods horse in the dark. Ichabod made his
horse run faster. The black thing moved with them. Side by side they
moved, slowly at first. And not a word was said.
Ichabod felt his
heart sink. Up a hill they moved above the shadow of the trees. For a
moment the moon shown down and to Ichabods horror he saw it was a horse.
And it had a rider. But the riders head was not on his body. It was in
front of the rider, resting on the horse.
Ichabod kicked and hit
his old horse with all his power. Away they rushed through bushes and
trees across the valley of Sleepy Hollow. Up ahead was the old church
bridge where the headless horseman stops and returns to his burial
place.
"If only I can get there first, I am safe," thought
Ichabod. He kicked his horse again. The horse jumped on to the bridge
and raced over it like the sound of thunder. Ichabod looked back to see
if the headless man had stopped. He saw the man pick up his head and
throw it with a powerful force. The head hit Ichabod in the face and
knocked him off his horse to the dirt below.
They found Ichabods horse the next day peacefully eating grass. They could not find Ichabod.
They
walked all across the valley. They saw the foot marks of Ichabods horse
as it had raced through the valley. They even found Ichabods old hat in
the dust near the bridge. But they did not find Ichabod. The only other
thing they found was lying near Ichabods hat.
It was the broken pieces of a round orange pumpkin.
The
town people talked about Ichabod for many weeks. They remembered the
frightening stories of the valley. And finally they came to believe that
the headless horseman had carried Ichabod away.
Much later an old
farmer returned from a visit to New York City. He said he was sure he
saw Ichabod there. He thought Ichabod silently left Sleepy Hollow
because he had lost Katrina.
As for Katrina, her mother and father
gave her a big wedding when she married Brom Van Brunt. Many people who
went to the wedding saw that Brom smiled whenever Ichabods name was
spoken. And they wondered why he laughed out loud when anyone talked
about the broken orange pumpkin found lying near Ichabods old dusty hat.
Announcer:
You have heard "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" written by Washington
Irving. It was first published in eighteen twenty. Listen next week to
the Voice of America for another AMERICAN STORY in Special English.