Чтение онлайн

fruit [frHt], used [jHst], instead [In'sted]

So the Elephant’s Child went home across Africa frisking and whisking his trunk. When he wanted fruit to eat he pulled fruit down from a tree, instead of waiting for it to fall as he used to do. When he wanted grass he plucked grass up from the ground, instead of going on his knees as he used to do. When the flies bit him he broke off the branch of a tree and used it as a fly-whisk; and he made himself a new, cool, slushy-squshy mud-cap whenever the sun was hot. When he felt lonely walking through Africa he sang to himself down his trunk, and the noise was louder than several brass bands.

He went especially out of his way to find a broad Hippopotamus (он специально постарался найти обширную Гиппопотамиху) (she was no relation of his (он не была ему родственницей)), and he spanked her very hard (и он отшлепал ее очень сильно), to make sure (чтобы убедиться; to make sure — убедиться, удостовериться) that the Bi-Coloured-Python-Rock-Snake had spoken the truth about his new trunk (что Двухцветный-Питон-Скалистый-Змей говорил правду о его новом хоботе; to speak — разговаривать, говорить). The rest of the time he picked up the melon rinds (в остальное время он подбирал дынную кожуру) that he had dropped on his way to the Limpopo (которую он набросал на пути к Лимпопо) — for he was a Tidy Pachyderm (ибо он был Чистоплотным Толстокожим Животным; pachyderm — толстокожее животное).

especially [Is'peS(q)lI], truth [trHT], pachyderm ['pxkIdWm]

He went especially out of his way to find a broad Hippopotamus (she was no relation of his), and he spanked her very hard, to make sure that the Bi-Coloured-Python-Rock-Snake had spoken the truth about his new trunk. The rest of the time he picked up the melon rinds that he had dropped on his way to the Limpopo — for he was a Tidy Pachyderm.

One dark evening he came back to all his dear families (одним темным вечером он вернулся ко всем своим дорогим семействам), and he coiled up his trunk and said (и он свернул кольцом свой хобот и сказал; to coil up — свертывать(ся) кольцом, спиралью), ‘How do you do (как вы поживаете)?’ They were very glad to see him (они были очень рады видеть его), and immediately said (и тотчас сказали), ‘Come here and be spanked for your ‘satiable curtiosity (подойди сюда и будь отшлепанным = мы отшлепаем тебя за твое ненасытное вежливое любопытство).’

‘Pooh,’ said the Elephant’s Child (тьфу, — сказал Слоненок). ‘I don’t think you peoples know anything about spanking (не думаю, что вы, родственнички, знаете что-нибудь о шлепаньи = о том, как шлепать); but I do, and I’ll show you (а /вот/ я знаю, и /я/ покажу вам).’

Then he uncurled his trunk (тогда он раскрутил свой хобот) and knocked two of his dear brothers head over heels (и врезал двум из своих дорогих братцев так, что они полетели кубарем: «ударил двух из своих дорогих братьев кубарем»; head over heels — вверх тормашками, вверх ногами).

evening ['JvnIN], immediately [I'mJdIqtlI], brother ['brADq]

One dark evening he came back to all his dear families, and he coiled up his trunk and said, ‘How do you do?’ They were very glad to see him, and immediately said, ‘Come here and be spanked for your ‘satiable curtiosity.’

‘Pooh,’ said the Elephant’s Child. ‘I don’t think you peoples know anything about spanking; but I do, and I’ll show you.’

Then he uncurled his trunk and knocked two of his dear brothers head over heels.

‘O Bananas!’ said they (ух ты! — сказали они), ‘Where did you learn that trick (где ты научился этому приемчику; trick — трюк, фокус, ловкий прием), and what have you done to your nose (и что ты сделал со своим носом)?’

‘I got a new one from the Crocodile (я достал новый у Крокодила = мне достался новый от Крокодила) on the banks of the great grey-green, greasy Limpopo River (на берегах великой серо-зеленой жирной реки Лимпопо),’ said the Elephant’s Child (сказал Слоненок). ‘I asked him what he had for dinner (я спросил у него, что он ест на обед), and he gave me this to keep (а он дал мне это /оставить себе/).’

‘It looks very ugly (он выглядит очень уродливо),’ said his hairy uncle, the Baboon (сказал его волосатый дядюшка Бабуин).

‘It does,’ said the Elephant’s Child (да, — сказал Слоненок). ‘But it’s very useful (но он очень полезный),’ and he picked up his hairy uncle, the Baboon (и он поднял своего волосатого дядюшку Бабуина), by one hairy leg (за одну волосатую ногу), and hove him into a hornets’ nest (и зашвырнул его в осиное гнездо; to heave — швырнуть; hornet — шершень, крупная оса).

ugly ['AglI], useful ['jHsful], hornet ['hLnIt]

‘O Bananas!’ said they, ‘Where did you learn that trick, and what have you done to your nose?’

‘I got a new one from the Crocodile on the banks of the great grey-green, greasy Limpopo River,’ said the Elephant’s Child. ‘I asked him what he had for dinner, and he gave me this to keep.’

‘It looks very ugly,’ said his hairy uncle, the Baboon.

‘It does,’ said the Elephant’s Child. ‘But it’s very useful,’ and he picked up his hairy uncle, the Baboon, by one hairy leg, and hove him into a hornets’ nest.

Then that bad Elephant’s Child spanked all his dear families for a long time (потом этот скверный Слоненок долго шлепал все свои дорогие семейства), till they were very warm and greatly astonished (пока они очень /не/ разгорячились и сильно /не/ удивились). He pulled out his tall Ostrich aunt’s tail-feathers (он повыдергивал хвостовые перья своей высокой тетушки Страусихи); and he caught his tall uncle, the Giraffe (и он поймал своего высокого дядюшку Жирафа; to catch — ловить, поймать), by the hind-leg, and dragged him through a thorn-bush (за заднюю ногу и протащил его через колючий кустарник; thorn-bush — колючий кустарник, боярышник петушья шпора; thorn — колючка, шип; колючее растение); and he shouted at his broad aunt, the Hippopotamus (и он накричал на свою обширную тетушку Бегемотиху), and blew bubbles into her ear (и вдул ей пузыри в /ее/ ухо; to blow — дуть) when she was sleeping in the water after meals (когда она спала в воде после еды); but he never let any one touch Kolokolo Bird (но он никогда никому /не/ позволял трогать Птичку Колоколо).

feather ['feDq], Hippopotamus ["hIpq'pOtqmqs], touch [tAC]

Then that bad Elephant’s Child spanked all his dear families for a long time, till they were very warm and greatly astonished. He pulled out his tall Ostrich aunt’s tail-feathers; and he caught his tall uncle, the Giraffe, by the hind-leg, and dragged him through a thorn-bush; and he shouted at his broad aunt, the Hippopotamus, and blew bubbles into her ear when she was sleeping in the water after meals; but he never let any one touch Kolokolo Bird.

At last things grew so exciting (наконец события стали такими захватывающими) that his dear families (что его дорогие семейства) went off one by one in a hurry to the banks of the great grey-green, greasy Limpopo River (отправились один за другим в спешке к берегам великой серо-зеленой жирной реки Лимпопо), all set about with fever-trees (полностью заросшей хинными деревьями), to borrow new noses from the Crocodile (чтобы позаимствовать новые носы у Крокодила). When they came back (когда они вернулись) nobody spanked anybody any more (никто их больше /не/ шлепал); and ever since that day, O Best Beloved (и начиная с того дня, О Самые Любименькие), all the Elephants you will ever see (все слоны, которых вы увидите), besides all those that you won’t (вдобавок ко всем тем, которых вы не увидите), have trunks precisely like the trunk of the ‘satiable Elephant’s Child (имеют хоботы в точности, как у ненасытного Слоненка).