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“Now, Bill, sit where you are (нет, Билл, сиди где сидишь),” said the beggar (сказал нищий). “If I can’t see, I can hear a finger stirring (если я не могу видеть = хоть я и не вижу, /зато/ могу слышать, /даже когда/ шевельнешь пальцем; finger — палец; to stir — шевелить(ся); двигать(ся)). Business is business (дело есть дело). Hold out your left hand (протяни свою левую руку). Boy, take his left hand by the wrist (мальчик, возьми его левую руку за запястье), and bring it near to my right (и поднеси к моей правой).”

faint [feɪnt] utterly [`ʌtəlɪ] beggar [`begə] force [fɔ:s] stirring [`stə:rɪŋ] wrist [rɪst]

And with that he gave me a twitch that I thought would have made me faint. Between this and that, I was so utterly terrified of the blind beggar that I forgot my terror of the captain, and as I opened the parlour door, cried out the words he had ordered in a trembling voice.

The poor captain raised his eyes, and at one look the rum went out of him, and left him staring sober. The expression of his face was not so much of terror as of mortal sickness. He made a movement to rise, but I do not believe he had enough force left in his body.

“Now, Bill, sit where you are,” said the beggar. “If I can’t see, I can hear a finger stirring. Business is business. Hold out your left hand. Boy, take his left hand by the wrist, and bring it near to my right.”

We both obeyed him to the letter (мы оба подчинились ему в точности: «до буквы»), and I saw him pass something from the hollow of the hand (и я видел, как он передавал что-то из впадины своей руки = ладони) that held his stick into the palm of the captain’s (которая держала палку, в ладонь капитана), which closed upon it instantly (которая сжала это /полученное/ сразу же: «закрылась на этом мгновенно»).

“And now that’s done (теперь это /дело/ сделано),” said the blind man (сказал слепой); and at the words he suddenly left hold of me (при этих словах он внезапно отпустил меня), and, with incredible accuracy and nimbleness (и, с невероятной точностью и проворством; accuracy — правильность, тщательность, верность), skipped out of the parlour and into the road (выскочил из зала на дорогу; to skip — прыгать, убегать, пропускать), where, as I still stood motionless (где, так как я все еще стоял неподвижно), I could hear his stick go tap-tap-tapping into the distance (я мог слышать, как его палка постукивала вдали; to tap — стучать, хлопать, барабанить).

It was some time before either I or the captain seemed to gather our senses (прошло некоторое время, прежде чем я или капитан, казалось, очнулись; to gather — собирать/ся/, набирать, накопить; sense — чувство, сознание, рассудок); but at length, and about at the same moment (наконец, почти одновременно: «в один и тот же миг»), I released his wrist (я отпустил его запястье), which I was still holding (которое я все еще держал), and he drew in his hand and looked sharply into the palm (а он потянул к себе руку и посмотрел внимательно в ладонь).

оbeyed [əu`beɪd] hollow [`hɔləu] incredible [ɪn`kredəbl] accuracy [`ækjurəsɪ] palm [pɑ:m]

We both obeyed him to the letter, and I saw him pass something from the hollow of the hand that held his stick into the palm of the captain’s, which closed upon it instantly.

“And now that’s done,” said the blind man; and at the words he suddenly left hold of me, and, with incredible accuracy and nimbleness, skipped out of the parlour and into the road, where, as I still stood motionless, I could hear his stick go tap-tap-tapping into the distance.

It was some time before either I or the captain seemed to gather our senses; but at length, and about at the same moment, I released his wrist, which I was still holding, and he drew in his hand and looked sharply into the palm.

“Ten o’clock (/в/ десять часов)!” he cried. “Six hours (/осталось/ шесть часов). We’ll do them yet (мы покажем им еще);” and he sprang to his feet (и он вскочил на ноги).

Even as he did so (как только он сделал так), he reeled (он пошатнулся), put his hand to his throat, stood swaying for a moment (схватился за горло, постоял, покачиваясь, мгновение), and then, with a peculiar sound (затем, со странным звуком; peculiar — странный, особенный) fell from his whole height face foremost to the floor (упал со своего всего роста лицом = рухнул как подкошенный ничком на пол; foremost — передний, передовой).

I ran to him at once (я кинулся к нему сразу), calling to my mother (зовя мать). But haste was all in vain (но спешка была впустую = было поздно). The captain had been struck dead by thundering apoplexy (капитан был убит ужасным: «громоподобным» ударом). It is a curious thing to understand (это странная вещь чтобы понять = и странное дело), for I had certainly never liked the man (так как мне никогда определенно не нравился этот человек), though of late I had begun to pity him (хотя в последнее время я начал жалеть его), but as soon as I saw that he was dead (но, как только я увидел, что он мертв), I burst into a flood of tears (я залился потоком слез). It was the second death I had known (это была вторая смерть, которую я знал = случилась на моих глазах), and the sorrow of the first was still fresh in my heart (и печаль /от/ первой была еще свежа в моем сердце).

peculiar [pɪ`kju:lɪə] height [haɪt] thundering [`θʌndərɪŋ] floor [flɔ:] flood [flʌd]

“Ten o’clock!” he cried. “Six hours. We’ll do them yet;” and he sprang to his feet.

Even as he did so, he reeled, put his hand to his throat, stood swaying for a moment, and then, with a peculiar sound fell from his whole height face foremost to the floor.

I ran to him at once, calling to my mother. But haste was all in vain. The captain had been struck dead by thundering apoplexy. It is a curious thing to understand, for I had certainly never liked the man, though of late I had begun to pity him, but as soon as I saw that he was dead, I burst into a flood of tears. It was the second death I had known, and the sorrow of the first was still fresh in my heart.

I LOST no time, of course (я не терял времени, конечно), in telling my mother all that I knew (рассказав матери все, что я знал; to know), and perhaps should have told her long before (и, наверное, должен был рассказать ей /об этом/ гораздо раньше; long before — задолго до /того/), and we saw ourselves at once in a difficult and dangerous position (и мы увидели себя = очутились сразу в трудном и опасном положении).