Английский язык с Джеком Лондоном. В далекой стране (рассказы)

"And further oration I made, counselling fight. And the men of the Whitefish listened, and some said one thing, and some another, and some spoke of other and worthless things, and no man made brave talk of deeds and war. But while the young men were weak as water and afraid, I watched that the old men sat silent, and that in their eyes fires came and went. And later, when the village slept and no one knew, I drew the old men away into the forest and made more talk. And now we were agreed, and we remembered the good young days, and the free land, and the times of plenty, and the gladness and sunshine; and we called ourselves brothers, and swore great secrecy, and a mighty oath to cleanse the land of the evil breed that had come upon it. It be plain we were fools, but how were we to know, we old men of the Whitefish?

"And to hearten the others (и чтобы воодушевить остальных), I did the first deed (я совершил первый подвиг). I kept guard upon the Yukon (я караулил на Юконе; to keep — держать; хранить; защищать, охранять; guard — охрана, защита; караул, конвой, охрана

) till the first canoe came down (пока по реке не пришло первое каноэ). In it were two white men (в нем было два белых человека), and when I stood upright upon the bank and raised my hand (и когда я встал прямо на берегу и поднял руку) they changed their course and drove in to me (они изменили курс и направились ко мне; to drive in — въехать). And as the man in the bow lifted his head, so (и когда мужчина на носу поднял голову, вот так), that he might know wherefore I wanted him (чтобы узнать, чего я хочу от него), my arrow sang through the air straight to his throat (моя стрела просвистела в воздухе прямо ему в горло; to sing — свистеть /о пуле, снаряде во время полета/), and he knew (и он узнал). The second man, who held paddle in the stern (второй мужчина, который держал весло на корме), had his rifle half to his shoulder (/уже/ имел = держал

свое ружье на полпути к плечу) when the first of my three spear-casts smote him (когда первый из моих трех дротиков/метательных копий сразил его; to smite — поразить, сразить /напр., мечом/; поразить, убить, уничтожить).

"'These be the first (эти — первые), I said, when the old men had gathered to me (когда старики собрались ко мне = возле меня). 'Later we will bind together all the old men of all the tribes (позже мы объединим всех стариков всех племен; to bind together — объединять/ся/), and after that the young men who remain strong (а после этого молодых людей, которые останутся сильными), and the work will become easy (и дело станет легким; work — работа, труд; занятие, дело

).

guard [gRd], bow [bau], straight [streIt]

"And to hearten the others, I did the first deed. I kept guard upon the Yukon till the first canoe came down. In it were two white men, and when I stood upright upon the bank and raised my hand they changed their course and drove in to me. And as the man in the bow lifted his head, so, that he might know wherefore I wanted him, my arrow sang through the air straight to his throat, and he knew. The second man, who held paddle in the stern, had his rifle half to his shoulder when the first of my three spear-casts smote him.

"`These be the first, I said, when the old men had gathered to me. `Later we will bind together all the old men of all the tribes, and after that the young men who remain strong, and the work will become easy.