prevented [prI`ventId], beggarly [`begqlI], crumb [krAm]
“It was a queer little room, poorly furnished and with a number of big masks in the corner. On the table was his belated breakfast, and it was a confoundedly exasperating thing for me, Kemp, to have to sniff his coffee and stand watching while he came in and resumed his meal. And his table manners were irritating. Three doors opened into the little room, one going upstairs and one down, but they were all shut. I could not get out of the room while he was there; I could scarcely move because of his alertness, and there was a draught down my back. Twice I strangled a sneeze just in time.
“The spectacular quality of my sensations was curious and novel, but for all that I was heartily tired and angry long before he had done his eating. But at last he made an end and putting his beggarly crockery on the black tin tray upon which he had had his teapot, and gathering all the crumbs up on the mustard stained cloth, he took the whole lot of things after him. His burden prevented his shutting the door behind him — as he would have done; I never saw such a man for shutting doors — and I followed him into a very dirty underground kitchen and scullery.
“I had the pleasure of seeing him begin to wash up (я имел удовольствие видеть, как он стал мыть посуду), and then, finding no good in keeping down there (а затем, не найдя причин оставаться внизу), and the brick floor being cold on my feet (и поскольку мои ноги мерзли на кирпичном полу), I returned upstairs and sat in his chair by the fire (я вернулся наверх и сел в его кресло у камина). It was burning low, and scarcely thinking (огонь догорал, и, едва подумав = недолгодумая; to burn low — слабогореть, догорать), I put on a little coal (я подбросил немного угля). The noise of this brought him up at once, and he stood aglare (этот шум сразу же привел хозяина наверх = хозяин тут же прибежал и встал, свирепо оглядывая /комнату/; aglare = glaring; to glare — ослепительно сверкать; уставляться взглядом /часто злым/; пристально смотреть). He peered about the room and was within an ace of touching me (он обшарил комнату и чуть меня не задел; within an ace of — наволосокот, едване; ace — очко, выигранноеоднимударом, броскомит.п. /втеннисе, гандболеит.п./: score an ace — выигратьочко; разг. маленькаячастица, йота). Even after that examination, he scarcely seemed satisfied (даже после этой тщательной проверки, казалось, он был мало удовлетворен: «едва ли казался удовлетворенным»). He stopped in the doorway and took a final inspection before he went down (он остановился в дверях и еще раз осмотрел /комнату/, прежде чем спуститься вниз; finalinspection— окончательный осмотр).
“I waited in the little parlour for an age (я прождал в маленькой гостиной целую вечность), and at last he came up and opened the upstairs door (наконец он поднялся и открыл дверь наверх). I just managed to get by him (мне едва удалось проскользнуть за ним).
pleasure [`pleZq], scarcely [`skeqslI], touching [`tACIN], last [lRst], managed [`mxnIGd]
“I had the pleasure of seeing him begin to wash up, and then, finding no good in keeping down there, and the brick floor being cold on my feet, I returned upstairs and sat in his chair by the fire. It was burning low, and scarcely thinking, I put on a little coal. The noise of this brought him up at once, and he stood aglare. He peered about the room and was within an ace of touching me. Even after that examination, he scarcely seemed satisfied. He stopped in the doorway and took a final inspection before he went down.
“I waited in the little parlour for an age, and at last he came up and opened the upstairs door. I just managed to get by him.
“On the staircase he stopped suddenly (на лестнице он вдруг остановился), so that I very nearly blundered into him (так что я чуть не натолкнулся на него; blunder — грубаяошибка; промах, просчет; to blunder — двигаться ощупью; спотыкаться; наталкиваться, натыкаться). He stood looking back right into my face and listening (он стоял, оглядываясь, /смотря/ прямо мне в лицо и прислушиваясь). ‘I could have sworn (мог бы поклясться; to swear),’ he said. His long hairy hand pulled at his lower lip (его длинная волосатая рука пощипывала нижнюю губу; to pull — дергать, тянуть; теребить). His eye went up and down the staircase (его взгляд скользил по лестнице вверх и вниз). Then he grunted and went on up again (потом он проворчал что-то и продолжил подниматься; togrunt— хрюкать; ворчать, бормотать).
“His hand was on the handle of a door (его рука уже была на ручке двери), and then he stopped again with the same puzzled anger on his face (и тут он опять остановился с тем же /выражением/ недоуменной злости на лице). He was becoming aware of the faint sounds of my movements about him (он начал улавливал тихие звуки моих движений возле него). The man must have had diabolically acute hearing (должно быть, он обладал чертовски тонким слухом). He suddenly flashed into rage (внезапно он пришел в ярость). ‘If there’s anyone in this house — (если кто-то забрался в дом…)’ he cried with an oath, and left the threat unfinished (крикнул он, выругавшись, и не закончил угрозы: «оставил угрозу неоконченной»). He put his hand in his pocket (сунул руку в карман), failed to find what he wanted (не нашел того, что искал), and rushing past me went blundering noisily and pugnaciously downstairs (шумно и воинственно бросился мимо меня вниз, спотыкаясь; pugnacious — драчливый). But I did not follow him (но я не последовал за ним). I sat on the head of the staircase until his return (я сидел на верхней площадке лестницы до его возвращения; until— до тех пор пока).
“Presently he came up again, still muttering (вскоре он появился снова, все еще бормоча). He opened the door of the room (открыл дверь комнаты), and before I could enter, slammed it in my face (и прежде, чем я успел войти, захлопнул ее перед моим носом).
listening [`lIs(q)nIN], diabolically ["daIq`bOlIk(q)lI], pugnaciously [pAg`neISqslI], return [rI`tq:n]
“On the staircase he stopped suddenly, so that I very nearly blundered into him. He stood looking back right into my face and listening. ‘I could have sworn,’ he said. His long hairy hand pulled at his lower lip. His eye went up and down the staircase. Then he grunted and went on up again.
“His hand was on the handle of a door, and then he stopped again with the same puzzled anger on his face. He was becoming aware of the faint sounds of my movements about him. The man must have had diabolically acute hearing. He suddenly flashed into rage. ‘If there’s anyone in this house — ’ he cried with an oath, and left the threat unfinished. He put his hand in his pocket, failed to find what he wanted, and rushing past me went blundering noisily and pugnaciously downstairs. But I did not follow him. I sat on the head of the staircase until his return.
“Presently he came up again, still muttering. He opened the door of the room, and before I could enter, slammed it in my face.
“I resolved to explore the house (я решил осмотреть дом; to explore — исследовать, изучать, выяснять), and spent some time in doing so as noiselessly as possible (и потратил некоторое время на это, /двигаясь/ как можно тише). The house was very old and tumble-down (дом был очень старый и ветхий; tumble-down — полуразрушенный; нуждающийся в ремонте; to tumble down — свалиться, упасть; превратиться в руины), damp so that the paper in the attics was peeling from the walls, and rat infested (до того сырой, что обои на чердачном этаже отставали от стен, и кишащий крысами; to peel — снимать корку, кожицу, шелуху; очищать /фрукты, овощи/; лупиться, сходить /о коже, краске/; to infest /with/ — кишеть; наводнять, заполнять /чем-либо/). Some of the door handles were stiff and I was afraid to turn them (некоторые дверные ручки были тугими, и я боялся их поворачивать). Several rooms I did inspect were unfurnished (некоторые комнаты, которые я осмотрел, были без мебели), and others were littered with theatrical lumber (другие завалены театральным хламом; to litter — разбрасыватьвбеспорядке; /му/сорить), bought second-hand, I judged, from its appearance (приобретенным из вторых рук, судя по его виду; to buy; second-hand — подержанный, бывший в употреблении). In one room next to his I found a lot of old clothes (в одной комнате, соседней с его, я обнаружил кучу старой одежды). I began routing among these (я стал рыться в ней), and in my eagerness forgot again the evident sharpness of his ears (и в своем рвении забыл об очевидной тонкости слуха хозяина; to forget; sharp — острый). I heard a stealthy footstep and, looking up just in time (я услышал осторожные, крадущиеся шаги и, подняв взгляд как раз вовремя), saw him peering in at the tumbled heap (увидел, как он уставился на развороченную кучу) and holding an old-fashioned revolver in his hand (держа в руке старый револьвер). I stood perfectly still while he stared about open-mouthed and suspicious (я стоял совершенно неподвижно, пока он подозрительно оглядывал комнату с разинутым ртом). ‘It must have been her (должно быть, это она),’ he said slowly (сказал он медленно). ‘Damn her (черт ее побери)!’
