“It belongs to my Lord Marquis of Carabas,” they answered altogether because the cat had frightened them.
“You see, sir,” said the Marquis, “this is a meadow which always yield a plentiful harvest every year.”
The master cat, still running on ahead, met with some reapers, and said to them, “My good fellows, if you do not tell the king that all this grain belongs to the Marquis of Carabas, you shall be chopped up like mincemeat.”
The king, who passed by a moment later, asked them whose grain it was that they were reaping.
“It belongs to my Lord Marquis of Carabas,” replied the reapers, which pleased both the king and the marquis. The king congratulated him for his fine harvest. The master cat continued to run ahead and said the same words to all he met. The king was surprised at the big estates of the Lord Marquis of Carabas.
The master cat came at last to a castle, the lord of which was an ogre, the richest that had ever been known.[20] All the lands which the king had just passed by belonged to this castle. The cat, who found out who this ogre was and what he could do, asked to speak with him, saying he could not pass so near his castle without having the honor of paying his respects to him.
The ogre received him as civilly as an ogre could do, and invited him to sit down. “I have heard,” said the cat, “that you are able to change yourself into any kind of creature. You can, for example, transform yourself into a lion, an elephant, or the like.”
“That is true,” answered the ogre; “and to convince you, I shall now become a lion.”
The cat was so terrified to see a lion so near him that he leaped onto the roof that was even more difficult for him, because his boots didn’t help him to walk on the tiles. However, the ogre resumed his natural form, and the cat came down, saying that he had been very frightened indeed.
“I have further been told,” said the cat, “that you can also transform yourself into the smallest of animals, for example, a rat or a mouse. But I can scarcely believe that. I think that that would be quite impossible.”
“Impossible!” cried the ogre. “You shall see!”
He immediately changed himself into a mouse and began to run about the floor. As soon as the cat saw this, he fell upon him and ate him up.
Meanwhile the king, who saw this fine castle of the ogre’s as he passed, decided to go inside. The cat, who heard the noise of his majesty’s coach running over the drawbridge, ran out and said to the king, “Your majesty is welcome to this castle of my Lord Marquis of Carabas.”
“What! My Lord Marquis,” cried the king, “and does this castle also belong to you? There can be nothing finer than this court and all the stately buildings which surround it. Let us go inside, if you don’t mind.[21]”
The marquis gave his hand to the princess, and followed the king, who went first. They passed into a spacious hall, where they found a magnificent feast, which the ogre had prepared for his friends, who were coming to visit him that very day, but dared not to enter, knowing the king was there.
His majesty was perfectly charmed with the good qualities of my Lord Marquis of Carabas, as was his daughter, who had fallen violently in love with him. Seeing the vast estate he possessed, the king said to him, after having drunk five or six glasses, “It will be your own fault, my Lord Marquis, if you do not become my son-in-law.”
The marquis, making several low bows, accepted the honor which his majesty conferred upon him,[22] and that very same day, married the princess.
The cat became a great lord, and never again ran after mice, except for entertainment.
Exercises
I. Ответьте на вопросы:
1. How many sons did the miller have?
2. What did the eldest son take?
3. What did the cat ask his new master for?
4. How did the cat catch the rabbit?
5. What title did the cat give to his master?
6. Was the king pleased with the gifts?
7. Who was passing by the riverside?
8. Did the meadow belong to the Marquis of Carabas?
9. How did the ogre die?
10. Whom did the Marquis of Carabas marry?
II. Расставьте предложения в правильном порядке:
a) “Sir, I have brought you a rabbit from my noble lord, the Marquis of Carabas”.
b) He commanded his guards to help the Marquis of Carabas.
c) There can be nothing finer than this court and all the stately buildings which surround it, said the king.
d) After receiving what he had asked for, the cat gallantly pulled on the boots and slung the bag about his neck.
e) The cat became a great lord, and never again ran after mice, except for entertainment.
f) There was a miller whose only inheritance to his three sons was his mill, his donkey, and his cat.
g) The king was surprised at the big estates of the Lord Marquis of Carabas.
III. Заполните пропуски:
1. The eldest took _____________, the second _____________, and the youngest took the cat.
2. The cat continued, from time to time for two or three months, to take ________ to his majesty from his master.
3. If you will follow my ________ your fortune is made.
4. The cat ran ____________.
5. Let us go inside, if you ___________________.
6. It will be your own ________, my Lord Marquis, if you do not become my _____________.
7. The cat became a great _______, and never again ran after mice, except for _____________.
IV. Поставьте глаголы в Present Indefinite:
1. The poor young fellow was quite comfortless.
2. He went to a place where were a lot of rabbits.
3. He again held his bag open, and when a brace of partridges ran into it, he drew the strings, and caught them both.
4. The cat, who found out who this ogre was and what he could do, asked to speak with him.
5. The cat became a great lord.
V. Узнайте слова:
VI. Соотнесите английские слова с переводом:
meanwhile – окружать
possess – вина
fault – совет
fall – upon – тем – временем
surround – развлечение
entertainment – узнать
find – out – парень
fellow – владеть
for – certain – наверняка
riverside – удача
son-in-law – нападать
advice – берег – реки
fortune – зять
VII. Cкажите иначе:
1. The only inheritance of the miller to his three sons was his mill, his donkey, and his cat.
2. The king received him very courteously.
3. I can scarcely believe that.
4. Let us go inside, if you don’t mind.
5. Meanwhile the king decided to go inside.
VIII. Заполните таблицу формами неправильных глаголов:
Little Red Riding Hood
(After Charles Perrault)
Красная шапочка
Once upon a time[23] there lived in a certain village a little country girl, the prettiest creature who was ever seen. Her mother was fond of her; and her grandmother doted on her still more. This good woman had a little red riding hood made for her. It suited the girl so extremely well that everybody called her Little Red Riding Hood.
22
accepted the honor which his majesty conferred upon him – принял почет, которым одарил его король