Читать интересную книгу Самые лучшие английские сказки - Сергей Матвеев

Then he said, “What are you three doing? Why are you sitting and crying?”

“Oh!” says the father, “look at that horrid mallet! Just think: if you and our daughter marry, and you have a son, and he grows up and comes down into the cellar to bring the beer, the mallet will fall on his head and kill him. How awful! How awful!” And then they all started to cry worse than before.

But the gentleman smiled, and took the mallet, and then he said, “I travelled many miles, and I never met such big sillies as you three before. Now I shall start my travels again, and when I can find three bigger sillies than you three, then I’ll come back and marry your daughter.” So he wished them good-bye, and went away. The three sillies were all crying because the girl lost her sweetheart.

Well, he travelled a long way, and at last[57] he came to a woman’s cottage. It had some grass on the roof. And the woman was trying to get her cow to go up a ladder[58] to the grass. So the gentleman asked the woman what she was doing. “Look at all that beautiful grass,” she said, “I’m going to feed my cow with it.” “Oh, you poor silly!” said the gentleman, “you must cut the grass and throw it down[59] to the cow!”

Well, that was one big silly.

Then the gentleman came to an inn. In the morning he saw a strange man. He hang his trousers on the knobs of the chest of drawers[60] and ran across the room and tried to jump into them. At last he stopped and wiped his face with his handkerchief. “Trousers,” he says, “are the most terrible kind of clothes in the world. Who could invent such things?! I usually spend an hour to get into my trousers every morning!” So the gentleman laughed, and showed him how to put the trousers on.[61]

So that was another big silly.

Then the gentleman came to a village. Outside the village there was a pond, and round the pond was a crowd of people. And they had rakes, and brooms, and pitchforks, and they were piercing the water of the pond. The gentleman asked what was the matter. “Don’t you see,[62]” they say, “Moon fell down into the pond, and we can’t catch it!” So the gentleman laughed, and told them to look up into the sky, and that it was only the shadow in the water. But they didn’t listen to him, and abused him.

And he saw more and more sillies, even more than three. So the gentleman came back home again and married the farmer’s daughter. And if they didn’t live happily, that’s nothing to do with you or me.[63]

Упражнения

1. Выберите правильный вариант:

1. The farmer’s daughter was smart.

2. The farmer’s daughter was not clever.

3. The farmer’s daughter was very kind.

4. The farmer’s daughter was not tidy.

2. What is a mallet?

1. a hammer with a large wooden head

2. a cutting tool with a metal edge

3. a heavy iron bar

4. tool with a pair of jaws

3. What is an inn?

1. a farm in which the farmer gives animals some food

2. a place where one can buy meals

3. a small hotel

4. an institution for the medical care

4. Why was the woman trying to get her cow to go up a ladder?

1. She wanted to teach it how to fly.

2. She wanted to test her ladder.

3. She wanted to give the cow some good grass.

4. The cow asked her itself.

5. What did the gentleman teach the strange man?

1. He taught him a nice song.

2. He showed him how to travel.

3. He did not teach him anything.

4. He showed him how to put the trousers on.

6. Why did the girl begin to cry?

1. She was angry.

2. She fell down.

3. She was sorry for her future son.

4. She did not want to marry.

7. Выберите нужный предлог:

outside – at – into – over

1. The beer was running all _____________ the floor.

2. Look _____________ that horrid mallet.

3. _____________ the village there was a pond, and round the pond was a crowd of people.

4. I usually spend an hour to get _____________ my trousers every morning.

8. Ответьте на вопросы:

1. How many persons are mentioned in the story?

2. What have you learned about them?

3. What do you like and what don’t you like in them?

4. What would you do if you were the main character of the story?

5. What is the end of the story?

6. How can you explain the title of the story?

7. Retell the story.

9. Заполните таблицу:

Ответы:

1. The farmer’s daughter was not clever.

2. a hammer with a large wooden head

3. a small hotel

4. She wanted to give the cow some good grass.

5. He showed him how to put the trousers on.

6. She was sorry for her future son.

7.

1. The beer was running all over the floor.

2. Look at that horrid mallet.

3. Outside the village there was a pond, and round the pond was a crowd of people.

4. I usually spend an hour to get into my trousers every morning.

9.

The Old Woman and Her Pig

An old woman was sweeping her house, and she found a sixpence. “What,” said she, “shall I do with this little sixpence? I will go to market, and buy a little pig.”

While she was coming home, she came to a stile: but the pig did not want to go over the stile.

She went a little further, and she met a dog. So she said to the dog, “Dog! bite the pig; the pig doesn’t go over the stile; and I shan’t get home tonight.” But the dog refused.

She went a little further, and she met a stick. So she said, “Stick! stick! beat the dog! The dog doesn’t bite the pig; the pig doesn’t get over the stile; and I shan’t get home tonight.” But the stick refused.

She went a little further, and she met a fire. So she said, “Fire! fire! burn the stick; the stick doesn’t beat the dog; the dog doesn’t bite the pig; the pig doesn’t get over the stile; and I shan’t get home tonight.” But the fire refused.

She went a little further, and she met some water. So she said, “Water, water! quench the fire; the fire doesn’t burn the stick; the stick doesn’t beat the dog; the dog doesn’t bite the pig; the pig doesn’t get over the stile; and I shan’t get home tonight.” But the water refused.

She went a little further, and she met an ox. So she said, “Ox! ox! drink the water; the water doesn’t quench the fire; the fire doesn’t burn the stick; the stick doesn’t beat the dog; the dog doesn’t bite the pig; the pig doesn’t get over the stile; and I shan’t get home tonight.” But the ox refused.

She went a little further, and she met a butcher. So she said, “Butcher! butcher! kill the ox; the ox doesn’t drink the water; the water doesn’t quench the fire; the fire doesn’t burn the stick; the stick doesn’t beat the dog; the dog doesn’t bite the pig; the pig doesn’t get over the stile; and I shan’t get home tonight.” But the butcher refused.

She went a little further, and she met a rope. So she said, “Rope! rope! hang the butcher; the butcher doesn’t kill the ox; the ox doesn’t drink the water; the water doesn’t quench the fire; the fire doesn’t burn the stick; the stick doesn’t beat the dog; the dog doesn’t bite the pig; the pig doesn’t get over the stile; and I shan’t get home tonight.” But the rope refused.

She went a little further, and she met a rat. So she said, “Rat! rat! gnaw rope; rope doesn’t hang the butcher; the butcher doesn’t kill the ox; the ox doesn’t drink the water; the water doesn’t quench the fire; the fire doesn’t burn the stick; the stick doesn’t beat the dog; the dog doesn’t bite the pig; the pig doesn’t get over the stile; and I shan’t get home tonight.” But the rat refused.

She went a little further, and she met a cat. So she said, “Cat! cat! kill the rat; the rat doesn’t gnaw the rope; the rope doesn’t hang the butcher; the butcher doesn’t kill the ox; the ox doesn’t drink the water; the water doesn’t quench the fire; the fire doesn’t burn the stick; the stick doesn’t beat the dog; the dog doesn’t bite the pig; the pig doesn’t get over the stile; and I shan’t get home tonight.” But the cat said to her, “If you go to that cow, and fetch me a saucer of milk, I will kill the rat.”

So the old woman went away to the cow.

But the cow said to her, “If you go to that haystack, and fetch me some hay, I’ll give you the milk.”

So the old woman went away to the haystack and she brought the hay to the cow.

When the cow ate the hay, it gave the old woman the milk; and she went with it in a saucer to the cat.

When the cat lapped up[64] the milk, the cat began to kill the rat; the rat began to gnaw the rope; the rope began to hang the butcher; the butcher began to kill the ox; the ox began to drink the water; the water began to quench the fire; the fire began to burn the stick; the stick began to beat the dog; the dog began to bite the pig; the little pig in a fright jumped over the stile, and so the old woman got home that night.

Упражнения

1. Выберите правильный вариант:

1. The old woman wanted to get home.

2. The old woman wanted to get some milk.

3. The old woman wanted to quench the fire.

4. The old woman wanted to beat the dog.

2. What animals are mentioned in this fairy tale?

1. pig – dog – stick – ox – cat

2. pig – stick – butcher – rope – cat

3. dog – water – ox – butcher – cat

4. pig – dog – ox – rat – cat

3. Выберите нужный глагол:

When the cat _____________ up the milk, the cat began to kill the rat.

1. ate

2. lapped

3. lap

4. drinks

4. Выберите нужный предлог:

While she was coming home, she came to a stile: but the pig did not want to go _________ the stile.

1. in

2. of

3. on

4. over

5. Заполните таблицу:

Ответы:

1. The old woman wanted to get home.

2. pig – dog – ox – rat – cat

3. When the cat lapped up the milk, the cat began to kill the rat.

4. While she was coming home, she came to a stile: but the pig did not want to go over the stile.

5.

Jack and the Beanstalk

There was once upon a time a poor widow who had a son named Jack, and a cow named Milky-white. Every morning the cow gave the milk which they carried to the market and sold. But one morning Milky-white gave no milk and they didn’t know what to do.

“What shall we do, what shall we do?” said the widow.

“Oh, mother, I’ll go and get work somewhere,” said Jack.

“We tried that before, and nobody took you,” said his mother. “We must sell Milky-white.”

“All right, mother,” says Jack. “I’ll sell Milky-white, and then we’ll see what we can do.”

So he took the cow’s halter in his hand and went to the market. While he was going, he met an old man who said to him: “Good morning, Jack.”

“Good morning to you,” said Jack, and wondered how he knew his name.

“Jack, where are you going?” said the man.

“I’m going to the market to sell our cow there.”

“Oh, I have five beans,” said the man, “and let’s change:[65] your cow for these beans.”

“You swindler,” says Jack, “it won’t go![66]“

“Ah! you don’t know what these beans are,” said the man. “If you plant them over-night, by morning they grow right up to the sky.[67]”

“Really?” says Jack. “I don’t believe you.”

“Yes, that is so, and if this is not true you can have your cow back.”

“Good,” says Jack, and gives him over Milky-white’s and takes the beans.

Jack came home happily.

“So what,[68] Jack?” said his mother. “I see you don’t have Milky-white, so you sold her. How much did you get for her?”

“You’ll never guess, mother,” says Jack.

“Oh no! Good boy! Five pounds, ten, fifteen… Or twenty?”

“No, just look: five magical beans.”

“What!” says Jack’s mother. “My son is a fool, such a dolt! Oh my dear Milky-white! Take that![69] Take that! Take that! And your precious beans will go out of the window.”

So Jack went upstairs to his little room in the attic, and he was very sad. At last he began to sleep.

When he woke up, the room looked so funny. The sun was shining into part of it, and all the rest[70] was quite dark and shady. So Jack jumped up and dressed himself and went to the window. And what do you think he saw? The beans that his mother threw out of the window into the garden sprang up into a big beanstalk[71] which went up and up and up till it reached the sky. So the man spoke truth!

The beanstalk grew up quite close past Jack’s window, so Jack opened it and jumped on the beanstalk which was like a big ladder. So Jack climbed and he climbed and he climbed and he climbed and he climbed and he climbed and he climbed till at last he reached the sky. And when he got there he found a long broad road. So he walked along and he walked along and he walked along till he came to a great big tall house, and on the doorstep there was a great big tall woman.

“Good morning,” says Jack politely. “Could you give me some breakfast?” He was as hungry as a hunter.[72]

“You want breakfast, don’t you?” says the great big tall woman. “It’s breakfast you’ll be if you don’t go away.[73] My husband is an ogre and he likes to eat boys broiled on toast.”

“Oh! please, give me something to eat. I’m very hungry, really and truly,” says Jack.

The ogre’s wife was a kind woman. So she took Jack into the kitchen, and gave him some bread and some cheese and a jug of milk. Suddenly Jack heard terrible noise, someone was coming.

“Oh, it’s my husband,” said the ogre’s wife, “what shall I do? Here, come quick and jump in here.[74]” And she put Jack into the oven just as the ogre came in.

The ogre was really big. At his belt he had three pigs, and he threw them down on the table and said, “Here, wife, broil me a couple of these for breakfast. Ah! What’s this I smell?[75]”