Arthur Conan Doyle - Английский язык с Шерлоком Холмсом. Знак четырех
gorgeous [ˈɡɔ:ʤǝs], dozen [ˈdʌz(ǝ)n], dispense [dɪˈspens]
"It was rather a queer position that we found ourselves in then. There we were all four tied by the leg and with precious little chance of ever getting out again, while we each held a secret which might have put each of us in a palace if we could only have made use of it. It was enough to make a man eat his heart out to have to stand the kick and the cuff of every petty jack-in-office, to have rice to eat and water to drink, when that gorgeous fortune was ready for him outside, just waiting to be picked up. It might have driven me mad; but I was always a pretty stubborn one, so I just held on and bided my time.
"At last it seemed to me to have come. I was changed from Agra to Madras, and from there to Blair Island in the Andamans. There are very few white convicts at this settlement, and, as I had behaved well from the first, I soon found myself a sort of privileged person. I was given a hut in Hope Town, which is a small place on the slopes of Mount Harriet, and I was left pretty much to myself. It is a dreary, fever-stricken place, and all beyond our little clearings was infested with wild cannibal natives, who were ready enough to blow a poisoned dart at us if they saw a chance. There was digging, and ditching, and yam-planting, and a dozen other things to be done, so we were busy enough all day; though in the evening we had a little time to ourselves. Among other things, I learned to dispense drugs for the surgeon, and picked up a smattering of his knowledge. All the time I was on the lookout for a chance of escape; but it is hundreds of miles from any other land, and there is little or no wind in those seas: so it was a terribly difficult job to get away.
"The surgeon, Dr. Somerton, was a fast, sporting young chap (хирург, доктор Сомертон, был резвым, спортивным молодым парнем; fast — быстрый, скорый), and the other young officers would meet in his rooms of an evening and play cards (и другие молодые офицеры обычно собирались у него по вечерам играть в карты). The surgery, where I used to make up my drugs (его кабинет, где я обычно готовил лекарства; surgery — хирургия; кабинет или приемная врача с аптекой; to make up — готовить), was next to his sitting-room, with a small window between us (был рядом с его гостиной, две комнаты соединяло небольшое окошко: «с небольшим окошком между нами»). Often, if I felt lonesome, I used to turn out the lamp in the surgery (часто, если мне было одиноко: «если я чувствовал одиночество», я гасил свет в кабинете; to turn out — выворачивать; гасить, выключать), and then, standing there, I could hear their talk and watch their play (и затем, стоя у окошка, слушал их беседу и смотрел, как они играют). I am fond of a hand at cards myself (я и сам не прочь сыграть; to be fond of smth. — питать пристрастие к чему-либо; hand — рука; карты на руках у игрока; партия, кон), and it was almost as good as having one to watch the others (и глядя, как они играют, я словно играл сам: «и наблюдать других было почти так же хорошо, как иметь партию самому»). There was Major Sholto, Captain Morstan (там были майор Шолто, капитан Морстен), and Lieutenant Bromley Brown, who were in command of the native troops (и лейтенант Бромли Браун, командовавшие туземной охраной: «войсками из туземцев»), and there was the surgeon himself, and two or three prison-officials (сам хирург, и двое или трое тюремных чиновников), crafty old hands who played a nice sly safe game (искусных, опытных картежников, игравших изящно, хитро и беспроигрышно; crafty — коварный, хитроумный, хитрый; craft — ремесло; ловкость, умение, искусство; сноровка; old hand — бывалый человек, знаток, мастер своего дела; sly — коварный, ловкий, хитрый; safe — безопасный; осторожный, осмотрительный). A very snug little party they used to make (уютненькая у них обычно получалась компания; snug — удобный; приятный; уютный).
"Well, there was one thing which very soon struck me (ну, очень скоро меня поразило одно; to strike — ударять/ся/; поражать, производить впечатление), and that was that the soldiers used always to lose and the civilians to win (то, что военные обычно всегда проигрывали, а гражданские выигрывали; to lose — не сохранять, терять; проигрывать; to win — побеждать; выигрывать). Mind, I don't say that there was anything unfair, but so it was (имейте в виду, я не говорю, что кто-нибудь жульничал, но так вот получалось; unfair — несправедливый; непорядочный; нечестный). These prison-chaps had done little else than play cards ever since they had been at the Andamans (эти тюремные крысы ничем особо и не занимались, кроме как игрой в карты, с того самого момента, как они оказались на Андаманских островах; chap — парень), and they knew each other's game to a point (и они досконально изучили игру друг друга; point — точка, пятнышко; to know to a point — точно знать), while the others just played to pass the time and threw their cards down anyhow (в то время как другие играли, чтобы просто провести время, и сильно в игру не вникали: «кидали свои карты как попало»). Night after night the soldiers got up poorer men (от вечера к вечеру военные становились все беднее; to get up — подниматься, вставать), and the poorer they got the more keen they were to play (и чем беднее они становились, тем больше им хотелось отыграться; keen — острый, с колющим концом; увлеченный, пылкий, стремящийся). Major Sholto was the hardest hit (особенно это касалось майора Шолто; hit — толчок, удар; попадание). He used to pay in notes and gold at first (сначала он платил банкнотами и золотом; note — заметка, запись; банкнота), but soon it came to notes of hand and for big sums (но вскоре дело дошло до долговых расписок, и на большие суммы; note of hand — простой вексель; долговая расписка). He sometimes would win for a few deals, just to give him heart (он иногда выигрывал несколько конов, как раз, чтобы подбодриться; deal — некоторое количество; раздача; to give heart — ободрять), and then the luck would set in against him worse than ever (а затем удача отворачивалась от него еще полнее: «хуже чем когда-либо»). All day he would wander about as black as thunder (весь день он бродил мрачный как туча; to wander — бродить, странствовать; thunder — гром), and he took to drinking a deal more than was good for him (и он стал не в меру выпивать: «пристрастился к выпивке намного больше, чем было хорошо для него»; to take to smth. — привязаться, пристраститься к чему-либо).
prison [ˈprɪz(ǝ)n], poorer [ˈpuǝrǝ, ˈpɔ:rǝ]
"The surgeon, Dr. Somerton, was a fast, sporting young chap, and the other young officers would meet in his rooms of an evening and play cards. The surgery, where I used to make up my drugs, was next to his sitting-room, with a small window between us. Often, if I felt lonesome, I used to turn out the lamp in the surgery, and then, standing there, I could hear their talk and watch their play. I am fond of a hand at cards myself, and it was almost as good as having one to watch the others. There was Major Sholto, Captain Morstan, and Lieutenant Bromley Brown, who were in command of the native troops, and there was the surgeon himself, and two or three prison-officials, crafty old hands who played a nice sly safe game. A very snug little party they used to make.
"Well, there was one thing which very soon struck me, and that was that the soldiers used always to lose and the civilians to win. Mind, I don't say that there was anything unfair, but so it was. These prison-chaps had done little else than play cards ever since they had been at the Andamans, and they knew each other's game to a point, while the others just played to pass the time and threw their cards down anyhow. Night after night the soldiers got up poorer men, and the poorer they got the more keen they were to play. Major Sholto was the hardest hit. He used to pay in notes and gold at first, but soon it came to notes of hand and for big sums. He sometimes would win for a few deals, just to give him heart, and then the luck would set in against him worse than ever. All day he would wander about as black as thunder, and he took to drinking a deal more than was good for him.
"One night he lost even more heavily than usual (однажды вечером он проигрался еще хуже, чем обычно). I was sitting in my hut (я сидел в своей хижине) when he and Captain Morstan came stumbling along on the way to their quarters (когда он и капитан Морстен возвращались неровной походкой к себе; to stumble — спотыкаться, оступаться; quarter — четверть, четвертая часть; quarters — жилище, квартира). They were bosom friends, those two, and never far apart (они были закадычные приятели, эти два, где один, там и другой: «никогда далеко друг от друга»; bosom — грудь; пазуха; душа, сердце; bosom friend — близкий друг; apart — в стороне, обособленно; врозь, порознь). The major was raving about his losses (майор бесновался из-за своих проигрышей; to rave — бредить, говорить бессвязно; говорить слишком возбужденно; неистовствовать, бесноваться; loss — потеря; проигрыш).
