American Fairy Tales / Американские волшебные сказки. Книга для чтения на английском языке

American Fairy Tales / Американские волшебные сказки. Книга для чтения на английском языке

Лаймен Фрэнк Баум

Е. Г. Тигонен

Чтение в оригинале (Каро)Classical literature (Каро)

Предлагаем вниманию читателей сказки американского писателя Лаймена Фрэнка Баума (1856–1919), автора знаменитой книги «Волшебник из страны Оз».

Книга адресована всем любителям англоязычной литературы.

Lyman Frank Baum / Лаймен Фрэнк Баум

American Fairy Tales / Американские волшебные сказки. Книга для чтения на английском языке

В© РљРђР Рћ, 2015

The Box of Robbers

No one intended to leave Martha alone that afternoon, but it happened that everyone was called away, for one reason or another.

Mrs. McFarland was attending the weekly card party held by the Women’s Anti-Gambling League. Sister Nell’s young man had called quite unexpectedly to take her for a long drive.

Papa was at the office, as usual. It was Mary Ann’s day out. As for Emeline, she certainly should have stayed in the house and looked after the little girl; but Emeline had a restless nature.

“Would you mind, miss, if I just crossed the alley to speak a word to Mrs.

Carleton’s girl?” she asked Martha.

“’course not,” replied the child. “You’d better lock the back door, though, and take the key, for I shall be upstairs.”

“Oh, I’ll do that, of course, miss,” said the delighted maid, and ran away to spend the afternoon with her friend, leaving Martha quite alone in the big house, and locked in, into the bargain[1 - into the bargain – (разг.) к тому же].

The little girl read a few pages in her new book, sewed a few stitches in her embroidery and started to “play visiting” with her four favorite dolls.

Then she remembered that in the attic was a doll’s playhouse that hadn’t been used for months, so she decided she would dust it and put it in order.

Filled with this idea, the girl climbed the winding stairs to the big room under the roof. It was well lighted by three dormer windows and was warm and pleasant.