Лучшие сказки мира на английском языке. Уровень 1 / The Best Fairy Tales of the World

'Dreams go by contraries[63 - dreams go by contraries – дурной сон может предвещать хорошее и наоборот],' said Mr Fox; 'but tell us your dream, and your sweet voice will make the time pass till the happy hour comes.'

'I dreamed,' said Lady Mary, 'that I went to your castle, and I found it in the woods, with high walls, and a deep moat, and over the gateway was a writing:

Be bold, be bold.'

'But it is not so, nor it was not so,' said Mr Fox.

'And when I came to the doorway, over it was a writing:

Be bold, be bold, but not too bold.'

'It is not so, nor it was not so,' said Mr Fox.

'And then I went upstairs, and came to a gallery, at the end of which was a door, on which was a writing:

'Be bold, be bold, but not too bold,
Lest that your heart's blood should run cold.'

'It is not so, nor it was not so,' said Mr Fox.

'And then – and then I opened the door, and the room was filled with[64 - to be filled with – быть наполненным чем-либо] skeletons of poor dead women!'

'It is not so, nor it was not so. And God forbid[65 - God forbid – не дай Бог] it should be so,' said Mr Fox.

'I then dreamed that I rushed down the gallery, and just as I was going down the stairs I saw you, Mr Fox, coming up to the hall door, dragging after you a poor young lady, rich and beautiful.'

'It is not so, nor it was not so. And God forbid it should be so,' said Mr Fox.

'I rushed downstairs, just in time to hide myself behind a cask, when you, Mr Fox, came in dragging the young lady by the arm.

And, as you passed me, Mr Fox, I thought I saw you try and get off her diamond ring, and when you could not, Mr Fox, it seemed to me in my dream, that you took your sword and hacked off the poor lady's hand to get the ring.'

'It is not so, nor it was not so. And God forbid it should be so,' said Mr Fox, and was going to say something else as he rose from his seat, when Lady Mary cried out:

'But it is so, and it was so. Here's hand and ring I have to show,' and pulled out the lady's hand from her dress, and pointed it straight at Mr Fox.

At once her brothers and her friends drew their swords and cut Mr Fox into a thousand pieces.

The Useful Dragon

Once upon a time there lived a dragon whose name was Komodo. He could breathe fire[66 - to breathe fire – извергать огонь], and all the people who lived nearby were afraid of him. When they heard him or saw him, they ran away and hid. They could always hear him because he had six feet, and wore three pairs of shoes, and each of his shoes creaked.