Тhе Elephant's Child

Тhе Elephant's Child

Author. Опсе uроп а time the Elephant had nо trunk. Не had only а blackish, flat nose, as big as a boot. But there was оnе Elephant's Child; who was full of curiosity. Не filled аll Africa with his curiosity, Оnе finе morning the Elephant's Child asked а new question.
Eleph. (к Страусу). What does the Crocodile have for dinner?
Ostrich. Hushl (Шлепает Слоненка.)
Eleph. (к Жирафу). What does the Crocodile have for dinner?
Giraffe. Hush! (Шлепает Слоненка.)
Eleph. (к Бегемоту). What does the Crocodile have for dinner?
Hippopotamus. Нush l (Шлепает Слоненка.)
(Появляется Птичка.)
Eleph. (к Птичке). Му father has spanked mе, and my mother has spanked mе; аll my aunts and uncles have spanked mе for ту curiosity; and still I want to know what the Crocodile has for dinnerl
Bird. Go to the banks of the great grey-green Limpopo River and find out. (Убегает.)

Author. The Elephant's Child took а hundred pounds of bananas, and a hundred pounds of sugar-cane, and seventeen melons, and said to аll his dear family...
Eleph. Goodbye. I am going to the great grey-green Limpopo River to find out what the Crocodile has for dinner.

Eleph. (очень вежливо). Stop! Please, stop it!
(Слоненок ходит по сцене, напевая и поедая бананы, расшвыривает кожуру. В это время Автор говорит.)
Author. Now уоu must know and understand that till that уегу week and day, and hour, and minute, this Elephant's Child nеvег saw а Crocodile and did поt know what he was like. The first thing that he found оn the
bank was а Black and White Rock-Snake.

Eleph. (очень вежливо). Excuse те, but have уоu sееп such а thing as а Crocodile here?
Snake. Науе I seen а Crocodile? What will уоu ask mе nехt?
Eleph. (очень вежливо). Excuse те, but could уои tell mе what he has for dinner?

Eleph. (в зал). How strange, everybody snaks mе for mу curiosity. (Змею.) Goodbye. (Уходит.)
Snake. See уоu sооп. (Уходит.)

Eleph. Excuse те, but haven't уоu seen а Crocodile here?
Crocodile (снова подмигивает). Соmе here, Little Оnе. Why do уоu ask such things?
Eleph. Excuse те, but I don't want to bе spanked again.
Crocodile. Соmе, come here, Little Оnе, I'm the Crocodile. (Вытирает слезу.)
Eleph. Oh, уоu аrе а person that I'm looking for. Please tell mе what уоu have for dinner.
Crocodile. Соmе nеаrеr, Little Опе, and I'll whisper.

Crocodile. I think today I'll begin with аn Elephant Child.
Eleph. Let go! You аге hurting mе! (Тянет изо всех сих.).

Snake. My young friend, if you do not pull now as hard as уоu саn, I think that the Crocodile will pull уоu into the river before уоu саn say а word. (Крокодил продолжает тянуть, Слоненок упирается.)
Eleph. (через нос). This is too much for mе!
Snake. Little traveller, let's pull together, because if we don't pull hard enough, the Crocodile will have уоu for dinner. (Помогает Слоненку.)
Author (пока они тянут). And the Elephant's Child pulled, and pulled, and pulled, and his nose stretched and stretched; and the Crocodile pulled, and pulled, and pulled, and at each pull the Elephant's Child's nose grew longer and longer. (Громко.) At last the Crocodile let go of the Elephant's Child's nose! (Крокодил отпускает хобот и уползает.)
Eleph. (к змею‏). Thank you. Oh, my nose hurts me badly! (Опускает хотоб в ведро с водой.)
Snake. Why are you doing that?
Eleph. Excuse me, but my nose is too long now, and perhaps! it will shrink in the water.
Snake. Then you must wait a long time.
(Слонёнок сидит над ведром, ждёт.)
Author. The Elephant's Child sat there for three days, and though his nose was in the water it did not grow any shorter. Now it looked like a trunk, the same as all Elephants have today. (Слонёнок вынимает хобот, рассматривает его.)

Fly. Zzz! .. (Щипет Слонёнка в плечо, а тот её шлёпает хоботом; Муха падает со слабым «Zzz ... ».)
Snake. You see how useful your trunk is. You could not do that before with your little flat nose, which was no bigger than a boot. Now tell me, do you want to be spanked again?
Eleph. Excuse me, I don't want it at all.
Snake. But do ףyou want to spank somebody?
Eleph. Oh, yes, of course, I do!
Snake. Very well, now it is quite easy.
Eleph. Thank you, I'll go home to my dear family and try. Goodbye.
(Берёт сво рюкзачок и уходит)
Snake. Goodbye, Little Kid. (Уходит. Муха убегает тоже.)
Brother. Oh, what have you done to your nose?
Eleph. I got a new nose from the Crocodile on the banks of the great grey-green Limpopo River.
Sister. It looks very ugly.
Eleph. It does. But it's very useful. (Шлёпает их и всех других зверей, кроме Птички. Слонёнок безобразничает: выдёргивает крылья из хвоста Страуса; набирает воды из ведра и наливает в ухо Бегемотихе, пока та прилегла; схватил за ногу Жирафа; те все убегают.)
Sister (с восторгом). How nice!
Brother. Let's go to the banks of the great grey-green Limpopo River to get such noses from the Crocodile, too! (Поспешно укладывают рюкзаки, уходят)
Author. And since that day all theElephants trunks exactly like the trunk of the Elephant's Child. (׃ץמהטע, Уходят, поклонившись).

Pupil.
Ш keep six honest serving-men;
       (They taught me all I knew),
Their names What and Why and When
       And How and Where and Who.

I send them over land and sea,
       I send them east and west;
But after they have worked for עו, me,
       I give them all a rest.

I let them rest from nine till five,
       For I am busy then,
As well as breakfast, lunch and tea,
       For they are fungry men.

But diffודוnt folk have different views:
       I know a person small -
She keeps ten million serving-men,
       Who get no rest at all.

She sends 'em abroad on her own affairs,
       From the second she opens her eyes
       One million Hows, two million Wheres
       And seven million Whys!