shoulder. Then the stranger pushed him over the cliff. The seal catcher fell with a splash into the sea. He thought that was his last hour.
But, to his astonishment, he could breathe quite easily. He and his companion, sank quickly down through the sea.
Down and down they went. At last they came to a huge arched door. The door was made of pink coral and cockle-shells[10]. It opened. When they entered they found themselves[11] in a huge hall. The walls of that hall were of mother-of-pearl[12]. The floor of that hall was of sea-sand. It was smooth, and firm, and yellow.
The hall was crowded with occupants. They were seals, not men. What it all meant? Suddenly the seal catcher found that his guide, too, became a seal. He was still more aghast when he saw himself in a large mirror. The mirror hung on the wall. The hunter saw that he was also no longer a man. He was a nice, hairy, brown seal!
“Ah, woe to me![13]” he said to himself. “Why did this artful stranger cast some baneful charm upon me? In this awful guise I will remain for the rest of my life!”
At first none of the huge creatures spoke to him. They were very sad. They moved gently about the hall. They talked quietly and mournfully to one another. The wiped big tears from their eyes with their soft furry fins.
But presently they noticed him. They began to whisper to one another. His guide moved away from him. He disappeared through a door at the end of the hall. When the guide returned he held a huge knife in his hand.
“Have you ever seen this before?” he asked.
He showed the knife to the unfortunate seal catcher. The seal catcher recognised his own knife. With that knife he wanted to kill the seal in the morning.
The hunter begged for mercy. He was afraid of the inhabitants of the cavern. Do they want to wreak their vengeance upon him?
But they crowded round him. They rubbed their soft noses against his fur. They showed their sympathy.
“Don't be afraid,” they said. “We will do you no harm. We will love you. But do what we ask you.”
“Tell me what it is,” said the seal catcher, “and I will do it.”
“Follow me,” answered his guide.
He went to the door. The seal catcher followed him. And there, in a smaller room, he found a great brown seal on a bed of pale pink sea-weed. The seal had a wound in his side.
“That is my father,” said his guide, “whom you wounded this morning. I brought you hither to bind up his wounds. Only you can heal him.”
“I can't heal,” said the seal catcher. He was very astonished. “But I will try to bind up the wound. I am very sorry for that.”
He went over to the bed. He stooped over the wounded Merman. He washed and dressed the wound. His hands worked very well. The wound deadened and died. The old seal sprang up, as well as ever[14].
The seals in the Palace of the Seals were very glad. They laughed, talked and embraced each other. They crowded round their comrade, and rubbed their noses against his. They were very delighted at his recovery.
The seal catcher stood alone in a corner. His mind was filled with dark thoughts. He did not want to spend his life in the guise of a seal, deep under the ocean.
But then, to his great joy, his guide approached him, and said,
“Now you may return home to your wife and children. I will take you to them. But you have to promise me something.”
“What is that?” asked the seal catcher eagerly.
“Promise me that you will never wound a seal again.”
“I will gladly do that!” he replied.
All the seals gathered round him to listen to him. They were all very happy to hear it. He was the most famous seal catcher in the North.
Then he passed once more through the outer doors of coral, and up, and up, and up, through the shadowy green water. At last he and his guide entered the sunshine of earth. Then they reached the top of the cliff. The great black horse waited for them.
They left the water. Their strange disguise dropped from them. They were now a seal catcher and a tall, well-dressed gentleman.
Soon the seal catcher found himself in safety before his own garden gate. He wanted to say “good-bye”. But the stranger pulled out a huge bag of gold.
“This bag is for you. I think that is enough for the rest of your days,” he said.
Then he vanished. The astonished seal catcher carried the bag into his cottage. He turned the gold out on the table. The stranger was right. The hunter became a rich man for the rest of his days!
1. Какую клятву дал охотник на тюленей?
1) never to fish
2) never to dance
3) never to wound a seal
4) never to eat meat
5) never to sing songs
2. Кто такие Merwomen?
1) феи
2) вдовы
3) жёны рыбаков
4) русалки
5) лесные ведьмы
3. С помощью какого оружия охотник собирался убить тюленя?
1) pistol
2) stick
3) harpoon
4) knife
5) knuckleduster
4. Who was the stranger?
1) A great brown seal's son.
2) A great black seal's brother.
3) A great blue seal's father.
4) A great white seal's cousin.
5) A great red seal's uncle.
5. Вставьте нужное слово:
The country people called the big seals ____________________.
1) Doane
2) Roane
3) Moane
4) Foane
cockle-shells – ракушки
they found themselves – они оказались
mother-of-pearl – перламутр
Ah, woe to me! – О, горе мне!
as well as ever – как ни в чём не бывало
