"As we make our dogs do work?" Koogah asked, with sceptic twinkle in his eye.

"Ay, as we make our dogs do work."

"And how do they breed these — these things (а как они разводят этих — этих тварей)?" Opee-Kwan questioned (вопросил Опи-Кван).

"They breed not at all (они их вовсе не разводят). Men fashion them cunningly of iron (люди искусно создают их из железа), and feed them with stone (и кормят их камнями), and give them water to drink (и дают им пить воду). The stone becomes fire (камни становятся огнем), and the water becomes steam (а вода превращается в пар), and the steam of the water is the breath of their nostrils, and (а водяной пар — это дыхание его ноздрей, и) — "

"There, there, O Nam-Bok (ну-ну, о Нам-Бок)," Opee-Kwan interrupted (перебил Опи-Кван). "Tell us of other wonders (расскажи нам о других чудесах). We grow tired of this which we may not understand (нам надоело это, которое = то, чего мы не можем постигнуть; to grow — расти; становиться; tired — усталый, утомленный; изнуренный; пресыщенный, пресытившийся)."

"You do not understand (вы не понимаете)?" Nam-Bok asked despairingly (в отчаянии спросил Нам-Бок; despair — отчаяние; to despair — падать духом, отчаиваться, терять надежду).

"And how do they breed these — these things?" Opee-Kwan questioned.

"They breed not at all. Men fashion them cunningly of iron, and feed them with stone, and give them water to drink. The stone becomes fire, and the water becomes steam, and the steam of the water is the breath of their nostrils, and — "

"There, there, O Nam-Bok," Opee-Kwan interrupted. "Tell us of other wonders. We grow tired of this which we may not understand."

"You do not understand?" Nam-Bok asked despairingly.

"Nay, we do not understand (нет, мы не понимаем)," the men and women wailed back (снова запричитали мужчины и женщины). "We cannot understand (мы не можем понять)."

Nam-Bok thought of a combined harvester (Нам-Бок вспомнил о комбайне/жатке; harvest — урожай; to harvest — жать, собирать урожай), and of the machines wherein visions of living men were to be seen (и о машинах, в которых можно было увидеть изображения живых людей), and of the machines from which came the voices of men (и о машинах, из которых доносились голоса людей), and he knew his people could never understand (и он осознал, что его народ никогда не сможет понять /это/).

"Dare I say I rode this iron monster through the land (смею ли я сказать, что я ездил на этом железном чудище по стране; to ride — ездить; кататься)?" he asked bitterly (спросил он с горечью).

Opee-Kwan threw up his hands (Опи-Кван вскинул руки), palms outward (ладонями наружу), in open incredulity (в откровенном недоверии). "Say on (говори дальше = продолжай); say anything (говори что угодно). We listen (мы слушаем)."

"Then did I ride the iron monster (потом я поехал на железном чудовище), for which I gave money (за что я дал деньги) — "

"Thou saidst it was fed with stone (ты говорил, что его кормят камнями)."

"Nay, we do not understand," the men and women wailed back. "We cannot understand."

Nam-Bok thought of a combined harvester, and of the machines wherein visions of living men were to be seen, and of the machines from which came the voices of men, and he knew his people could never understand.

"Dare I say I rode this iron monster through the land?" he asked bitterly.

Opee-Kwan threw up his hands, palms outward, in open incredulity. "Say on; say anything. We listen."

"Then did I ride the iron monster, for which I gave money — "

"Thou saidst it was fed with stone."

"And likewise, thou fool (а кроме того, /ты/ глупец), I said money was a thing of which you know nothing (я говорил, что деньги — это вещь, о которой вы ничего не знаете). As I say, I rode the monster through the land (как я говорил, я поехал на чудище через страну), and through many villages (и через много поселков), until I came to a big village on a salt arm of the sea (пока не приехал в большое селение на соленом узком морском заливе). And the houses shoved their roofs among the stars in the sky (и дома взметнули свои крыши среди звезд в небе; to shove — пихать, толкать; выталкивать), and the clouds drifted by them (и облака проплывали мимо них), and everywhere was much smoke (и повсюду было много дыма). And the roar of that village was like the roar of the sea in storm (а грохот этого селения был подобен реву штормового моря), and the people were so many (а людей было так много) that I flung away my stick and no longer remembered the notches upon it (что я выбросил свою палку и больше не вспоминал о зарубках на ней; to fling away — отбросить)."

"And likewise, thou fool, I said money was a thing of which you know nothing. As I say, I rode the monster through the land, and through many villages, until I came to a big village on a salt arm of the sea. And the houses shoved their roofs among the stars in the sky, and the clouds drifted by them, and everywhere was much smoke. And the roar of that village was like the roar of the sea in storm, and the people were so many that I flung away my stick and no longer remembered the I notches upon it."

"Hadst thou made small notches (если бы ты делал маленькие зарубки)," Koogah reproved (упрекнул Куга), "thou mightst have brought report (ты мог бы привести /точный/ отчет)."

Nam-Bok whirled upon him in anger (Нам-Бок взвился на него в гневе; to whirl — бросать, кидать, швырять; нестись, мчаться). "Had I made small notches (если бы я делал маленькие зарубки)! Listen, Koogah, thou scratcher of bone (послушай, Куга, ты, косторез; to scratch — царапать; гравировать)! If I had made small notches (если бы я делал маленькие зарубки), neither the stick, nor twenty sticks, could have borne them (ни палка, ни двадцать палок не смогли бы поместить их на себе; to bear — носить; нести на себе, иметь) — nay, not all the driftwood of all the beaches between this village and the next (нет, ни весь плавучий лес на всех берегах между этим поселком и соседним). And if all of you (и если бы вас всех), the women and children as well (женщин и детей тоже), were twenty times as many (было в двадцать раз больше), and if you had twenty hands each (и если бы у вас было по двадцать рук), and in each hand a stick and a knife (а в каждой руке палка и нож), still the notches could not be cut for the people I saw (все равно невозможно было бы сделать зарубки на всех людей, которых я повидал), so many were they (так много их было) and so fast did they come and go (и так быстро они приходили и уходили = сновали во всех направлениях)."

"Hadst thou made small notches," Koogah reproved, "thou mightst have brought report."

Nam-Bok whirled upon him in anger. "Had I made small notches! Listen, Koogah, thou scratcher of bone! If I had made small notches, neither the stick, nor twenty sticks, could have borne them — nay, not all the driftwood of all the beaches between this village and the next. And if all of you, the women and children as well, were twenty times as many, and if you had twenty hands each, and in each hand a stick and a knife, still the notches could not be cut for the people I saw, so many were they and so fast did they come and go."