Лучшие романы Томаса Майна Рида / The Best of Thomas Mayne Reid

The jacalГ© was the goal of his journey.

Having slipped out of his saddle, and knotted his bridle to aВ branch, he set foot upon the threshold.

The door was standing wide open. From the inside proceeded aВ sound, easily identified as the snore of aВ slumberer.

It was not as of one who sleeps either tranquilly, or continuously. At short intervals it was interrupted – now by silent pauses – anon by hog-like gruntings, interspersed with profane words, not perfectly pronounced, but slurred from a thick tongue, over which, but a short while before, must have passed a stupendous quantity of alcohol.

“Carrambo! carrai! carajo – chingara! mil diablos!” mingled with more – perhaps less – reverential exclamations of “Sangre[228 - sangre – blood (Spanish)]de Cristo! Jesus! Santíssima Virgen! Santa Maria! Dios! Madre de Dios![229 - Madre de Dios – the Holy Virgin, Mother of Jesus (Spanish)]” and the like, were uttered inside the jacalé, as if the speaker was engaged in an apostrophic conversation with all the principal characters of the Popish[230 - Popish – Catholic] antheon.

Calhoun paused upon the threshold, and listened.

“Mal – dit – dit – o!” muttered the sleeper, concluding the exclamation with a hiccup. “Buen – buenos nove-dad-es! Good news, por sangre Chrees – Chreest – o! Si S’ñor Merican – cano! Nove – dad – es s’perbos! Los Indyos Co – co – manchees on the war-trail – el rastro de guerra.

“The brute’s drunk!” said his visitor, mechanically speaking aloud.

“H’la S’ñor!” exclaimed the owner of the jacalé, aroused to a state of semi-consciousness by the sound of a human voice. “Quien llama! Who has the honour – that is, have I the happiness – I, Miguel Diaz – el Co – coyote, as the leperos[231 - leperos – rascals (Spanish)] call me.

Partially raising himself from his reed couch, the inebriate remained for a short time in a sitting attitude – glaring, half interrogatively, half unconsciously, at the individual whose voice had intruded itself into his drunken dreams.

The unsteady examination lasted only for aВ score of seconds.