Irish Tales / Ирландские сказки. Книга для чтения на английском языке

That vagabond, bad luck to him – ’

�You mean Donald O’Neary?’

�And who else should I mean? He’s back here weighing out sackfuls of gold.’

�How do you know that?’

�Here are my scales that he borrowed, and here’s a gold piece still sticking to them.’

Off they went together, and they came to Donald’s door. Donald had finished making the last pile of ten gold pieces. And he couldn’t finish because a piece had stuck to the scales.

In they walked without an �If you please’ or �By your leave’[3 - without an �If you please’ or �By your leave’ – (устар.

�Well, I never![4 - Well, I never! – (воскл.) Ну ничего себе!]’ That was all they could say.

�Good evening, Hudden; good-evening, Dudden. Ah! You thought you had played me a fine trick, but you never did me a better turn in all your lives. When I found poor Daisy dead, I thought to myself, �Well, her hide may fetch something’; and it did.

Hudden nudged Dudden, and Dudden winked at Hudden.

�Good evening, Donald O’Neary.’

�Good evening, kind friends.’

The next day there wasn’t a cow or a calf that belonged to Hudden or Dudden but her hide was going to the fair in Hudden’s biggest cart drawn by Dudden’s strongest pair of horses.

When they came to the fair, each one took a hide over his arm, and there they were walking through the fair, bawling out at the top of their voices, �Hides to sell! Hides to sell!’

Out came the tanner.

�How much for your hides, my good men?’

�Their weight in gold.’

�It’s early in the day to come out of the tavern.’ That was all the tanner said, and back he went to his yard.

�Hides to sell! Fine fresh hides to sell!’

Out came the cobbler.

�How much for your hides, my men?’

�Their weight in gold.

�Is it making game of me you are! Take that for your pains,’ and the cobbler dealt Hudden a blow that made him stagger.

Up the people came running from one end of the fair to the other. �What’s the matter? What’s the matter?’ cried they.

�Here are a couple of vagabonds selling hides at their weight in gold,’ said the cobbler.

�Hold ’em fast; hold ’em fast!’ bawled the innkeeper, who was the last to come up, he was so fat.