"Blyton, Enid - Adv 05 - Mountain of Adventure" - читать интересную книгу автора (Blyton Enid)

Chapter 4

UP ON THE MOUNTAINSIDE



TREFOR the shepherd had a small cabin-like cottage a good way up the mountainside. Around him for miles grazed the sheep. Nearer in were that year's lambs, now grown into sturdy little beasts, their woolly coats showing up against the sheared bodies of the older sheep.

The shepherd was having a simple meal when they got to his hut. He had bread, butter, cream cheese and onions, and beside him a great jug of milk that he had cooled by standing in the stream that ran down the mountainside nearby.

He nodded his head to the children as they came up. He was a curious-looking old fellow, with longish untidy hair, a straggling beard, and two of the brightest blue eyes the children had ever seen.

He spoke Welsh, which they didn't understand. "Can you speak English?" asked Jack. "We can't understand what you say."

Trefor knew a few words of English, which, after much thought and munching of onions, he spoke.

"Donkeys. Tomorrow."

He added something the children didn't understand, and waved his hand down the mountainside towards the farm-house.

"He means the donkeys will arrive tomorrow at the farm," said Jack. "Good! Perhaps Aunt Allie and Bill will come for a picnic on the donkeys."

Trefor was very interested in Kiki. He had never in his life seen a parrot. He pointed at Kiki and laughed a hoarse laugh. Kiki at once copied it.

Trefor looked startled. "Wipe your feet," said Kiki sternly. "How many times have I told you to shut the door? Three blind mice!"

Trefor stared at the parrot, half alarmed. Kiki cackled loudly. "Look you, whateffer, look you, whateffer, look . . ."

The children laughed. Jack tapped Kiki on the beak. "Now, now, Kiki — don't show off."

Snowy butted against Philip's legs. She didn't like so much attention being given to Kiki. Philip turned, and the little creature leapt straight into his arms. Trefor seemed most amused and sent out a flood of Welsh words that nobody could understand at all. He tapped Philip on the arm, and then pointed to the ground to show the children that he wanted them to sit down.

They sat down, wondering what he wanted. He went a little way down the hillside, making a soft baaing noise. From everywhere around the woolly lambs looked up. They came running to the shepherd, bleating, and even little Snowy left Philip and ran too. The shepherd knelt down and the lambs crowded round him, nuzzling against him. Trefor had had them when they were tiny — he had looked after them, even fed some of them from bottles if their mothers had died, — and when they heard his soft call that once they had known so well, they remembered and came to him, their first friend.

A lump came into Lucy-Ann's throat. There was something very touching in the sight of that half-wild, dirty, long-haired old shepherd, calling to his lambs and being answered. Snowy the kid, eager to get close to him, leapt up on to the woolly backs of the lambs, and butted his head against him.

"Look at Snowy! Isn't he a cheeky rascal of a kid!" said Dinah. "My goodness, you can hardly see Trefor now, he's so surrounded by lambs!"

Trefor came back, smiling, his eyes very blue in his old brown face. He offered the children some bread and onions, but the onions were big and strong-smelling, and Jack felt certain Mrs. Mannering wouldn't approve if they all came back smelling strongly of Trefor's onions.

"No, thank you," he said politely. "Will you be down to see your brother tomorrow, when he brings the donkeys?"

Trefor seemed to understand this. He nodded. "I come. Tomorrow. Donkeys."

"Getting quite talkative, isn't he?" said Jack to the others. "Right, Trefor. See you tomorrow then."

They set off down the hill again. They stopped once more at the little spring to drink. They sat on the grass, looking at the towering mountains round them.

"Effans says that all those mountains over there have hardly anyone living on them, because they are difficult to get at," said Jack. "I bet there are some interesting animals and birds there. Wish we could go and see."