"Harris, Joel Chandler - Brother Rabbit's Cradle" - читать интересную книгу автора (Harris Joel Chandler)

time he see it, an' mo' dan dat, traps don' allers sketch what dey er sot fer."
He paused, looked all around, and up in the sky, where fleecy clouds were
floating lazily along, and in the tops of the trees, where the foliage was
swaying gently in the breeze. Then he looked at the little boy. "Ef I ain't gone
an' got los'," he said, "we ain't so mighty fur fum de place whar Mr. Man, once
'pon a time— not yo' time ner yit my time, but some time— tuck'n' sot a trap for
Brer Rabbit. In dem days, dey hadn't l'arnt how ter be kyarpenters, an' dish yer
trap what I'm tellin' you 'bout wuz a great big contraption. Big ez Brer Rabbit
wuz, it wuz lots too big fer him.
"Now, whiles Mr. Man wuz fixin' up dis trap, Mr. Rabbit wa'n't so mighty fur
off. He hear de saw— er-rash! er-rash!— an' he hear de hammer— bang, bang,
bang!— an' he ax hisse'f what all dis racket wuz 'bout. He see Mr. Man come
out'n his yard totin' sump'n, an' he got furder off; he see Mr. Man comin' todes
de bushes, an' he tuck ter de woods; he see 'im comin' todes de woods, an' he
tuck ter de bushes. Mr. Man tote de trap so fur an' no furder. He put it down,
he did, an' Brer Rabbit watch 'im; he put in de bait, an' Brer Rabbit watch 'im;
he fix de trigger, an' still Brer Rabbit watch 'im. Mr. Man look at de trap an'
it satchify him. He look at it an' laugh, an' when he do dat, Brer Rabbit wunk
one eye, an' wiggle his mustache, an' chaw his cud.
"An' dat ain't all he do, needer. He sot out in de bushes, he did, an' study how
ter git some game in de trap. He study so hard, an' he got so errytated, dat he
thumped his behime foot on de groun' twel it soun' like a cow dancin' out dar in
de bushes, but 'twan't no cow, ner yit no calf— 'twuz des Brer Rabbit studyin'.
Atter so long a time, he put out down de road todes dat part er de country whar
mos' er de creeturs live at. Eve'y time he hear a fuss, he'd dodge in de bushes,
kaze he wanter see who comin'. He keep on an' he keep on, an' bimeby he hear ol'
Brer Wolf trottin' down de road.
"It so happen dat Brer Wolf wuz de ve'y one what Brer Rabbit wanter see. Dey wuz
perlit ter one an'er, but dey wan't no frien'ly feelin' 'twix um. Well, here
come ol' Brer Wolf, hongrier dan a chicken-hawk on a frosty mornin', an' ez he
come up he see Brer Rabbit set by de side er de road lookin' like he done lose
all his fambly an' his friends terboot.
"Dey pass de time er day, an' den Brer Wolf kinder grin an' say, 'Laws-a-massy,
Brer Rabbit! What ail you? You look like you done had a spell er fever an' ague;
what de trouble?' 'Trouble, Brer Wolf? You ain't never see no trouble twel you
git whar I'm at. Maybe you wouldn't min' it like I does, kaze I ain't usen ter
it. But I boun' you done seed me light-minded fer de las' time. I'm done— I'm
plum wo' out,' sez Brer Rabbit, sezee. Dis make Brer Wolf open his eyes wide. He
say, 'Dis de fus' time I ever is hear you talk dat-a-way, Brer Rabbit; take yo'
time an' tell me 'bout it. I ain't had my brekkus yit, but dat don't make no
diffunce, long ez youer in trouble. I'll he'p you out ef I kin, an' mo' dan dat,
I'll put some heart in de work.' When he say dis, he grin an' show his tushes,
an' Brer Rabbit kinder edge 'way fum 'im. He say, 'Tell me de trouble, Brer
Rabbit, an' I'll do my level bes' fer ter he'p you out.'
"Wid dat, Brer Rabbit 'low dat Mr. Man done been had 'im hired fer ter take keer
er his truck patch, an' keep out de minks, de mush-rats an' de weasels. He say
dat he done so well settin' up night atter night, when he des might ez well been
in bed, dat Mr. Man prommus 'im sump'n extry 'sides de mess er greens what he
gun 'im eve'y day. Atter so long a time, he say, Mr. Man 'low dat he gwineter
make 'im a present uv a cradle so he kin rock de little Rabs ter sleep when dey