"Valentin Katayev. The Cottage in the Steppe (англ.)" - читать интересную книгу автора

smash the crockery, blow a whistle, bark, mew, ring a bell, shout "Catch
him! Hold him!", stamp his feet to give the effect of a running mob, and
dump on the floor a crate of broken glass, drowning out the unmerciful
pounding on the battered keys that was Ma dame Valiadis' contribution on the
other side of the screen.
Petya helped Gavrik on several occasions. The two of them would raise
such a rumpus behind the screen that crowds would gather in the street. The
popularity of the electric theatre grew tremendously.
But the avaricious widow was far from satisfied. Aware that the public
liked politics, she ordered Zingertal to freshen up his repertoire with
something political, and then raised the price of admission. Zingertal
shrugged his shoulders, smiled his Mephistophelian smile and said, "As you
wish"; next day he appeared with a new number entitled "Neckties, neckties"
instead of the old "The soldier boys are marching."
Pressing the tiny violin to his shoulder with his blue horse-like chin,
he flourished his bow, winked slyly at the audience, and, hinting at
Stolypin, began:


Our Premier, Mr. X,
Hangs ties on people's necks,
A habit which we dreadfully deplore....


Zingertal was thrown out of the city within twenty-four hours; Madame
Valiadis, forced to piay enormous bribes to the police and to close her
"illusion," was ruined, while Gavrik was paid only a quarter of what he had
earned.






GAVRIK'S DREAM




Now Gavrik was standing next to 'Petya in a greasy blue cotton smock
over a tattered coat with a worn-out Astrakhan collar and cap to match, like
those warn by middle-aged bookbinders, type-setters and waiters. ' Petya
realized immediately that his friend had changed jobs again and was earning
his daily bread at some other trade.
Gavrik was going on fifteen. His voice had changed to a youthful bass.
He had not grown very much, but his shoulders were broader and stronger, and
there were fewer freckles on his nose. His features had become more definite
and his clear eyes were firm. And yet, there was still much of the child
about him-such as his deliberate rolling sailor's gait, his habit of
wrinkling his round forehead when puzzled by something- and his amazing