Эдвард Лир - Лимерики и баллады

There was an Old Man with a beard,
Who said, 'It is just as I feared!
Two Owls and a Hen,
Four Larks and a Wren,
Have all built their nests in my beard!'

Говорил бородатый старик: 1.1
«Я совсем от покоя отвык —
Шебуршат, как в гнезде,
У меня в бороде
Две совы, утка, дрозд и кулик!»

There was an Old Man with a nose,
Who said, 'If you choose to suppose,
That my nose is too long,
You are certainly wrong!'
That remarkable Man with a nose.

Пожилой господин на Таити 1.3
Говорил: «Если вы говорите,
Что мой нос длинноват,
В том не я виноват,
А избыток дождей на Таити».

There was an Old Man with a gong,
Who bumped at it all day long;
But they called out, 'O law!
You're a horrid old bore!'
So they smashed that Old Man with a gong.

Жил один старичок из Гонконга, 1.8
Танцевавший под музыку гонга.
Но ему объявили:
«Прекрати это – или
Убирайся совсем из Гонконга!»

There was a Young Lady of Portugal,
Whose ideas were excessively nautical:
She climbed up a tree,
To examine the sea,
But declared she would never leave Portugal.

Жила старушонка в Шербуре 1.16
С душой, вечно жаждавшей бури.
Забравшись на сук,
Она долго на юг
Глядела: не видно ли бури?

There was an Old Person of Hurst,
Who drank when he was not athirst;
When they said, 'You'll grw fatter,'
He answered, 'What matter?'
That globular Person of Hurst.

Полноватый старик из Британии 1.21
Был порою несдержан в питании.
На совет есть пореже
Он кричал: «Вы невежи!» —
Толстопузый старик из Британии

There was an Old Man who supposed,
That the street door was partially closed;
But some very large rats,
Ate his coats and his hats,
While that futile old gentleman dozed.

Задремавший один старичок 1.27
Думал: дверь заперта на крючок.
Но один толстый крыс
Его шляпу изгрыз,
А другой – съел его сюртучок.

There was a Young Lady of Norway,
Who casually sat on a doorway;
When the door squeezed her flat,
She exclaimed, 'What of that?'
This courageous Young Lady of Norway.

Злополучную даму в Байраме 1.31
Много раз прищемляло дверями.
«А может быть, впредь
В дверях не сидеть?» —
Подумала дама в Байраме

There was an Old Person whose habits,
Induced him to feed upon rabbits;
When he'd eaten eighteen,
He turned perfectly green,
Upon which he relinquished those habits.

Жил один старичок из Непала, 1.33
Всё глотавший, что в рот ни попало.
Но, съев десять кроликов,
Он умер от коликов —
Неуёмный старик из Непала.

There was an Old Person of Dover,
Who rushed through a field of blue Clover;
But some very large bees,
Stung his nose and his knees,
So he very soon went back to Dover.

Жил-был старичок между ульями, 1.34
От пчел отбивавшийся стульями.
Но он не учел
Числа этих пчел
И пал смертью храбрых меж ульями.

The was a Young Lady of Bute,
Who played on a silver-gilt flute;
She played several jigs,
To her uncle's white pigs,
That amusing Young Lady of Bute.

Одна гувернантка в Кувейте 1.40
Так мило играла на флейте,
Что хрюкать ей в лад
Был счастлив и рад
Любой поросенок в Кувейте.

There was a Young Lady whose nose,
Was so long that it reached to her toes;
So she hired an Old Lady,
Whose conduct was steady,
To carry that wonderful nose.

Жила-была дева в Галиции, 1.41
Чей нос перерос все кондиции.
Пришлось вызывать
Несчастную мать —
Носить этот нос по Галиции.

There was an Old Man with a poker,
Who painted his face with red oker
When they said, 'You're a Guy!'
He made no reply,
But knocked them all down with his poker.