The boy went, and re-appeared five minutes afterwards, struggling with an antediluvian chunk of wood (мальчик ушел и появился вновь через пять минут, таща с трудом какой-то допотопный деревянный чурбан; to struggle — бороться, биться; стараться изо всех сил), that looked as though it had been recently dug out of somewhere (который выглядел так, будто его недавно выкопали откуда-то; to dig out), and dug out carelessly, so as to have been unnecessarily damaged in the process (и выкопали неосторожно, так, что сильно повредили при этом; unnecessarily — чрезмерно, излишне).

antediluvian [,&ntIdI'lu:vI@n] recently ['ri:s(@)ntlI]

I was one of a party who hired an up-river boat one summer, for a few days' trip. We had none of us ever seen the hired up-river boat before; and we did not know what it was when we did see it.

We had written for a boat — a double sculling skiff; and when we went down with our bags to the yard, and gave our names, the man said:

"Oh, yes; you're the party that wrote for a double sculling skiff. It's all right. Jim, fetch round The Pride of the Thames."

The boy went, and re-appeared five minutes afterwards, struggling with an antediluvian chunk of wood, that looked as though it had been recently dug out of somewhere, and dug out carelessly, so as to have been unnecessarily damaged in the process.

My own idea, on first catching sight of the object, was that it was a Roman relic of some sort (моя мысль = я подумал, когда впервые увидел эту вещь, что это какие-то римские остатки; relic — след, остаток, пережиток; реликт), — relic of what I do not know, possibly of a coffin (остатки чего — не знаю, возможно, гроба).

The neighbourhood of the upper Thames is rich in Roman relics (местность верхней Темзы богата римскими древностями), and my surmise seemed to me a very probable one (и мое предположение казалось мне очень возможным); but our serious young man, who is a bit of a geologist, pooh-poohed my Roman relic theory (но серьезный молодой человек, который немного геолог/кое-что смыслит в геологии, отнесся небрежно к моей теории римских древностей), and said it was clear to the meanest intellect (in which category he seemed to be grieved that he could not conscientiously include mine) (сказал, что самому посредственному уму ясно /в разряд которых он явно был опечален, что не может добросовестно включить мой) that the thing the boy had found was the fossil of a whale (что предмет, который нашел мальчик, — окаменелые останки кита; fossil — ископаемое, окаменелость); and he pointed out to us various evidences proving that it must have belonged to the preglacial period (и он обратил наше внимание на разнообразные признаки, доказывающие, что это относилось к доледниковому периоду; evidence — ясность, основание; знак, признак; свидетельство, доказательство).

relic ['relIk] surmise [s@'maIz] conscientiously [,kOnSI'enS@slI] fossil [fOsl] preglacial [,pri:'gleIS(@)l]

My own idea, on first catching sight of the object, was that it was a Roman relic of some sort, — relic of what I do not know, possibly of a coffin.

The neighbourhood of the upper Thames is rich in Roman relics, and my surmise seemed to me a very probable one; but our serious young man, who is a bit of a geologist, pooh-poohed my Roman relic theory, and said it was clear to the meanest intellect (in which category he seemed to be grieved that he could not conscientiously include mine) that the thing the boy had found was the fossil of a whale; and he pointed out to us various evidences proving that it must have belonged to the preglacial period.

To settle the dispute, we appealed to the boy (чтобы разрешить спор, мы обратились к мальчику). We told him not to be afraid, but to speak the plain truth (сказали ему не бояться и сказать нам чистую правду): Was it the fossil of a pre-Adamite whale, or was it an early Roman coffin (было ли это ископаемыми останками доисторического кита или древнеримским гробом; Adamite — потомок Адама, человек)?

The boy said it was The Pride of the Thames (мальчик сказал, что это «Гордость Темзы»).

We thought this a very humorous answer on the part of the boy at first (сначала мы сочли это очень забавным ответом /со стороны/ мальчика), and somebody gave him twopence as a reward for his ready wit (и кто-то дал ему два пенса в качестве награды за его остроумие; ready — готовый; легкий, быстрый; wit — остроумие, ум); but when he persisted in keeping up the joke, as we thought, too long, we got vexed with him (но когда он упорно продолжал повторять эту шутку, то он начал раздражать нас; to keep up — поддерживать; продолжать; to vex — досаждать, раздражать).

"Come, come, my lad (ну, ну, мой мальчик)!" said our captain sharply (сказал резко наш капитан), "don't let us have any nonsense (довольно глупостей). You take your mother's washing-tub home again, and bring us a boat (унеси корыто своей мамы обратно домой и приведи нам лодку; tub — кадка, бадья; бочонок, бочка)."

reward [rI'wO:d] captain ['k&ptIn]

To settle the dispute, we appealed to the boy. We told him not to be afraid, but to speak the plain truth: Was it the fossil of a pre-Adamite whale, or was it an early Roman coffin?