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     ,   1888 . ,  , .  ,         ,         ,      .        :       ,      .  ,    ,      .

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     ,   1888 . ,  , .  ,         ,         ,      .        :       ,      .  ,    ,      .

    -,        ,   ,     .      .



  .., 2026.



Fergus Hume  

Madame Midas  



Prologue Cast Away by the Sea   

The wild, gloomy coastline with its long, surf-lashed headlands defied the turbulent waves, which furiously lashed against the solid rocks, leaving sheets of seething foam at their feet.     ,       ,      ,       .

In the distance, two such capes were visible.     . Bordered by jagged rocks, they extended far into the sea and gradually disappeared under the rising waves;   ,           ; only stripes of white foam flashed from time to time on the dark green waves, indicating that stones were hidden under the water.          - ,   ,     . The two capes were separated by about half a mile of yellow sandy shore, onto which the waves rolled with a dull roar, throwing multi-colored curls of seaweed and elegant shells onto the wet sand.        ,       ,           .

In the depths of the coast, cliffs rose in a semicircle, black and steep, about a hundred feet high.      ,   ,     . Flocks of white gulls nesting on the cliffs with discordant cries circled above the rocks or rushed towards the sea on outstretched, rigid wings.                     .

The pale green border on the tops of the rugged cliffs indicated that grass grew there. -        ,    . From a bird's eye view, one could see that the grass gradually gave way to vast pastures, breaking off near the forest thickets, and beyond the thickets rose gigantic mountains, their peaks covered with snow.       ,       ,    ,      ,    .

And over the wild, barren shore and the strangely contrasting peaceful highlands hung a blazing red sky It was not the gentle pink of an ordinary sunset, but a furious, inflamed crimson, painting the wet sand and the dark expanse of the ocean the color of blood.                        ,    ,          .

Far to the west the sun, a ball of molten fire, was sinking behind snow-capped peaks crossed by long lines of dark clouds;             ,     ; they looked like prison bars through which a furious eye peers.     ,    -  .

And in the east, a huge black cloud was rising towards the zenith, strangely reminiscent of a giant hand, which was threateningly stretching its long, thin fingers towards the earth, as if it was about to seize it and drag it into a dark, bloody sea.         ,     ,        ,          . Another cruel, strange scene, fantastic, unreal and bizarre, like one of Dor's amazing drawings.   ,  , ,   ,      .

Suddenly a black dot appeared on the red waters:       : It rose and fell on the tireless waves, and each new wave drew it closer and closer to the gloomy cliffs and the sandy shore.   ,     ,              .

There was no more than a mile left to the shore What from afar seemed like a speck turned out to be a boat.        ,    ,  . The most ordinary skiff, painted a dull white, badly battered by the waves, easily tossing it across the scarlet sea.   ,   - ,   ,       . The small sail of a single-masted vessel, all torn and patched, miraculously survived and, filled with the wind, pulled the boat to the shore.    ,    , -   ,  ,    .

There were two people in the fragile little vessel:      : one of them, kneeling on the bow of the boat, shaded his eyes from the sun with his hands and gazed greedily at the cliffs.   ,      ,          . The other sat in the center of the boat in a pose expressing sullen humility, and, with his head bowed, held the taut sail with the help of a strong rope wrapped around his wrist.       ,   , ,  ,           .

Both sailors remained silent until they were just a short distance from the shore.    ,       . Then the man at the bow stood up  tall, haggard  and with a rough, triumphant laugh stretched out his hands towards the harsh shore.       ,            .

Finally!  -! he exclaimed tensely and hoarsely in a language foreign to these parts.            . Finally, freedom!  - !

The second did not respond in any way to the outburst of feelings of his companion:         : he continued to stare at the bottom of the boat, where a small barrel lay and a bag of moldy biscuits lay around  all that was left of their supplies after a long journey.      ,           ,        .

The man standing at the bow apparently did not expect to hear his comrade's answer and did not even turn his head to look at him.   ,  ,           ,    . The man stood with his arms crossed over his chest, gazing eagerly ahead Finally, another wave abruptly threw the boat onto the shore, causing him to fly upside down onto the wet sand. He quickly jumped up and, running a few steps along the shore, turned to see how his companion was doing.  ,    ,           ,        ,   ,     , ,  ,      .

The second sailor also fell into the sea, but rose to his feet and was now squeezing the water out of his rough clothes.      ,           .

Seeing a water-worn boulder lying on the shore, the tall man walked up to it and sat down.       ,       . Meanwhile, his companion, obviously with a more practical mind, collected the stale biscuits that had fallen out of his bag, carefully shouldered the barrel and, joining his comrade, dropped his burden at his feet.    ,      ,      ,      ,    ,      . Then he stretched out wearily on the sand, took a biscuit and began to chew measuredly.      ,      .

The tall man pulled a tin bowl from his bosom and nodded towards the barrel on which his companion had laid out his biscuits.   -         ,       . Having thrown them off, he lifted the barrel and pulled out the plug, after which some water flowed into the tin bowl.  ,      ,        . Without getting up from the stone, the tall man drank everything to the last drop and threw the bowl onto the sand.    ,          . His companion, realizing that there was nothing left in the barrel, stared at his comrade with a wolfish gaze.  , ,      ,     . But the one sitting on the boulder did not pay the slightest attention to his friend's gloomy look:              : he also began to chew a biscuit, looking around.     ,   .

These two sea vagabonds, washed up by the sea on an uninhabited shore, were completely different from each other.    ,     ,       .

The one sitting on the boulder was a tall, frail young man of about thirty, with a leonine mane of reddish hair and a short, bristly beard of the same color. ,    ,  ,      ,            . His face, pale and haggard from malnutrition, was thin and intelligent.  ,     ,    . In his black eyes, which contrasted in color with his hair, sparkles danced, which, although not offensive, inspired in everyone whom this man looked at an uneasy feeling of insecurity.   ,     ,  , ,     ,  ,       ,   . Above his eyes arched thin, chiseled eyebrows;      ; the young man's hands, although rough and dirty, were also thin and graceful, and even the trampled heavy boots could not hide the beauty of the build of his straight and strong legs.   ,     ,     ,               . He was wearing a rough blue suit, all torn, stained with sea water;      ,  ,     ; on his red shock of tangled hair, by some miracle, a red knitted hat was held on.      -     .

After a while, the young man threw aside his half-eaten biscuit and looked at his companion with a cynical smile.                  . The man lying at his feet was rough and awkward, squat, heavy-built, with black hair and a thick black beard.         , ,  ,         . His arms were long and muscular, his bare feet were large and clumsy;      ,      ; his whole appearance indicated that he was a commoner.      ,    . It was impossible to determine the color of his eyes, because he stubbornly looked at the ground with such a sullen and threatening expression on his face that he seemed an extremely unattractive person.   ,     ,              ,     .

The young man looked at him with a cold, appraising gaze for a moment, then rose to his feet with difficulty.          ,      .

So, he began quickly in French, waving his hand towards the gloomy cliffs, so, my Pierre, we are in the promised land.  ,     -,      ,  ,  ,    . Although, I must admit, he shrugged dismissively, this land does not look so promised. ,  ,     ,         . And yet, we are on dry land, and that is magnificent!  -   ,   ! How many days we were tossed about in a stupid boat, where only a couple of planks separated us from death!       ,        !

The young man shrugged again expressively.      .

 Bah!  ! Why should I call this boat stupid?       ? It carried us away from New Caledonia, that hell on earth, and delivered us safe and sound to a land that may well turn out to be paradise.      ,    ,       ,     . We must not show ungratefulness towards the bridge that brought us to Hey, my friend!         ,     ,  !

The man, whose name was Pierre, nodded to show that he heard, then pointed in the direction where the boat remained. ,   ,    ,  ,     ,   . His companion also looked there and saw that the tide had begun to come in and the boat was slowly floating away from the shore.       ,         .

I suppose shes returning to her rightful owner, the young man said calmly.  ,      ,     . Well, let her sail then.      . We dont need her anymore, because now, like Caesar, we have crossed the Rubicon.     ,    ,  ,  . We are no longer convicts in a French prison, my friend, but shipwrecked sailors Do you hear?       ,  ,     ?

His black eyes flashed.    .

- Shipwrecked sailors!    ! And I will tell everyone the story of the shipwreck.        . Fortunately, I can rely on your prudence, since you are speechless and will not be able to object to me!  ,      ,          ! However, you would not object even if you could speak. ,     ,      .

The mute stood up slowly and pointed to the cliffs that towered menacingly above them.       ,    . The young man shrugged his shoulders carelessly in response to the unspoken thought.          .

We must climb there, he declared without thinking.     ,   ,  . And lets hope that the summit is not as inhospitable as this shore.    ,       ,   . I dont know where we are now;   ,   ; I only know that we are in Australia.  ,   . And there is gold in Australia, my friend, and we must grab our share!     ,  ,      ! Lets put our Gallic wit against English stupidity  and see who wins.          ,  . You have the strength, I have the brains, so great things await us.    ,    ,     . But He meaningfully placed his hand on his comrades chest.         . We do not retreat and we spare no one!       ! Do you hear what I say? ,   ?

The mute nodded furiously and rubbed his clumsy hands with pleasure.         .

You havent read Balzac, my friend, the young man continued, as if conducting a dialogue.     ,  ,    ,   . Otherwise, I would have quoted Rastignac to you.       . A war has begun between us and society.      . But although you have no knowledge, you have will, and that is enough for me.       ,    ,    . Forward, lets take the first step towards our wealth! ,      !

With these words he turned and, without looking back, walked towards the nearest cape.      ,  ,    . The mute, with his head bowed, followed him with an awkward gait. ,  ,     .

Rain and wind had been at work for a long time on the cape;      ; thanks to their combined efforts, huge stones had fallen from the rocks, which now lay in disorderly heaps at the base of the cliffs.    ,     ,        . On these stones one could find uncomfortable but strong ledges for feet, and the two adventurers, with great difficulty - for they were weak after the privations they had endured on the journey from New Caledonia - managed to climb up to the middle of the cliff.       ,     ,             ,        ,      . Here they stopped their ascent to catch their breath and look around.    ,      .

The men were in a dangerous position, suspended on a narrow ledge between heaven and earth, and the slightest false step could cost them their lives.     ,         ,        . The enormous rock that towered above them was almost vertical, but here and there there were notches in it that they could use to try to climb up.        ,        ,       . True, such an attempt promised almost certain death, but the two were completely reckless people and knew that ,      ,         : if they managed to reach the top, they would be safe.      ,    . Therefore, the men firmly decided to try to overcome the second half of the climb.         .

Since we dont have eagle wings, friend Pierre, said the young man, looking around, we must climb to where we can find support for our feet.       ,  ,    ,   ,     ,      . God will protect us And if He doesnt protect us, he added with a mocking grin, the devil always looks after his own!        ,      ,       !

He crawled along the narrow ledge and with great difficulty climbed into a niche at the top, clinging to the sparse weeds that grew in the crevices of the barren cliff.             ,     ,      . Pierre followed him, and the young man, meanwhile, continued to climb without stopping, clinging to protruding stones, long strands of coarse grass and everything that he could grope with his hands.    ,         ,    ,       ,     . From time to time, some seabird with wild cries flew into the faces of the people, and from sudden fright they almost lost their footing.    -         ,           .

As they climbed, the grass became thicker and the cliff slope became more sloping, and the last part of the climb became much easier for them.       ,      ,         .

Finally, after half an hour of difficult trials, the travelers managed to reach the top and, out of breath, threw themselves onto the short dry grass that bordered the rough cliff. ,    ,      , ,     ,   .

Lying almost unconscious from fatigue and hunger, the people heard, as if in a bad dream, the drowsy noise of the waves below and the discordant cries of seagulls circling around their nests, to which the disturbed birds were in no hurry to return.        ,  ,    ,        ,    ,       .

The rest did the comrades good;     ; they were soon able to get up and assess the situation.       .

On one side the sea stretched out before them, on the other  a grassy hilly area with clumps of trees growing here and there.       ,       ,        . Because of the rapidly thickening shadows of the night, the trees seemed grey and blurred. -         . The fugitives also saw horses and cows wandering in the fields in the distance  meaning that there was human habitation nearby.      ,      ,    .

Suddenly, in a distant house that the two men had not noticed at first, a bright light shone.    ,      ,   . For the weary sea wanderers, this light became a star of hope.         .

They exchanged silent glances, and the young man turned back to the sea.   ,       .

 Behind us,  he said, pointing to the east,  a French prison and two ruined lives  yours and mine.  ,   ,   ,           . But ahead  he turned to the fertile fields  wealth, food and freedom!  ,      ,  ,   ! Come, my friend; ,  ; let this light, our star of hope, guide us  and who knows what glory awaits us?     ,       ,    ? Our old life is no more We are starting a new one in this new world, fully armed with bitter experience, which will give us wisdom.            ,    ,    . So come, my silent friend!   ,   !

And the man moved slowly down the slope towards the fields, and the mute followed him, still with his head down, with the same expression of sullen resignation on his face.         ,     ,     ,       .

The sun disappeared behind the snow ridge, and when the red light died away, the night threw a grey veil over the sky.     ,     ,      . Here and there the stars shone.     . The seabirds found their nests again, their discordant cries died away      ,    

T




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   ,     (https://www.litres.ru/book/fergius-kh-ium-34117012/madam-midas-anglo-russkaia-bilingva-74668897/)  .

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