CHAPTER 27, part 2 KAPITEL 27, Teil 2

Away scattered the goblins in every  direction--into closets, up stairs, into chimneys, up on rafters, and down to the cellars. Curdie went on stamping and slashing and singing, but saw nothing of the people of the house until he came to the great hall, in which, the moment he entered it, arose a great goblin shout. Курди продолжал топтать ногами, рубить и петь, но не видел никого из обитателей дома, пока не подошел к большому залу, в котором, как только он вошел, раздался оглушительный гоблинский крик. The last of the men-at-arms, the captain himself, was on the floor, buried beneath a wallowing crowd of goblins. For, while each knight was busy defending himself as well as he could, by stabs in the thick bodies of the goblins, for he had soon found their heads all but invulnerable, the queen had attacked his legs and feet with her horrible granite shoe, and he was soon down; but the captain had got his back to the wall and stood out longer. Ибо, пока каждый рыцарь защищался как мог, нанося удары в толстые тела гоблинов, так как вскоре он обнаружил, что их головы почти неуязвимы, королева атаковала его ноги и ступни своей ужасной гранитной туфелькой, и вскоре он упал; но капитан встал спиной к стене и стоял дольше. The goblins would have torn them all to pieces, but the king had given orders to carry them away alive, and over each of them, in twelve groups, was standing a knot of  goblins, while as many as could find room were sitting upon their prostrate bodies. Гоблины разорвали бы их всех на куски, но король приказал унести их живыми, и над каждым из них, в двенадцати группах, стояла группа гоблинов, а все, кто мог уместиться, сидели на своих распростертые тела.

Curdie burst in dancing and gyrating and stamping and singing like a small incarnate whirlwind.

'Where 'tis all a hole, sir, Never can be holes:

Why should their shoes have soles, sir,

When they've got no souls? 'But she upon her foot, sir, Has a granite shoe:

The strongest leather boot, sir,

Six would soon be through.' The queen gave a howl of rage and dismay; and before she recovered her presence of mind, Curdie, having begun with the group nearest him, had eleven of the knights on their legs again. Королева взвыла от ярости и смятения; и прежде чем она пришла в себя, Курди, начав с ближайшей к нему группы, снова поставил на ноги одиннадцать рыцарей.

'Stamp on their feet!' he cried as each man rose, and in a few minutes the hall was nearly empty, the goblins running from it as fast as they could, howling and shrieking and limping, and cowering every now and then as they ran to cuddle their wounded feet in their hard hands, or to protect them from the frightful stamp-stamp of the armed men.

And now Curdie approached the group which, in trusting in the queen and her shoe, kept their guard over the prostrate captain. The king sat on the captain's head, but the queen stood in front, like an infuriated cat, with her perpendicular eyes gleaming green, and her hair standing half up from her horrid head. Her heart was quaking, however, and she kept moving about her skin-shod foot with nervous apprehension. Однако сердце ее трепетало, и она с нервным опасением продолжала переминаться с обутой в кожу ногой. When Curdie was within a few paces, she rushed at him, made one tremendous stamp at his opposing foot, which happily he withdrew in time, and caught him round the waist, to dash him on the marble floor. Когда Курди был в нескольких шагах, она бросилась на него, с силой ударила его противоположной ногой, которую он, к счастью, вовремя отдернул, и схватила его за талию, швырнув на мраморный пол. But just as she caught him, he came down with all the weight of his iron-shod shoe upon her skin-shod foot, and with a hideous howl she dropped him,  squatted on the floor, and took her foot in both her hands. Но как только она поймала его, он всей тяжестью своего кованого башмака навалился на ее обутую кожу ногу, и она с отвратительным воем уронила его, присела на пол и взяла обеими руками ее ногу. Meanwhile the rest rushed on the king and the bodyguard, sent them flying, and lifted the prostrate captain, who was all but pressed to death. Тем временем остальные бросились на короля и телохранителя, отшвырнули их и подняли поверженного капитана, который был чуть ли не насмерть придавлен. It was some moments before he recovered breath and consciousness.

'Where's the princess?' cried Curdie, again and again.

No one knew, and off they all rushed in search of her.